Wiki Leaks, Accountability & Age of Cyber Wars

American government officials have a right to be embarrassed and upset about the latest set of Wiki revelations. However, they need to share the blame for creating the conditions that a Private soldier in Iraq had access to such vast amounts of confidential data and the means to copy it with relative ease. Where were the supervisors and the checks and balances? In the past when other individuals and governments had access to secrets they would sell them without notifying other governments. How times have changed in the Age of Accountability.

The recent leaks will force all governments to lift up their socks and ensure greater checks and balances and more accountability on everyone’s part. The leaks have given us a peak into what diplomats do during their workday to protect the interests of their countries. The leaks reveal that often duplicitous nature of diplomacy.  Our leaders and officials still subject to deep prejudices and the urge to double-speak. It is this tendency to be less than truthful to friends and adversaries that keeps getting governments and nations into battles or international incidents.

 The assault on Julien Assange and his group disguises the fact that the Americans dropped the ball. The final decision as to what is made public still rests with the traditional major newspapers and media groups in the West. The New York Times and The Guardian are world class outlets with extremely competent reporters. At any rate, the cyber hackers among the Wiki Groups and governments Cyber experts have begun a war that will get nastier and nastier. The one result is that governments will learn how to deal with sabotaging not only the Freedom of Speech and Transparency Groups but other governments that they do not like. Expect more cyber wars and unexplained computer and internet failures in the near future. The revelations are still rather petty and insignificant to officials of most governments but the embarrassments at higher levels of the military and diplomatic corps are not as easy to hide.

Assange is in the sights of not only the Swedes and Americans but other governments. If he manages to escape the sexual allegations there will be other trials, woes or accidents ready to occupy him. If some of those exposed in the Wiki Leaks are killed or imprisoned there may be even further law suits and troubles awaiting Assange.  The one comfort and confirmation of dedication on the part of America’s diplomatic corps is that these officials actually have the stomach to watch and monitor our CBC dramas!! What fortitude! The best way to punish Assange would be to make him watch CBC 24/7 during his upcoming trials.