Assange blasted by expenses whistle-blower

[struggle4progress]

Thursday, October 18, 2012

... Heather Brooke said of the man who used the website to release thousands of secret documents: "I can not think of a more crazed and irrational person.

"He could have changed the whole way we look at government secrecy.

"Tragically he threw that opportunity away" ...

"Assange did not respect his sources, which every journalist knows you should," said Heather Brooke ...

http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/Assange-blasted-expenses-whistle-blower/story-17111184-detail/story.html

[pnwmom]

1. Thanks. She is criticizing him for doing the same reckless, self-serving thing

that Rep. Issa did, with the same potentially tragic results. And they both try to justify themselves in the name of "transparency."

From the OP:

"She was referring to the Afghanistan war logs which Mr Assange insisted on releasing on WikiLeaks without withholding the name of people who became Taliban targets as a result of publication.

"'Assange did not respect his sources, which every journalist knows you should,' said Heather Brooke.

"'He was seduced by power and anyone who challenged him in WikiLeaks was summarily dismissed.'

"We need transparency in government, the security services, police and military, but 'transparency also requires responsibility', she told the audience."

[AntiFascist]

2. Who is Heather Brooke and why should anyone in the US care?

What is her great contribution in the field of whistleblowing? After doing a Google search this come up:

http://projectavalon.net/forum/archive/index.php/t-13930.html

Senior Conservatives have subsidised their country estates at taxpayers’ expense, with the upkeep of swimming pools, clearance of moats and even the salaries of domestic staff, all claimed on parliamentary expenses.

In fact, don't British taxes already support the upkeep of swimming pools, clearance of moats and salaries of domestic staff for the Royal Family?

Granted, this sort of corruption should be kept in check, but it pales in comparison to the corruption surrounding the wars in the Middle East.

[struggle4progress]

3. "Heather Brooke is a campaigning journalist and writer with dual US/UK citizenship living in London.

Last edited Sat Oct 20, 2012, 11:21 PM - Edit history (2)

She is the author of The Revolution Will be Digitised. In May 2008, she won a high court case against the House of Commons for the full disclosure of MPs' second homes allowances ..." http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/heather-brooke

"... With the enactment of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, Brooke began work on a book explaining how to use the law, which was not scheduled to come into effect for another five years.[2] Originally titled Your Right to Know: How to Use the Freedom of Information Act and Other Access Laws, the book was reissued in October 2004 as Your Right to Know: A Citizen's Guide to Freedom of Information ... " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heather_Brooke

Who is Julian Assange? By the people who know him best
The son, the saviour, the fugitive, the friend, the man. He also has an odd craving for Vegemite
The Guardian, Friday 24 August 2012 18.00 EDT
... Heather Brooke, journalist

The first time I met Assange, he was convinced a sniper was targeting him through the windows of a conference centre. A few hours later, he was happily typing in front of the same windows. I asked why he believed he was a target. "I can't tell you," he said. Then, five minutes later, he did. He told me I should come to Washington DC for a press conference. Why? I can't tell you. Again, five minutes later, he told me about the Collateral Murder video .... I said maybe I liked investigating politicians' expenses because that had been my first big investigation as a student. "No, it's different when you're a young man." Can't women be driven the same way? "No, they're not." It was a definitive statement, no supporting evidence needed ... When he suddenly turned up in London, he wanted me to put him up and act as some sort of mother surrogate. "I have a fever. I'm not sure yet if it's going up or down," he told me. "I need some mothering. Someone to make me chicken noodle soup and bring me cookies in bed" ... I replied: "Yeah, it's a tough life being a messiah." His response left me speechless: "Will you be my Mary Magdalene, Heather? And bathe my feet at the cross" ...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/aug/24/who-is-julian-assange

She seems to be a US citizen who's something of a expert on UK Freedom of Information and a person who's met Assange repeatedly