Wikileaker… Private Manning @ PBS Frontline

Although it is probably too early to pass a final judgment on the story surrounding the alleged WikiLeaker Private Bradley Manning, the Army linked to the leak to WikiLeaks, one must recognize that his inhumane treatment by the Obama administration leaves us with a bitter aftertaste and sense of déjà vu with the Bush administration’s defense of Guantanamo and the infamous “enemy combatants”. What is the limit to the rationale of national security and its imperative? For many (see the website supporting him and asking for his release), Manning is, like Daniel Ellsberg, the leak behind the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War, a hero and patriot – because the public has a right to know. You may also watch a PBS Frontline excerpt of 10 minutes of an hour-long interview that will air in May.

The Battle for the Public’s Right to Know and the “right for secrecy” is far from over… His hostile treatment of solitary confinement and extraordinarily harsh condition at the Marine Corps Base Quantico in VA will sure get him some public support and how this is dealt by the Obama administration – with the 2012 elections coming up especially – will be decisive and should grant the whole issue of WikiLeaks a broader political plane on which to debate and fight. It will be interesting to see how Obama responds and reacts to Republicans on this especially.