When Is A State Secret A Secret

As the fallout from the recent Wikileaks dump continues to irradiate the U.S. and it’s allies, a curious insidious development is beginning to take shape. This pertains to the first amendment - you know the one about free speech - which essentially protects journalists from prosecution by the various levels of government. It does not however equally protect the leaker. These types of prosecutions use to be bastion of Communist or Third World countries, but it seems the U.S. now wants in. Claims it's secrets have been stolen leaked by naughty people.

It is interesting to note that the U.S. government and it’s infinite subsidiaries continue to reward “whistle blowers” who leak any and all info given them that relates to it’s citizenry or it’s corporate partners or whoever is the “enemy of the day.” That type of leaking is just fine and dandy. But Oh No, don’t let any citizen learn what this government is really up to.

As the prosecution prepares to go after the “bad” guys for leaking "state secrets"- Sarah Palin urged (maybe we should send Sarah over to Europe with a moose rifle, a bag of jerky and a can of Skoal) we pursue Mr. Assange as forcefully as we prosecute the Taliban or Al Qaeda even going to the point of using the Espionage Act of 1917 - which has never before been used with respect to journalism.





In fact, The Weekly Standards own William Kristol has suggested we (the U.S. government) ...”to neutralize Julian Assange and his collaborators.” i.e. Assassinate them. What exactly has become of this “everyone is equal under the law country?” Sharky&Sharky are starting to get scared, REALLY scared, of it’s own government.

One would think that other media outlets would come to the aid of Wikileaks. Few have. The Washington Post, one of the very few, has voiced it’s opinion that the U.S. do NOT prosecute Mr. Assange. Most major newspapers and magazines have been decidedly mute on the subject - in fact the New York Times has yet to take an editorial stance one way or the other - perhaps because they have been threatened with prosecution as well for publishing some of the Wikileaks content. Whatever the case, the board of Investigative Reporters and Editors, a non-profit group, urged “great restraint” so as not to undermine free press and open government. Open government? Sharky&Sharky would like to know the last time this government was “open?”

The slope on this one is slippery - more slippery than all the oil BP spilled in the Gulf.

So when is a secret really a secret?


When the government tells you it is.

Stay tuned.

©Sharky&Sharky