My neighbour has been protesting this bullshit every Wednesday and Saturday for years and years and years. He went down super early today for this announcement. And once again they are just kicking the can down the road. This is incredibly illegal, and fucking outrageous. The man has been illegally detained in Belmarsh for 5 fucking years! He spent 7 years in an embassy. This is nothing short of torture. They are even offering him plea deals now so that they can claim a moral victory and not be sued in return.

Fuck everything about the west. Stop killing Julian Assange.

[–] Norgur@fedia.io 16 points 3 months ago (6 children)

But you have got to understand: The USA (A country he is neither a citizen of nor lives in) has declared that some things would make them cranky if someone published them, so naturally their sensitivities have to count for something, right? I mean… they are really, really cranky about this, so they should be able to enact some of their laws onto completely foreign people that haven't broken any laws in the place they lived. But… have I mentioned how very cranky the USA is?

[–] dont_lemmee_down@lemm.ee 8 points 3 months ago (3 children)

This is what I don't understand. How can the USA trial him for treason? Wikipedia says

Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance

Why would an Australian owe allegiance to the US?

[–] holeydood3@midwest.social 11 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Well then maybe it's important to note he isn't on trial for treason? The charges are for hacking and espionage.

[–] cypherpunks@lemmy.ml 3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

maybe it’s important to note he isn’t on trial for treason? The charges are for hacking and espionage.

He isn't on trial for treason in courts of law, but he is in the court of public opinion - various commentators and some officials (including Senator Joe Lieberman and then-CIA Director Mike Pompeo) have used the word to describe his publishing.

[–] dont_lemmee_down@lemm.ee 1 points 3 months ago

Yeah, read that on the wikipedia afterwards. There was another article posted which stated that, so that's probably why I was confused.

[–] jeena@jemmy.jeena.net 6 points 3 months ago

Normally the CIA would just assasinate him, make it look like an accident. But it's just difficult because so many people are watching. Anyway if he didn't do anything illegal then he can't be kept in prison in the USA so he probably needs to be detained in Guantanamo bay.

[–] Da_Boom@iusearchlinux.fyi 3 points 3 months ago

We don't, but our government seems to think we do. Seriously if we were any further up America's ass, we'd be licking the back of America's throat.

That said, sometimes I feel like we're the rope in a tug of war between America and China. Though the majority of time America's winning.

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