Julian started working on his book today. Anyone have any good suggestions for the first sentence?Why am I reminded of a Peanuts cartoon (and thus, indirectly, of Edward George Bulwer-Lytton)... "It was a dark and stormy night".
Still, I would like to help out. The first idea that comes to mind,
When it comes to protecting sensitive areas, in both cases more obvious in retrospect, the governments of the world and I have something in common: A need for better prophylactic measures.No?
I think it should begin with a rant against the "awful" person who leaked details from the prosecutor's file in his criminal case . . . and go down hill from there. : )
ReplyDeleteCWD
Save for the fact that the police report is similar in some ways to the reports Assange has previously published naming private individuals, I don't actually have a problem with the argument that governments should be more transparent but individuals should have strong privacy rights. I also have more sympathy for somebody who leaks government documents on principle, even misguided principle, as compared to somebody who does so to harm a specific individual.
ReplyDeleteBut more to the point, darn it, I can't come up with a decent "first sentence" that weaves in that theme. ;-)
"As I sit here, about to begin writing the "epic" tale of my life, I find myself thinking, "God, I hope no one ever askes how I've been funding my "James Bond" life style . . . "
ReplyDelete1. Hey, the file in question came from "the government" not an individual - as you noted, much like many of the files he leaked. I think the irony is rich - I will happily concede that it was "wrong" to have leaked the file and "wrong" to have published it, but again, the irony is rich.
2. Although I understand your point about motivation - I think you'll find that most leaks are done for selfish reasons. That may on some level make them "less wrong" than one's that are done purely out of malice, but I think it is a pretty fine line.
CWD