Assange warns that any government that tries to curtail his activities risks triggering a new deluge of state and commercial secrets.
The military papers on Guantanamo Bay, yet to be published, have been supplied by Bradley Manning, Assange’s primary source until his arrest in May. Other documents that Assange is confirmed to possess include an aerial video of a U.S. airstrike in Afghanistan that killed civilians, BP files and Bank of America documents.
One of the key files available for download — named insurance.aes256 — appears to be encrypted with a 256-digit key. Experts said last week it was virtually unbreakable.
You had to have figured that Assange had something like this, a mutually assured destruction type backup plan, in case his site was obliterated. Putting out an example file and daring the NSA to break it is a damn good way to assure the US and other governments that he has the goods as well, and that calling his bluff would be a bad idea if he's actually holding the cards. Should the NSA be able to break the file's encryption, they only learn how serious Assange is on his threats.
Even better, you have to assume now that people will be ready to believe whatever this insurance file contains, even if it's fantastic or not. Assange has the credibility right now based on the massively disproportionate reaction by world governments to his cable leaks. If Assange tomorrow completely fabricated files tomorrow purporting contact with aliens from another solar system, he'd have more credibility than world governments right now, and all sides know it. Even if the NSA is unable to break encryption on the file, they have to take that into account.
That's why the lunatic idea of openly calling for Assange's assassination plays right into his hands and ironically makes his position stronger. The calls for such action are by no means new but are increasingly getting louder...and more self-defeating by the day.
It's a hell of a dangerous game he's playing, but so far Julian Assange is playing it well.
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7 comments:
We are offically getting into spy shit.
No, he is not playing it well. Nobody should have ever known who he was.
Assange's attention whoring is going to get him killed.
Like announcing that he's releasing bank documents--never mind fucking with the US government--now he's going to cost somebody money? Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb. That is going to get his organization shut down.
He's not just messing with the US. He's demonstrating that anybody can have their secrets published. That is what is going to get him killed.
What a dumbass.
Maybe. He's been winning so far.
I really don't think so. What's this release done? Embarrassed some US career diplomats.
Probably got those Iranian nuke scientists killed.
It hasn't (and will not) stop the US effort in Afghanistan or Iraq.
It might ultimately get Hillary Clinton to resign, but probably not.
I can tell you though, that I will bet cash money that it got Bradley Manning's chain of command fired--probably up through Brigade.
Winning?
Assange is bloody mist before New Year's.
He's fucked with the wrong people now.
I dunno. My thought about the public display is that while he's exposed and obvious, he can't be "disappeared" either.
Oh sure he can. Where is he right now?
Although it almost isn't worth going after him, per se, because the issue is more with those that actually deliver information to Wikileaks--it's nothing if there are not people like Manning to give over stuff.
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