Wikileaks: The Forgotten Man (Private Bradley Manning)

Private Bradley Manning is clearly the most interesting and important figure in the WikiLeaks controversy, but the media has been obsessed with WikiLeaks publsiher Julian Assange. Currently, Manning is wasting away in solitary confinement, with David House being one of the small number of civilians allowed to see him.

House describes the young soldier's mental deterioration and his struggle to deal with long hours of solitary confinement, often without clothing. "The US Government is just trying to put immense pressure on him in order to get him to crack open.

A lot of people see Manning as a hero - a young man who was appalled by the things he saw happening (including war crimes and violations of the Geneva Conventions) in Iraq and decided that the American people should know what their government is doing. Others see him as a traitor who deserves nothing less than conviction and execution for treason.

What do you think?

The film includes interviews with Julian Assange, former military analyst Daniel Ellsberg, former WikiLeaks spokesperson Daniel Dmosceit-Berf, Manning supporter David House, hacker Adrian Lamo, and New York Times Washington Bureau Chief Dean Baquet.

WIKILEAKS: THE FORGOTTEN MAN

Private Bradley Manning is the man United States authorities allege stole classified military files, providing them to WikiLeaks for publication.

While WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange battles to avoid extradition from the United Kingdom to Sweden, on the other side of the Atlantic Bradley Manning is facing a court martial. If found guilty Manning could spend the rest of his life in prison.

It’s a case that has all the hallmarks of a spy thriller. Bradley Manning was an American soldier serving in Iraq, when he allegedly downloaded classified military files onto a disk storing Lady Gaga songs. A short time later the authorities arrested Manning and he’s been in a military jail ever since.

Early last year reporter Quentin McDermott told the story of Bradley Manning and the people who’d helped the United States government build a case against him. This film uncovers crucial new elements describing the ferocious battle between hackers and the U.S. government as they pursue Julian Assange and WikiLeaks.

The Forgotten Man also interviews Juan Mendez, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, about the treatment of Bradley Manning. Mr Mendez says Manning was subjected to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment during his “excessive and prolonged isolation” at Quantico Marine Corps Base outside Washington.

But one question still remains: will Bradley Manning attempt to avoid a life sentence by turning against Julian Assange?

CBS's The Talk Rejoices in the Catherine Kieu Becker Case (she cut off her husband's penis)

I have not been following this case, because . . . well, stuff like this is simply sensationalist crap - there's often better things to get upset about. But I wasn't aware that some women in media were celebrating the fact that a woman took a knife to a man's penis and cut if off.

In case you, like me, boycott media stories about dumbass people, here's the scoop, via the L.A. Times (this story is an udpate about her mental evaluation):

A law enforcement source said told The Times that a dispute over an "inappropriate relationship" may have been the motive in the case.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case was ongoing, said the couple had argued earlier in the day and that the wife was angry at the husband over a relationship. Police said that when they confronted the woman, she said her husband "deserved it."

Orange County prosecutors charged the wife with two felony counts for allegedly cutting off her husband's penis and throwing it in a garbage disposal after drugging him and tying him to a bed.

He may be an ass, he may have cheated on her, he may have even been emotionally abusive, but celebrating and laughing about that kind of revenge is sick . . . as sick as Catherine Becker's actions. I cannot imagine how outraged those same women would be if a man caught his wife cheating on him and cut out her clitoris. They would be demanding his head on a stake.

The following was posted at a site called No, Seriously, What About teh Menz?

CBS, We Are Not Amused

Posted on July 17, 2011 by doctormindbeam

Trigger warning for violence and sexual mutilation.

This is a short and simple call to action. CBS Television recently aired an episode of The Talk about the Catherine Kieu Becker case, previously discussed here (trigger warning for the same topics). On this episode, the hosts glorified the event, mocking the victim and delighting in his torture, fantasizing about what he might have done to deserve it, and generally behaving in an incredibly repugnant and morally bankrupt manner. Sharon Osborne even went so far as to call it “quite fabulous,” and mouthed “I love it!” while dancing and making a “garbage disposal motion” with her hands.

We’re asking you to write to CBS and let them know what you think. If you need to kickstart your Sunday Social Justice, this is the perfect way to do it.

• At CBS’s website comment form, select “Complaint,” and then “The Talk” from the dropdown menu. Let them know exactly how you feel.
• Write CBS on Twitter.
• Write CBS on Facebook.
• Email CBS Investor Relations or call them at 877-227-0787. You might inform them that you will be contacting their advertisers to tell them what they implicitly supported, and considering boycotting the same. If you have any investments in CBS properties (directly or through retirement accounts, etc.), you should tell them you will be reconsidering those investments.
• File a complaint with the FCC.

To see the segment in question, look below the fold. (This is the actual segment - the video on the site was an MRA rant.)

Tags: CBS, The Talk, Rejoice, Catherine Kieu Becker, castration, men, abuse, penis, inappropriate, crazy women, television, feminists, Sharon Osborne, relational violence, sexual mutilation, torture