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Julian Assange Is A Wanted Man

Julian Assange Is A Wanted Man - Regardless of your view of the WikiLeaks data dumps, the latest tranche raises a new question: what exactly does Julian Assange want?

The previous two releases of data on Afghanistan and Iraq fitted the profile of a man holding the US to account for the unexposed consequences of its actions in war. The indiscriminate release of more than 250,000 diplomatic cables interrupts that narrative. It has no target, and no theme.

The cables themselves are a mixture of serious reports and needlessly catty gossip. Where is the public interest in reporting that Kim Jong-Il is looking "flabby"? Jon Stewart went as far as to posit that the cables had been penned by celebrity gossip-monger Perez Hilton.

Suggestions, however, that Assange did this without clear purpose are foolish. The man is now on Interpol's most wanted list, under arrest notice for alleged sexual offences, and is facing official calls for extradition, with unofficial calls for much worse. As far as incurring wrath goes, that's rather a lot for one week.

In interviews, and in articles by Assange now circulating on the web, the WikiLeaks leader is painting a picture of his underlying purpose. It is not a pretty one.

Assange writes of turning counter-terrorism on its head, to target the "authoritarian" regimes that practise it. He views such regimes as vast conspiratorial networks, communicating secretly, safe in the ignorance of their citizens. The secrecy, he reasons, is there because these regimes would face opposition if they communicated openly – and if a regime wasn't authoritarian, why on earth would it need to keep secrets?

Julian Assange Is A Wanted Man
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