Comments on: Sunday Not-So-Funnies

By: Bryan

Bryan — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 04:39:07 +0000

In reply to Badtux.

That detention came as a shock to MPs of all parties, so Question Time should be an interesting show this week. The world media don’t like it when it happens anywhere, but having it happen in the UK is really making them nervous. Miranda probably did have something on those thumb drives, but we both know that ‘Lady Paranoia’ encrypted it, so it will be a very long time before GCHQ finds out what it is.

This is going to mean more air traffic through other countries, and people will change the way they collaborate. It is going to get very expensive for the companies that have been cooperating with the US.

By: Badtux

Badtux — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 03:15:58 +0000

The sh*t is really hitting the fan now. I did a Google News search for “David Miranda” and of the first hundred or so news stories that popped up, only one by the Wall Street Journal basically defended the UK government. Of the rest, even the most staid and conservative papers seem appalled. There’s a saying, “never pick a fight with someone who buys ink by the barrel”. Perhaps the same should be said of electrons by the gigabyte in today’s Internet-connected world :).

Oh, BTW, the detention wasn’t even in accordance with EU human rights laws, which don’t allow governments to arbitrarily detain people unless said people are suspected of committing a crime. Journalism is not a crime. Just sayin’.

By: Bryan

Bryan — Mon, 19 Aug 2013 15:06:45 +0000

The BBC has already had an interview with the head of the appropriate Parliamentary committee and basically wanted to know WTF with taking all of the electronics from the partner of a journalist, especially since the Guardian reporting has nothing to do with terrorism.

The MP mumbled along saying things along the lines of ‘well, if they are going to be using terrorism laws for things other than terrorism, we need to know’.

This law was passed in 2000, not in reaction to 9/11, and certainly didn’t seem to prevent or predict the 7/7/2005 attack on London. Actually, none of the new terrorism legislation seems to be having much effect on the terrorists, only on the rest of us.

By: Badtux

Badtux — Mon, 19 Aug 2013 07:49:13 +0000

My guess is that the UK press is not going to be happy with a fellow journalist getting The Treatment either. And the UK press is a much more vicious lot than the rather lazy and complacent U.S. press, even with the UK’s draconian libel laws (which they know how to work around). On the other hand, Miranda is a wog. So who knows.