Is the US government at war with whistleblowers?

Is the US government at war with whistleblowers?

www.bbc.co.uk

The Obama administration is facing criticism for prosecutions brought under the US Espionage Act against government employees accused of leaking sensitive information. Some accuse the US government of over-reacting, following the release of files by Wikileaks.
...
Even PJ Crowley, a former spokesman at the US state department says too much government information is classified.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Interesting to see a BBC report that raises the issue of whether the reaction to Wikileaks and other whistleblowing incidents has been a wasteful overreaction on the part of government and excessive secrecy...

Perhaps the pendulum will now start swinging the other way and there may be a decrease in the pursuit of whistleblowers?

www.bbc.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

Of course it is, nobody likes a snitch. If you snitch on a criminal they will come for you, it is that simple.

The problem is that when a company or governmet or any angency hires a person, that person signs a CONTRACT that binds them not to disclose any material that may be classified. In my personal opinion if the person after signing a contract agreeing to those conditions is not just a "whistleblower" but a traitor. Are we as a people at war with whistleblowers, I know I am, if you had doubts about you ability to keep confidentiality then you should of never entered into that agreement.


Would you like it if someone gave all your secrets away?

Originally posted by Firefly_
Of course it is, nobody likes a snitch. If you snitch on a criminal they will come for you, it is that simple.

You don't have to be a criminal to have the need for secrets...

Part of the problem is: who decides if it is in the public interest to keep information secret?:

(a) The (elected) government? or
(b) each and every individual that works for that government?
(c) someone else (such as a judge)?

Double post sorry.

reply to post by IsaacKoi


Whistleblowing happens quite often in our government, most often due to incompetence or apathy of management resulting in fraud, waste and abuse. Just a quick example.

Someone will bring it up a problem to management, they’ll get blown off, and so they take it higher. That is when they become a whistleblower.

More often than not, this causes the one who was originally brought the problem to be called into his bosses office, get his butt chewed out or a blemish on their personal record. They are rarely fired.

And then, instead of being professional and fixing the problem, they take it personally. There is only one person they can blame their woes on in their mind, the whistleblower. Management will start to find fault in everything that person now does.

More often than not, the whistleblower will either quit or ask for a transfer just to get out of their miserable situation they are in.

Most whistleblower cases are fairly mundane, and those that engage in it even once, had best have their “P’s” and “Q’s” together as even the most mundane case usually becomes a witch hunt. Typical office politics.

Originally posted by IsaacKoi
Part of the problem is: who decides if it is in the public interest to keep information secret?:

(a) The (elected) government? or
(b) each and every individual that works for that government?
(c) someone else (such as a judge)?

edit on 16-7-2011 by IsaacKoi because: (no reason given)

Can you really pick and choose what parts of a contract to follow and which ones not to? It does not matter who makes the decisions, if a person agrees to a contract then that person needs to stand with that decision. I have very personal experience with this dilima, I joined the military with a jaded ideology, after 11 years of attempting to justify my decision, I decided that I could no longer uphold the values they demanded of me. I did not re enlist. Although I hold a TS/SCI clearance, I would never go back on the contract I agreed to when I chose to sign that contract.

reply to post by mileysubet


Thank you for your service, but more importantly, your honesty. I have been in too many arguments to count with my CoC concerning Soldiers like you over my career.

Your personal ethics and honor obviously led you to believe that you no longer wanted to be a part of the military, so you did your time and got out. That’s cool in my book.

A lot of people don’t realize how close this is to being a whistleblower and the things they go through.

I have seen many Soldiers who were outstanding and decided to leave the service after their contract was up. And all too many times, when their decision is made known, the CoC makes a pariah out of them.

Sample conversation;

Me: First Sergeant, why are you treating Joe like a D-bag?

1SG: Because he’s getting out!

Me: So what? He’s done his time, he’s a good troop and he has decided that the pasture may be greener on the other side. Let him get out with good memories rather than destroying the last few months he has left.

1SG: But he’s getting out!

(Sounds like some of the debates here don’t it? LOL)

Now there’s a good recruitment tool, making someone’s life miserable the last few months they are in. That individual will be hitting the streets and like anybody will be talking about their last job. And it will not be a glowing review.

