WikiLeaks Comment: The Blast Shack

By Bruce Sterling for Webstock.  Xymphora's comment on Sterling's article is correct; "Bruce Sterling on Assange is worth reading but it isn't anything near as good as it ought to be." 

Sterling makes some terrific observations regarding the rapidly morphing monolith in progress Julian Assange, the process of diplomacy, hacker mentality, the real difficulty in his future prosecution, and some other thought provoking perspectives(Like the incompatible notions of transparency and discretion.  Sounds simple enough, right?  Think about how both are equally valued in our political system.  WikiLeaks has forced, sometime in the future, debate about which we value more, or how to more efficiently compromise both these principles to the maximum displeasure of most citizens..) that will effect policy, politics, and technology from here on out.

My problem with Sterling's work is seemingly at first tangential (And can be partially overlooked due to how many word perfect summations he offers), but still, it bothers me.  He dismisses Bradley Manning's motivations and technical ability fairly casually, as he has met many other hackers from similar backgrounds(Sterling is from that community, too), applying a general cyber/geek personality (consumed with boredom and a bit unstable) overview to Manning, but I disagree.  While his assessment of Assange feels right(Based on everything I've personally seen..), Sterling seems too jaded to acknowledge Manning as "True Believer," (as opposed to simply bored..)and and fundamentally misunderstands why Manning did what he did.(As an aside, it's not hard to find reference to Manning's consistent-since-childhood, unique, moral resolute-ness, which is why Sterling's misfire is so baffling:  With a little research, a completely different portrait of Manning appears, less desperate, less awkward, more concerned with the essence(s) of Right and Wrong (I also find it interesting he's a Sagittarius..) than Sterling bothers to admit or convey.  Probably Sterling is not familiar with this type(as they probably few in number in his circles of association), he cannot contend with the idea that Bradley Manning believed (as True Believers would be liable to believe) leaking these cables was the morally correct thing to do.  While Sterling understands Assange, Manning and his motives eludes him. 

This is not necessarily important to Sterling's narrative, which ultimately describes Julian Assange as:  Ray Croc, McDonald's-izing the process of mass distribution of information/leaks, the human embodiment of the Internet,  the global diplomatic homewrecker who has forever altered  how our State Department proceeds and is seen, and how, despite his cynical expectations, Assange's actions could have a perverting, un-intended consequences effect on the U.S. and global populace regarding State to State interaction.  Sterling's understanding of (and empathy for) Assange, clearly stated:

I don’t say these cruel things about Julian Assange because I feel distant from him, but, on the contrary, because I feel close to him. I don’t doubt the two of us would have a lot to talk about. I know hordes of men like him; it’s just that they are programmers, mathematicians, potheads and science fiction fans instead of fiercely committed guys who aspire to topple the international order and replace it with subversive wikipedians.
..
Well… every once in a while, a situation that’s one-in-a-thousand is met by a guy who is one in a million. It may be that Assange is, somehow, up to this situation. Maybe he’s gonna grow in stature by the massive trouble he has caused. Saints, martyrs, dissidents and freaks are always wild-cards, but sometimes they’re the only ones who can clear the general air. Sometimes they become the catalyst for historical events that somehow had to happen. They don’t have to be nice guys; that’s not the point. Julian Assange did this; he direly wanted it to happen. He planned it in nitpicky, obsessive detail. Here it is; a planetary hack.

I don’t have a lot of cheery hope to offer about his all-too-compelling gesture, but I dare to hope he’s everything he thinks he is, and much, much, more.

I have problems with Sterling's assessment because he assigns the future power of the entire WikiLeaks phenomenon to Assange and a cynical legion of hackers just like him, and therefore can't see or factor the serendipitous power of other True Believers, how they will(and have) react(ed), and how the other Bradley Manning's of this unfolding event will influence the global direction of what these two very different men have wrought.
What-  Will happen-  Next?

Bradley Manning Is So Much More Intelligent Than The Official Line Portrays Him..

WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning "designed Facebook" as a schoolboy, friends say

This person sounds much more.. capable of the know how needed to engineer such a massive transfer of information, and the thoughtfulness to understand and stand up for his beliefs and motivations. Excerpts:

Bradley Manning, the prime suspect in the leaking of top secret documents to the WikiLeaks website, was such a computer expert that he designed a version of Facebook years before modern social networking sites took off, friends have disclosed.

Friends remember the teenager as a shy schoolboy who was determined to speak his mind and “had his own sense of right and wrong”.

"He produced a website with another schoolmate. It was pre-Facebook. It was like a community site. It didn’t really lift off, but it was a good idea.

"It was pretty much a social networking site before its time. You could log in and find out about local news."
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..Those who befriended Manning when he arrived in Wales aged 13, after his parents divorced, suggested that he had always possessed some of the character traits which may have prompted the biggest-ever leaks of confidential information from the US government.

Mr Dyer told Channel 4 News that Manning had quickly established a reputation for computer expertise at his West Wales comprehensive.
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He said: “He's always had this sense that 'I'm going to right a big wrong'. He was like that at school.

Mr Dyer insisted that Manning never meant any harm but was simply determined to stand his own ground.

"He has his own sense of what is right or wrong,” he added. “It’s not directed against another person in particular. He's certainly not malicious in any of his actions."

This portrait of Manning doesn't really fit the Lady Ga Ga narrative pushed when the story initially broke. Will his early friends stand by and not respond to the "Manning is treasonous" talk thrown around the punditsphere? I find the differing reactions to the event so far very interesting. The calls for Assange's arrest, execution(Very Christlike, Mike, by the way..), assassination, re-classification as terrorist, and yet, fascination with the cables they might have interest in...**Like this:

I would not want to be in Mr. Assange's shoes right now. Assange gave an interview to Forbes earlier this month. Wikileaks is supposed to be unveiling a major U.S. banking scandal in early 2011, consisting of thousands of documents obtained from a major U.S. financial firm (Goldman Sachs ??? Those are some documents I wouldn't mind seeing). **

Ron Paul, though, gets it right.. "In a free society we're supposed to know the truth," Paul said. "In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble. And now, people who are revealing the truth are getting into trouble for it."

I can't attribute this yet, but something I picked up this week's readings was this: If the government can know all of your secrets and peer into so many aspects of your private life, why shouldn't they be held by the same standard? Do not forget, they indeed work for us; not us for them. Whether or not you agree with Bradley Manning's actions, it does sound like he stands behind his convictions and probably hasn't changed his mind about what he has brought about. This story becomes more compelling with each passing day..