Quote:
Originally Posted by Azure
Leaking documents is treason, and I don't care what the situation is.
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Okay. So what if some leaked documents end up making the world a better place by causing outrage, which leads to positive change? I'm not talking in the Afghan war in particular but more generally, more hypothetically.
You would still be against it because leaking documents = treason to you and therefore it is never justified I'm guessing?
There are some in the world who believe the government actually acts in the best interests of its citizens most of the time. I would call those people extremely naive. I think a more justified approach to authority is to treat it with suspicion. First and foremost a government will try to stay in power. In this our election systems compromise our government to a large degree. In order to stay in power compromises are made, interest groups are pandered to, big business is catered to, foreign policy compromises may be made due to pressure, etc. What is good for the people of Canada becomes a secondary issue.
If one agrees with that view of government then wikileaks and the information act are a great blessing. The information act however moves quite slowly, too slow to impact current regimes typically. This can often work simply to indict the previous regime. The Liberal corruption made the Conservatives temporarily look like angels since it had been a while since the Conservatives had been in power and thus since their own corruption scandals could have been exposed. If it moves too slowly then it can become merely a political tool to attack the previous regime. Promises of a new gov't with no corruption and greater transparency are met by the same old.
Wikileaks has the potential to really make a difference in the world IMO. The secrets of authorities when exposed can create real change in the way things happen. I still really struggle to come to terms with the viewpoint of people like Azure and Peter12. If you aren't one of the people protecting secrets, why are you so scared that more might come out? I see it as being overwhelmingly positive.