Bradley Manning's idea as dangerous as leaks:

[yurbud]

I heard Lawrence Lessig quote this on Pacifica, and it kind of gave me chills. It's from the chat log with the informant who narc'd on him.

(03:15:49 PM) bradass87: i cant separate myself from others

(03:16:12 PM) bradass87: i feel connected to everybody… like they were distant family

(03:16:24 PM) bradass87: i… care?

***

(03:24:10 PM) bradass87: we’re human… and we’re killing ourselves… and no-one seems to see that… and it bothers me

CONTEXT

This is the right attitude for most problems, which doesn't mean you ignore bad acts or intentions by others, but deal with them in this spirit, sort of like the Unabomber's brother did when he turned him in, but sought certain guarantees about how he would be treated.

I think the absence of this is why so many of us are angry about the actions of the very wealthy. We don't begrudge them their wealth--we resent them treating us like cattle to slaughter at will, to give our jobs to people who work for starvation wages (and prevent those people from demanding more), take our houses when they realize our mortgage payments aren't making them richer fast enough, and even take our lives when it will increase the profit margin of their insurance companies, or when some oil rich country won't give their oil away for a song and so must be killed.

Theoretically, this has already been said with ''Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,'' but those at the top are doing unto others and us as they would do unto cockroaches. The law needs to bring their behavior to some happy medium between amorality and the Golden Rule, and their ability to influence the law needs to be reduced to that of any other informed, active citizen.

That is the idea and consequence of Bradley Manning's actions that they fear as much as pulling back the curtain of platitudes in front of the ugly actions of our government on behalf of the very wealthy.