Is the leaking of sensitive material an act of vigilantism or a sinister plot of villainy? From my understanding Wikileaks is supposed to be about battling corruption, exposing government misdeeds, and getting to the truth behind many of today's world issues. While doing all this, it supposedly protects those who risk their lives and professional reputations to bring such information to the masses. But should some information remain unseen?
How much sensitive material do we really need to know about? Do we really need to see NSA documents showing surveillance operations in foreign countries and who they are spying on? We all know our government spies on foreign countries and that foreign countries spy on us. Should Wikileaks expose the individuals involved in the surveillance operations? Possibly endangering them?
With great power comes great responsibility.
I agree that our government should be more transparent in some of the things they do. After all, our government was created by the people and for the people. And as the people, we have the right to know more about how and where our tax dollars are spent and if our government is really trying to protect and help it's citizens. But, at what cost are we willing to make our government more transparent? By allowing our classified documents to be published for all to see and possibly endangering lives?
I also agree that some things I have seen from Wikileaks have been beneficial to the world, such as the release of documents related to foul trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. It is my understanding that the TPP will have devastating effects on the American economy. More American manufacturing jobs will be lost to low-wage countries and, thus, even more Americans will have to depend on the government for assistance.
In my opinion Wikileaks is walking a fine line. They may be teetering on becoming the villainous entity many already believe they are. I know that Wikileaks is just letting us know what is really going on in the world by releasing communiques and letters between governments, but is it really good for them to do that? Should they be stopped? Should they be allowed to continue?
Wikileaks has become a powerful entity. If they are not careful, they could topple major corporations, create further tensions between warring countries, and hinder the operations of our government by exposing information that really should be kept secret. Yes, there is some information that we, as citizens, should know that we are not being told. But there is also some information that our government has a right to keep to itself for espionage purposes and, believe it or not, to protect it's own citizens from widespread panic and chaos.
Well here is a question for you to ponder. If you were to vote for something yes, or no, or even propose an alternative, how could you realistically know you are making the correct decision without access to all of the information?
It is very easy to provide only partial information to people and by doing so paint the picture you want them to see, even if that picture you have painted is false.
The truth is more important than the hopped up "authority" of the state (aka governments).
Ultimately sometime in the distant future the ideal world would be one where if you wanted to know something and it was written, video, of photographed somewhere you would have access to it.
The world as it is now that'd be a dangerous step. Yet we can work towards it.
About the only negative I could see from wikileaks is putting people's lives at risk. Some truths are too important not to reveal, yet they do try to take the time to protect such people. That is partially what takes so long.
Other people are criminals and caught out doing things they shouldn't and if their lives are at risk from their own actions, so be it.
I prefer a different word than either villain, or vigilante. In this case I kind of see them as heroes.
Good post. Secrecy is used against both friend and foe. Balancing its uses has never been the forte of governments. Wikileaks is an extreme form of attempting to put some fear in the hearts of those who would wrap our entire existence in secrecy "for national security reasons." We know where this reasoning leads.
however, when secrets gets revealed, it usually serves an agenda...