Quote Originally Posted by JMA View Post
So bullies and cowards that they are they go after the little guy who did not steal the data....This is the truth of the matter.
Doubt it. We'll see...
As to US law and the rule of law with the opening of Guantanamo Bay US justice is not held in very high esteem around the world.
Really? That is a matter of grave concern to me...
...Does anyone in the current Administration believe that they are doing any more than bringing the US and its people into international disrepute?
I've no idea. Probably not, they are indeed gaffe prone.
No Ken, what I see is government out of control. Maybe less criminal than Russia or China nevertheless out of control.
Great vision on your part. That from over 8,00 miles away. I'm right here and I see it as just bumbling and fumbling along as usual.

I could make the case that most governments are somewhat out of control...
I don't deride people even the sheeple of any country...
Ah, in the RSA "Mickey Mouse" is not considered a derogatory adjective. Quaint.
but am quite rightly critical of the US and Brit governments especially the State Department and their partner in crime across the pond the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Really? I'd have never guessed.

Can't speak to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office but I doubt your opinion of the US Department of State and mine differ much. You'd probably be surprised by the number of Americans who share that distaste...
National Interest? Provide a definition of that if you will.
I fail to understand why you don't do your own Searches. here: LINK
It seems that the misuse of term is used to cover any act from murder to torture to... just about anything. Not nice people. I don't know how you tolerate it.
That's easy to answer -- we have large quantity of Scotch Irish who learned all about perfidious Albion in first Scotland then Ireland and later in the American Colonies. We do not just tolerate it, we encourage it, revel in it, love it, even. Mostly because it really annoys the would be liberal intelligentsia who are vaguely Eurocentric and who see themselves as the dispensers and arbiters of enlightenment and civilization. Aside from us rowdy Scotch Irish there are a slew of people from other nations who came here because they did not like what those nations did or do -- they have no desire whatsoever to emulate said other nations.
The people of the world can see what is going on.
Heh, if your stated views are typical, 'fraid not...
The people of the US could see what is going on but they are being told that it is unpatriotic or even treasonous to challenge what whichever administration is abusing the system at the time and flick over to the sports channel, have another beer (or maybe a double bourbon) and pretend everything would be just dandy if only someone took Assange out and closed down his website.
In reverse order; only a few nut jobs believe that; bourbon is good, beer a poor substitute; there are many sports fans I guess, I truly don't know any but I do see them depicted on television a lot; not many believe that tripe; not could see, can see. Some object, some do not, most are willing to be supportive unless their personal lines are crossed.

Essentially, in any situation, about 1/3 of the US population will support the Administration of the day, party line dependent, another 1/3 will disagree with varying levels of distaste and noise (again mostly on party affiliation or support basis) and the remaining third thinks both those thirds -- or certainly their ten percent far out fringe elements -- are not too bright. That middle third will support what they think makes sense -- and world opinion is never an issue. Never. It will be touted by the partisan thirds occasionally, situation dependent. That effectively means that, as Christie Blatchford, an astute Canadian newspaper columnist once said, "the majority of Americans don't give a Rat's a$# what the world thinks."
The people of the world have probably given up on the US as so-called leader of the free-world but that should not deter the citizens of the US from retaking control of their own country. Maybe they need an Oliver Cromwell figure?
Nah, they've given up on us before. That syndrome was more powerful at the later stages of Viet Nam than it is today. We are really considered not so relevant by most of the world due to our foolish preoccupation with the Middle East and its neighbors. They vilify us and ignore us, try to slick things through. Until something gets sticky; then the wail goes up "What are the Americans going to do about this?" Everything goes in cycles, this too will pass.

Oh, BTW. The Pentagon Papers, another much ado about nothing, -- did they actually change anything? Nope -- didn't show how difficult taking on the press legally happens to be. The First Amendment to the Constitution did that in 1791, that's 60 years before there was a New York Times. Actually, Peter Zenger got there even earlier, 1735, IIRC. Lot of court cases in between then and now have most all fallen on the side of a free press and as I mentioned, we don't have an Official Secrets Act or anything approaching it. How about you?.