pinkasphalt

From today’s Google Reader links:

I’m not saying faith doesn’t exist. I know faith exists. I see it all the time. But believing in something doesn’t make it true. – Ricky Gervais

XKCD - Sickness

Today I briefly pulled my head of the sand of pregnancy, sinusitis and dirty diapers to look up some info about the recent WikiLleaks release of US diplomatic cables, as well as the concurrent story on sexual misconduct allegations against Julian Assange. In case anyone else is interested, here are the links to the info I read. This is obviously not in any way comprehensive, it is just a listing of where my browsing took me.

Update: Almost immediately after finishing this, someone sent me a link to waxy.org’s Cablegate reactions round-up. Lost of good stuff.

Update 2 (16 Dec): Updated info to reflect most recent events. Added a couple new links.

Background/General info

“The United States diplomatic cables leak began on 28 November 2010 when the website WikiLeaks and five major newspapers published confidential documents of detailed correspondences between the U.S. State Department and its diplomatic missions around the world.” – Wikipedia

• June 2010 New Yorker profile on Julian Assange
• Wikipedia article on diplomatic cables leak
• Browse content of cables by country: The Guardian’s database

Topics discussed in the cables include:

• U.S diplomats spied on UN officials
• British and US colluded to maneuver around proposed ban on cluster bombs
• Iran obtained advanced missiles from North Korea
• Gordon Brown as an ‘abysmal’ prime minister
• Nicolas Sarkozy as a self-absorbed, thin-skinned, erratic character who tyrannises his ministers and staff but is also a brilliant political tactician,
• Suspicions that Silvio Berlusconi could be “profiting personally and handsomely” from secret deals with the Russian prime minister, Vladimir Putin
• US charging 15% handling fee on donations made to a trust whose purpose it is to improve Afghan army
• Pakistani politics, including a story that the Pakistani military and secret service are heavily involved in the country’s politics and often work against US interests

Coverage by five newspaper “partners”

• The Guardian (including a handy key points timeline)
• Le Monde
• The New York Times
• El Pais
• Der Speigel

Comments from advocacy/human rights organizations

• American Civil Liberties Union
• Amnesty International
• Electronic Frontier Foundation
• Human Rights First
• Reporters without Borders
• United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights: “While it is unclear whether these individual measures taken by private actors directly infringe on states’ human rights obligations to ensure respect of the right to freedom of expression, taken as a whole they could be interpreted as an attempt to censure the publication of information thus potentially violating Wikileaks’ right to freedom of expression.”

Obligatory irony

• US announces it will host UNESCO’s 2011 World Press Freedom Day

Allegations of sexual misconduct against Assange

Julian Assange is currently on bail in the UK, pending an extradition hearing on a European warrant issued by Sweden, over allegations of sexual misconduct in Sweden. Two Swedish women have brought four allegations against Assange, claiming one count of unlawful coercion, two counts of sexual molestation and one count of rape.

Assange claims sexual relations with both of these women were consensual. One woman alleges Assange “forcefully” held her arms and used his bodyweight to hold her down; “sexually molested” her by having sex without using a condom, when it was her “express wish” that one be used; and “deliberately molested” her. The second woman alleges Assange “improperly exploited” the fact she was asleep to have sex with her without a condom. (The Guardian)

Swedish authorities have not yet officially pressed charges, but wish to interview Assange in relation to these allegations.

Reuters has put together a listing of the legal process facing Assange in the UK. Please note however, that in bullet point 2, the Guardian has reported that the appeal of the bail Assange was granted on Tuesday, 14 December came from UK prosecutors and not Swedish prosecutors.

The Guardian has released a full account of the allegations against Assange.

Commentary:

• Treatment of women ‘unfair and absurd’
• Timing of sex charge sparks charge of political influence
• Some thoughts on ‘sex by surprise’
• The rush to smear Assange’s rape accuser

How to figure out where you are from.

You will need: a pencil and a piece of paper.

First write down the name of every city in which you have ever lived.

Then, next to each name, write down the number of times you had your heart broken there.

You are from the city that broke your heart the most.

Visit Kevin Fanning’s favorites for a further sampling of his great writing, like Emails from Dead People, How Everything Turned Out, or My Home Liposuction. He also has a book about Jennifer Love Hewitt. I am very tempted to buy it.

When I got to the end of this short story, I realized I had been clenching my fists and holding my breath. Must read Infinite Jest.

Big Picture photo gallery

Sweet. Full story here, with photos that remind you of “how awesome it is to be a kid, play a game, and love a thing.”

I have read this a few times, but I still gets me every time.

Being poor is believing a GED actually makes a goddamned difference. …
Being poor is crying when you drop the mac and cheese on the floor. …
Being poor is finding the letter your mom wrote to your dad, begging him for the child support.