#1 Whistleblower
Vietnam — 1973
Daniel Ellsberg
Congressional Hearing, May 18, 1973
For me as an American to read, in our own official secret documents, about the origins of the Vietnam conflict and of our participation in it was to see our involvement – and killing we had done and were still doing – naked of any shred of legitimacy from the beginning. If the war was unjust, as I now regard it, that meant that every Vietnamese killed by Americans or by the proxies we had financed since 1950 had been killed by us without justification. I could think of no other word for that but murder. Mass murder.
If we’d had WikiLeaks in the lead-up to the Vietnam War we may have been able to expose the Gulf of Tonkin deception and saved up to five million Vietnamese and more than 50,000 American lives.
Iran — 1953
Mohammad Mossadegh, Iran’s democratically elected prime minister until he was deposed in a CIA-backed coup d’état.
Yes, my sin – my greater sin, and even my greatest sin – is that I nationalized Iran’s oil industry and discarded the system of political and economic exploitation by the world’s greatest empire ... This at cost to myself and my family and at the risk of losing my life, my honor and my property ... With God’s blessing and the will of the people, I fought this savage and dreadful system of international espionage and colonialism.
If we’d had WikiLeaks in 1953, we may have been able to stop the US-backed coup d’état in Iran and avoid half a century of deadly and continuing enmity between the two countries.
Chile — 1973
On September 11, 1973, Salvador Allende, gave this speech on live radio, with gunfire and explosions audible in the background, following the US-backed coup d’état against him led by General Augsto Pinochet. He died moments later.
Surely, this will be the last opportunity for me to address you. The air force has bombed the antennas of Radio Magallanes. My words do not have bitterness but disappointment. May there be a moral punishment for those who have betrayed their oath ... Given these facts, the only thing left for me is to say to workers: I am not going to resign!
Placed in a historic transition, I will pay for loyalty to the people with my life. And I say to them that I am certain that the seeds which we have planted in the good conscience of thousands and thousands of Chileans will not be shriveled forever. Force can dominate us, but social processes can be arrested by neither crime nor force. History is ours, and people make history.
Workers of my country, I want to thank you for the loyalty that you always had ...
The people must defend themselves, but they must not sacrifice themselves. The people must not let themselves be destroyed or riddled with bullets, but they cannot be humiliated either.
Workers of my country, I have faith in Chile and its destiny. Other men will overcome this dark and bitter moment when treason seeks to prevail. Keep in mind that, much sooner than later, great avenues will again be opened, and through them will pass the free man, to construct a better society.
Long live Chile! Long live the people! Long live the workers!
If we’d had WikiLeaks in 1973 we may have been able to stop Nixon and Kissinger’s secret vendetta against the legitimately elected government of Chile and the brutal rule of General Pinochet that followed.
14 comments on the article “#1 Whistleblower”
Displaying 11 - 14 of 14
Page 2 of 2
energyscholar
Wikileaks began because of the Plame-Wilson affair and the Iraq War
In his January 2003 State of the Union speech, U.S. President George W. Bush said, "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa." Joseph and Valerie Wilson (nee Plame) knew this 'Yellowcake Uranium' story to be false, and tried to get the word out via New York Times Op-Ed. This lead to the infamous Plame affair, in which Valerie Plame was outed as an undercover CIA operative.
Plame and Wilson became whistle-blowers of the first order when they tried to publish documents proving that the US President had lied to the US Public in order to justify the impending Iraq war. Had Wikileaks existed at this time it would have substantially altered public understanding before and after the Iraq War. The inability of Wilson and Plame to get their story out showed how government and corporations have utterly suborned the fourth estate.
The concept of something like Wikileaks had been floated for years in certain circles. Some of these people had the technical and worldly operational skill to plan Wikileaks. They were so disgusted by the Plame-Wilson affair and the ensuing invasion of Iraq that they decided to implement their plan. They began gathering resources in 2003. It took three years to get everything ready.
Readers interested in learning about the origins of Wikileaks should google for "disruptive compliance".
energyscholar
Wikileaks began because of the Plame-Wilson affair and the Iraq War
In his January 2003 State of the Union speech, U.S. President George W. Bush said, "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa." Joseph and Valerie Wilson (nee Plame) knew this 'Yellowcake Uranium' story to be false, and tried to get the word out via New York Times Op-Ed. This lead to the infamous Plame affair, in which Valerie Plame was outed as an undercover CIA operative.
Plame and Wilson became whistle-blowers of the first order when they tried to publish documents proving that the US President had lied to the US Public in order to justify the impending Iraq war. Had Wikileaks existed at this time it would have substantially altered public understanding before and after the Iraq War. The inability of Wilson and Plame to get their story out showed how government and corporations have utterly suborned the fourth estate.
The concept of something like Wikileaks had been floated for years in certain circles. Some of these people had the technical and worldly operational skill to plan Wikileaks. They were so disgusted by the Plame-Wilson affair and the ensuing invasion of Iraq that they decided to implement their plan. They began gathering resources in 2003. It took three years to get everything ready.
Readers interested in learning about the origins of Wikileaks should google for "disruptive compliance".
Anonymous12345
When are you morally responsible to blow the whistle? This article (http://josephsoninstitute.org/business/blog/2011/03/when-is-whistle-blowing-morally-justified/) talks about the justifications in an employee/employer relationship. What about if you work in intelligence for the government? When does your responsibility or duty as a world citizen take priority over any oaths you made as a intelligence worker?
Anonymous12345
When are you morally responsible to blow the whistle? This article (http://josephsoninstitute.org/business/blog/2011/03/when-is-whistle-blowing-morally-justified/) talks about the justifications in an employee/employer relationship. What about if you work in intelligence for the government? When does your responsibility or duty as a world citizen take priority over any oaths you made as a intelligence worker?
Pages
Add a new comment