Opinion of PFC Bradley Manning

[Psychoman]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradley_Manning

I will say this with no bias at all. Just facts. Bradley Manning is a Traitor. Simply put, by definition. Most nations execute traitors as enemies of the state.

But with bias? He should be executed for what he did. I know enough to know it won't happen right away. I understand a lengthy trial will go through, and maybe they can find the probable other soldiers that helped him. Because I believe it wasn't JUST him. I can't say for sure one way or the other but others might be involved.

But if I had my way, he would be taken out behind his brigade headquarters and shot in the head. Film it, and leak THAT on wiki leaks as a warning to other traitors.

I would say that is even a humane way of going about it. I can't say on this forum the things I would do to him for his treason. It absolutely infuriates me and it really upsets me that people are calling him a hero. It makes me sick.

So if that makes him a hero, what am I? Old men wearing Vietnam Vet hats have told me I'm a hero for what I've done. My leaders have given me awards, ribbons, and medals for what I've done and told me I'm a good soldier. All my hard work and dedication means nothing anymore? Everything I have sacrificed for my country means nothing? I should be a 5 year private? Demoted from specialist a few times? I should be a bad soldier?

No, I know better. I have no respect for that soldier or anyone who hails him as a hero. His actions put the lives of so many people in danger, and has already led to the deaths of many others.



Looks like him in his class A's shortly after basic, seeing as he has just the national defense ribbon, no unit crest, and a smile on his face.

[E-Stalin [Orthrus]]

More concerning for me than people like Manning is the fact that it was so damn easy for him to do it. Walked in with some CDs, erased their contents, wrote them with the data, and then just walked out without any difficulty.
And this hasn't happened once but twice now. The point being that it's one hell of a security leak. It's just so unbelievably easy that it's...eh, concerning.

As for Manning himself, I really don't care what happens to him now because it doesn't matter. He's already fucked us with barbed wire and a telephone pole.
There really is no justification whatsoever for what he's done, despite many people thinking so. The simple fact is that he has no "uncovered" or shown the "truth" of any information that we didn't already know. As a public we should already know that in the past eight years we have inflicted major casualties to civilians. This was not covered up, this was not deliberate, and it is a simple fact of war. Never did the US cover up incidents like Abu Ghraib or other incidents. This matters because as a public we have a nasty tendency to judge our entire armed forces based on the actions of a half dozen people.
After all, the American people asked for this war. Sure we were lied to and fucked by bush, but nonetheless we supported it a great deal back in 02 and 03. The point being that if your goal is to avoid casualties then it is illogical to go to war in the first place.

So he hasn't done anything for "truth" or "freedom", but has royally fucked the most important people we have: interpreters.
On top of that released some information that's insanely important to any country that might ever want to attack the US, namely psycho-loons like NK and fanatics.
I mean, submarine com lines, sea ports, details on the strait of hormuz, cross-oceanic pipelines. He may as well have released a hitlist for any budding extremists to go after.

But now I'm just rambling. In the end, he fucked us. And did absolutely nothing "good" in return for it.

[Psychoman]

That's SIPRnet for you. Guys in headquarters platoon have access to sensitive information like that. However at that low of a level, the access they have may be limited to information pertaining to their level at the platoon. But Manning was working at the brigade level and so had a larger net to access. And he had been working as MI for 5 years so even though he's a career private (Making specialist twice), they may have trusted him for his knowledge, not his rank. I see it alot in the army. People are demoted but still respected, as much as they can be given why they were demoted, for what they've done, the personal relationship with the others in the unit, and their skills at their job.

We have a guy who is constantly late to formation, drunk all the time, gets in fights, skips out of work alot and is a total general shitbag in garrison life. But he's a squared away individual outside the wire. They respect him for his "combat skills" but he cannot do garrison life, and so is being chaptered out. He's been in long enough to be an E-5 and probably would make a decent one but he can't take discipline and can't do the rank and file garrison dog and pony show.

But my point is, that's how I can imagine he got that access. Lazy E-6's and 7's that pawn their jobs off on him, he has that power, resents the army for his own reasons, and does this. Either way, He needs a needle in the arm for what he did...or preferably a bullet in the brain.

If only those who say he's a hero would understand the damage he's done, they may sing a different tune but the simply won't hear it. It's frustrating.