Enough is Enough? Speak Freely.

The WikiLeaks case is not just a diplomatic battle anymore, it is a fight for the future of our internet, as well as the freedom of speech and press. Hasn't the United States had enough in this dispute with Julian Assange and his ever so powerful information dump, WikiLeaks? Apparently not, as our government continues with their efforts to prosecute an internet journalist while supporting an open internet world wide. Right now, the internet holds a very important position as a way to express free speech, and the opportunities to spread information throughout the world wide web are becoming endless. Assange made a name for himself through internet, starting with hacking sites and currently invested the WikiLeaks scandal. And while the name he has made for himself may not be a heroic one to most people, others find him to be a leader standing up for the freedom of speech. The United States' claims to be a strong advcoate of an open global internet, but prosecuting Julian Assange and his non-profit organization, WikiLeaks, will greatly affect this reputation as a defender of free speech and the press.

It was only about a year ago that our Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, cleared the air as she made her speech on "Internet Freedom," and how information has never been so free before. Clinton stated, "We need to work toward a world in which access to networks and information brings people closer together and explains the definition of the global community." What is her message? It is that an open internet is an issue of basic freedom in this age of the 21st century. But the actions of the United States government has complicated Clinton's declaration, especially with the Justice Department's current efforts of prosecuting WikiLeaks for publishing the U.S.'s confidential documents and diplomatic cables. As the U.S. government continues to find ways to prosecute Julian Assange, they still have yet to prove that WikiLeaks or Assange has broken any American laws by what he has done.

The United States Government has the authority to gain access to our information through the internet, whether it is meant to be kept a secret or if we make it public, but it is illegal when information is leaked and exposed on the internet about our Government. While the Government has transparency into our lives, shouldn't we have transparency into theirs? It is clearly stated in a memorandum by President Barack Obama, that the "Government should be transparent." Because we, the citizens of the United States, have the right to know the operations of our own Government, and it is part of our responsibilities as civilians to oversee the performance of it as well. According to Mr. Obama, the information about what our Government is doing should be made public in a timely manner in ways that citizens could easily find and use it, right? Well for the most part, that appears to be wrong because we found out through WikiLeaks that our Government had been hiding things that they may have been too ashamed to disclose. So there is a reason behind why people think that what Julian Assange did was not in the wrong, but more or less in the right because he is doing what journalists are supposed to do. He is doing what most journalists these days may not do, which is informing us with the truth. While he himself does not write the truth and hand it to us on a silver platter, people come to him with information that is provided from Assange on WikiLeaks.

People do not have the power to stand up against our Government. But why? We have the right to free speech and free press, so aren't we just free people? We can say what we want over the internet and post it all over Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and on emails, so why would Julian Assange be wrong for freely posting information on the open internet that somebody else gave him?

The United States Government would be hypocritical if the Assange case was not dropped, because they are the ones with documents that were released that proved to have criminal activity. Do you not see some kind of double standard going on here? While the Government expects citizens not to hide anything from them, they can hide pretty important information from us? And they want to prosecute a journalist practicing the freedom of speech and press, while it is our Government who has proven criminal activity? Something just does not make sense. Because the United States is in the spotlight for the wrong they have done, they turn the whole thing around in efforts to defeat Julian Assange as a distraction from their predicaments--"Destroy what destroys you."

The problem seems to be how people--or in this case, our Government--respond to the truth, not the freedom of speech. Free speech can give people the truth, whether they want it or not. Sometimes it the truth may offend people, lead to violence, or even create enemies. But why would you want to live in a world where people lie to you? Wouldn't you rather know the truth than a lie? Who really cares about you? Or who is willing to protect you? The truth that comes with free speech may also somehow create a common ground for people, and have people better understand situations. Our Government did not respond well to the truth when it was exposed for its citizens to read. They did not respond well because they were in the wrong this time. WikiLeaks only collected the information that other sources gathered, and that information just happened to shine a negative light on our Government.

People do not fear Julian Assange as being the "most dangerous man in the world," but people are beginning to fear our government and the secrets that are yet to be revealed about it, when our Government is supposed to protect us. Assange is indeed a very powerful force against our Government, but our Government has also been holding out and keeping considerably important information away from its citizens for a reason. People may now question what else the Government is hiding and how would we even find out if they are. While we do not want to second-guess the faith we have in our Government, do not forget that we should also not be left in the dark when it comes to who is protecting us as a country. As individuals.

Julian Assange is the middle man in this whole situation, and is just delivering the information that he was given. Assange is a journalist and is capable of writing what he wants, wherever he wants. In this case, he did not even necessarily write everything that he posted on WikiLeaks, he simply published the information to the public while keeping the names of the authors private. Assange says that the files that he releases has the potential to bring great change. While the Julian Assange has been revealing secrets, he believes that what he is doing will help the people and he continues to stand up for himself.

Julian Assange has been nomiated for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, as people begin to recognize that what he is doing is taking a stand for peace and freedom throughout the world. To some he is a real life hero that is defending what is right and not taking any of the nonsense that the Government is giving him. Julian Assange has done what a journalist does--post information for the public to read, whether it is confidential or not--but the public deserves to know. I do not think it is fair that our Government can keep such big secrets from its citizens when we have the right to know what is going on. While they do have the authority to say that what they are doing will benefit their citizens, we should still have the option to know, and be able to find out. I do believe that Julian Assange is standing up for himself as an individual with the right to have the freedom of speech and press, and while he has released secret documents, he was not the one who initially retrieved them. The person who did, Bradley Manning, has been punished for his actions, and that is that. Assange has stirred up enough commotion to last him a lifetime, and all with one click of a mouse. He took a risk to show the public what has been going on, and so did everybody else that sent him confidential information through WikiLeaks. And until our Government either gains the technology to take down the website or drops the case against Assange and WikiLeaks, WikiLeaks will live on and Julian will keep fighting, and he continues to show the world that he won't go down without a fight.