Making a whistleblower a pariah only hurts the bottom line, whether Government or Corperate.

Tough Call.

No one likes a bitch snitch.

What was the motivation to expose the fraud?

Humanity righting all it's wrong? And your the guy/gal to see it through?

Errrrrrr I don't believe you.

You can't sleep at night? Count Sheep.

You know how anti-gravity machines work with pics? With drawings?

Defect, IF your from another country other then the U.S.,then "welcome aboard my new comrade"

Could be a great a debate if done correctly.

When I hear how long the U.S.Gov. and Catholic Church knowingly waited to tell the Germans to stop killing Jews,and then the U.S. Government brought over all the top scientists from Germany before the Russians stole them, I become ill.
(YOU google operation Paper Clip,I don't care if you believe me)

This is one reason I kinda like Anonymous...They don't do things for U.S. "protectionism". They hate hypocrosy as much as I do,even if they don't want to get caught whistleblowing.

Interesting topic.

I find it funny that the BBC should highlight what is happening in the USA, when the exact same thing happens over in the UK.

You just have to look at what happened to Dr Kelly over the Iraqi so called WMD's , also those whom have been sacked from defense companies or the civil defense for speaking out against that Government and their actions.

Classifying everything makes it easy for governments to selectively go after anyone exercising their freedom of speech aka 1st amendment rights. Unfortunately the password to the Bill of Rights and the U.S. Constitution is also "National Security" as well as "Think of the children".

reply to post by LuxFestinus


Makes you wonder with all the hype over the so called free press, if it was not for whistle blowers, we the public would never know the real truth of what the governments get up to.

I would rather there be whistle blowers than there not be.

Originally posted by mileysubet
Can you really pick and choose what parts of a contract to follow and which ones not to?

It does not matter who makes the decisions, if a person agrees to a contract then that person needs to stand with that decision.

So breaching confidentiality is never justified? Regardless of anything (however corrupt or immoral) that has been done by superiors?

Never say never...

HA! They have been at war with Whistleblowers since the end of WW2. Look at the UFO coverup and those who lost their lives trying to get just a slither of the truth out to the masses. Other lives have been left in ruins. So yes they hate whistleblowers alright unless of course it is to their advantage.

Yes, it is overreaction. Next thing you know, whistleblowers in the private sector that leak company information regarding possible crimes they may be engaged in will be fired for leaking company secrets. If we allow ourselves to stop thinking in common sense then everyone that tells another person something that another wants to keep private, because it exposes bad behavior will be targeted.

Originally posted by ExPostFacto
Next thing you know, whistleblowers in the private sector that leak company information regarding possible crimes they may be engaged in will be fired for leaking company secrets.

Ya think?

You mean you expect not to be fired for ratting out your boss? Seriously... its called Corporate Espionage and yeah you will be fired if caught

reply to post by IsaacKoi


Well if you work for them and actually know anything you would have signed some kind of secrecy oath. So them enforcing that on you is only a logical consequenceof your actions.

In the old days it wasn't so much an issue. People trusted their government and you got phrases like "Loose lips sink ships" But its a New World now... money for tips... heck everyone needs a little more cash...

But a war? Usually when we here at ATS say "whistleblower" we think in terms of the UFO/Alien world. And last I checked John Lear, Bob Lazar, Stanton Friedman, David Icke, Steven Greer et all, Bob Dean and a myriad of other of our favorite whistle blowers are still out there.

So either there is no war against them... or they all know nothing...

So which is it?

Now about the whistle blowers

Wikileaks had over 200,000 documents... did we get ANYTHING that was an earth shattering revelation? Did we get anything that lasted more than a few days discussion at ATS?

The UFO whistle blowers... all supposedly 'in the know" or have worked in some capacity in the field... do we have ONE solid piece of evidence from any of them?

One piece of a crashed saucer? Despite hundreds of crash symposiums? One real leaked photo of an Alien? One government document that confirms ET since 1947? No? Why not? Surely to be a whistle blower, one needs the fact to blow the whistle on.

Hmmmm