Leakers should be fired, jailed, fined and lose pensions

A snippet from Congressional Records I happened to stumble upon, reveals one Mr Bond, in Senate proceedings for S 510 of all places, contributing his opinion on Wikileaks. That would be Senator Christopher “Kit” Bond I presume, and I have no idea how this related to food safety modernization, but here is the excerpt;

[Congressional Record: November 17, 2010 (Senate)] [Page S7934-S7946] From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr17no10-182]
FDA FOOD SAFETY MODERNIZATION ACT--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued

Mr. BOND.

In addition, I wish to address an obvious problem--leaks. I have already made reference to some of the more disastrous leaks that occurred during my tenure, but unfortunately, these were just the tip
of the iceberg. There are simply too many to list. I shudder to think
about the sources and methods that have been disclosed, and the lives
that will likely be lost, as a result of the obscene amount of
classified information compromised by Wikileaks. Of course, to call
this a leak case is gross mischaracterization; it is more like a tidal
wave.

We are blessed with our open society and our many freedoms. However,
our ability to protect these freedoms and preserve our national
security depends upon our ability to keep our secrets safe.

This problem needs a multifaceted solution. We must first deter and
neutralize the leakers. There should be significant criminal, civil,
and administrative sanctions that can be imposed on leakers. Leakers
should face significant jail time, pay heavy fines, forfeit any
profits, lose their pensions, and be fired from their jobs. We should
also not allow the first amendment to be used as a shield for criminal
activity. It should be a crime to knowingly solicit a person to reveal
classified information for an unauthorized purpose or to knowingly
publish or possess such information. Leaks will not stop until a
significant number of leakers have been appropriately punished.

In an interview with Democracy Now recently, Daniel Ellsberg explains that Wikileaks has previously, in the case of the Iraq and Afghanistan docs releases, disclosed to the Pentagon in advance what is being released, and offered the Pentagon the opportunity to request redaction's of names for security purposes. The Pentagon has refused all such offers.

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Permalink Reply by bryan l on November 28, 2010 at 3:36am

and the internet needs to go!

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Permalink Reply by Vincent L. Guarisco on November 28, 2010 at 12:29pm

A Leaker is just another word for "Whistleblower." Indeed, whistleblowers are an essential element in any open and free society. Thus, they must be protected and we should always listen to the information they provide. Most whistleblowers have paid a very heavy price (even loss of life) to inform the public. Here's a good example: As thousands of solders were ordered to march to their slow death at the Nevada Test Site, before seeing the mushroom cloud, they went by a huge sign that had the following inscription: "MUMS IS THE WORD." Well, be it military or otherwise, I say if loose lips sink ships, bottoms up. Go Wikileaks!

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Permalink Reply by Fred Black on November 28, 2010 at 6:39pm

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs Re: today's Wikileaks release -

"President Barack Obama supports responsible, accountable, and open government at home and around the world, but this reckless and dangerous action runs counter to that goal."

Being open is counter to the goal of being open?

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Permalink Reply by Fred Black on November 28, 2010 at 6:56pm

Vincent L. Guarisco said:

A Leaker is just another word for "Whistleblower." Indeed, whistleblowers are an essential element in any open and free society. Thus, they must be protected and we should always listen to the information they provide. Most whistleblowers have paid a very heavy price (even loss of life) to inform the public. Here's a good example: As thousands of solders were ordered to march to their slow death at the Nevada Test Site, before seeing the mushroom cloud, they went by a huge sign that had the following inscription: "MUMS IS THE WORD." Well, be it military or otherwise, I say if loose lips sink ships, bottoms up. Go Wikileaks!

Everyone who gives a damn should support Wikileaks by sharing as many files as possible, download the insurance files as well. Disseminate the info, announce your support, they can't lock us all away, we can not let Wikileaks be persecuted when it's within our power to do something.

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Permalink Reply by Central Scrutinizer on November 29, 2010 at 7:52pm

sniveling bastids using the "Compromising National Security" scenario as a lame ass excuse to mask the truth that we've been handed Bullshit from the US Government since the turn of the century. May these Leaks of truth continue to flow freely!!!!