Kevin Gosztola with his book about Bradley Manning

‘The Political Persecution & Inhumane Punishment of Pfc. Bradley Manning.’ In an interview with Revolution, Kevin Gosztola discusses a range of issues in Bradley Manning’s case, from his motives, to what he allegedly revealed, to how he’s being prosecuted. He explains the importance of supporting Manning now:

So, the case is important because of the information. It is worth following because of the fact that Manning could be in jail for life because he allegedly released this information. And it is something people should tune into and care about regardless of whether one thinks it is a done deal that Manning will be convicted and imprisoned in some supermax prison for life. People who pay attention now and show support can have an impact on the proceedings. Protests by people in the United States already forced the Pentagon to move him from Quantico. There was no guarantee that would happen. If people stand up as they did then and bring attention to how the government is prosecuting Manning, they could get charges dropped. They could force the government to drop the “aiding the enemy” charge, which would be huge because the government would like nothing more than to put him away in prison and have history remember him as a traitorous individual who betrayed his country after 9/11 and helped al Qaeda by leaking national security secrets. Supporters are certain that Manning is a selfless, courageous individual, and people can help him clear his name by standing up for him now.

Gosztola also discusses the legal petition he’s a part of to bring transparency to Bradley’s court martial. (Read more…)

Julian Assange seeks political asylum, fearing treatment brought to Bradley Manning. After UK’s high court ruled that Assange could be extradited to Sweden for questioning on sexual assault allegations, the WikiLeaks publisher requested Ecuador grant him political asylum. It’s important to note that Assange fears not Swedish questioning but instead the potential to be rendered to the United States on Espionage charges. As Glenn Greenwald notes, Assange has seen how the U.S. treats Bradley Manning and likely believes a similar fate awaits him:

Assange need merely look at what the U.S. has done to Bradley Manning, accused of leaking documents and other materials to WikiLeaks: the Army Private was held for almost a year in solitary confinement conditions which a formal U.N. investigation found were “cruel, inhuman and degrading,” and he now faces life in prison, charged with a capital offense of aiding Al Qaeda.

This is an immediate example of the chilling effect of the prosecution of Bradley Manning. Bradley was held in cruel confinement conditions and the U.S. refuses to allow the U.N. Torture Chief to visit him. We can only expect this chilling effect to spread as the aggressive persecution of Bradley intensifies. (Read more…)

A poem for Bradley Manning. Supporter j weinberger shares this poem written for the Nobel Peace Prize nominee:

Bradley

in your cell

your self

and we in ours

our

selfs

composed

of atoms
atomized
exposed

we tell truths too

debate

go off

it’s not so bad

make plans

protest
even for you

dinner at 8

I read they isolated you for so so long

solitary confinement and

it’s killed your soul

Bradley

I see your photograph on the screen

each pixelated frame

locked

in the synapse of a dulldoomed culture
in the space
between ten million unlocked rooms

beckoning these thresholds of freedom

we must surpass

to the blindly stubborn or stubbornly blind

a blade to shred deadly fear

dull from abuse we let shed on ourselves

between celebrity and martyrdom

balanced like

they like

your image hovers

a misshapen beacon
equilibrium lost

dramatic tension preceding the fall
the vapid vulture fest

time to change the channel

(or turn turn turn?)

as from your cell

your self

to we in ours

atomized
composed

you shout to us some secret
with the secrets you
exposed

j weinberger / june 2012