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struggle4progress

(117,949 posts)
28. Why I resigned from the WikiLeaks party (Daniel Mathews)
Thu Aug 22, 2013, 11:14 AM
Aug 2013

I was a member of the WikiLeaks party national council and have been a friend of Julian Assange since university. Here is why I am resigning from my position
Daniel Mathews
Wednesday 21 August 2013 23.19 EDT

... National council meetings have been held at least weekly for several months. Until last Friday, Julian had attended precisely one meeting. He is extremely busy, of course, and has many important things to do. Helping Edward Snowden is surely more important than attending a council meeting. But still, attending one out of the first 13 National council meetings of the party (all of which he could call in to) is a fairly low participation rate in one’s own party, for a man confined to an embassy equipped with a telephone ...

Although Assange had not attended the meeting, after receiving the council’s resolution by email he quickly wrote a long email entitled “NC micromanagement of preferences”, in which he expressed his displeasure with the council in making such requests, and proposed an alternative structure for preference decisions. Negotiations would be done by lead candidates, with no restraints on them, and Assange having a right of veto. He proposed giving the national council a role in rubber-stamping the results of this process.

Thus, one member of the national council was proposing to grant themselves a right of veto and to reduce it to a rubber stamp. Given the eagerness of some to pursue deals even with the far right, I and several others on the national council were keen to retain the national council’s role in these important decisions.

I told the council that the party could have been set up autocratically, but it was not set up that way. It was set up with a reasonably democratic structure, with a governing council with membership and representation from various sectors supportive of, and related to, WikiLeaks. If it could be overridden by the lead candidate when he disagreed, it would be a sham. This received the support of several others on the council, and it thus appeared that the council would not be reduced to a sham ...


http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/22/wikileaks-julian-assange

kick Hekate Aug 2013 #1
I want some of what Assange is drinking: freshwest Aug 2013 #32
It is only because of Assange that we know Manning's 35-year sentence is a strategic victory! struggle4progress Aug 2013 #36
Strategic victory for Assange: $$$. Whistleblowers, including Anonymous: ZERO. What a con job. freshwest Aug 2013 #37
And Anonymous becomes YET ANOTHER group to fall off the Assange wagon Number23 Aug 2013 #46
Money is coming in with each interview, with every web appeal for donations, etc. And sorry that.. freshwest Aug 2013 #48
That's the thing that bothers me the most about the means used Hekate Aug 2013 #39
Agreed and will go to the link. Thanks for more information. freshwest Aug 2013 #41
That Vanity Fair piece is interesting Number23 Aug 2013 #42
Thanks for that analogy of the "monster/and only a bear", Cha Aug 2013 #51
Too many in this country have a similar disdain for Democratic processes. randome Aug 2013 #2
Self-directed movements are better at criticising than creating, in general Recursion Aug 2013 #3
Same reasons Cryptoad Aug 2013 #4
Is he planning to run for office in the U.S.? East Coast Pirate Aug 2013 #5
this was over extremely complicated "preference" deals Swagman Aug 2013 #6
Assange Says Rand Paul Is The Only Hope For America uponit7771 Aug 2013 #7
I think Assange fits the libertarian label and the Skidmore Aug 2013 #8
rubbish Swagman Aug 2013 #10
he explained his views and he may be right ..it's not as Swagman Aug 2013 #11
And some people seem to have a problem with monomania. hobbit709 Aug 2013 #9
Wikileaks Party Lurches .. Right: Preferences Fascists, Mens-righters and Gun-lovers above .. Greens struggle4progress Aug 2013 #12
So many contradictions, or are they? freshwest Aug 2013 #33
I'm just glad that assange is waving his rand/ron paul colors, Cha Aug 2013 #50
There's also the Snowden loving on Bush and the Iraq war, and wanting whistleblowers shot in the ... freshwest Aug 2013 #52
You know, when I read about all of this in the Aussie media I instinctively knew that NO ONE on GD Number23 Aug 2013 #43
War criminals get immunity. A whistleblower gets 35 years. Warren Stupidity Aug 2013 #13
"I think it's great to see the Wikileaks Party stand tall with the neo-Nazi who tried to kill struggle4progress Aug 2013 #24
"Old nonsense?" This is about the current AU election that Assange is fucking up, quite msanthrope Aug 2013 #35
Shhhh.. they do not want to hear about assange "fucking up".. Cha Aug 2013 #49
Rightwing parties get WikiLeaks preferences struggle4progress Aug 2013 #14
Assange's Wikileaks runs into Australian election troubles struggle4progress Aug 2013 #15
WikiLeaks attacked for directing preferences to right-wing parties struggle4progress Aug 2013 #16
Right wing parties over the Greens treestar Aug 2013 #44
WikiLeaks Party risks Abbott controlled Senate struggle4progress Aug 2013 #17
I hate Illinois, er, Australian Nazis! freshwest Aug 2013 #40
He couldn't see the right wing AU First taking over? joshcryer Aug 2013 #18
It's a lame excuse. ProSense Aug 2013 #34
Greens slam WikiLeaks Party's 'hostile' voting preferences struggle4progress Aug 2013 #19
Wikileaks Party scrambles to explain election decisions struggle4progress Aug 2013 #20
DU rec...nt SidDithers Aug 2013 #21
Key WikiLeaks Senate candidate quits due to lack of 'democratic processes' struggle4progress Aug 2013 #22
Leslie Cannold quits as WikiLeaks party candidate struggle4progress Aug 2013 #23
WikiLeaks' campaign for Senate implodes struggle4progress Aug 2013 #25
WikiLeaks 'not a front for the Greens' struggle4progress Aug 2013 #26
Former Wikileaks Party staffer says Assange’s father was the “caller” that led to resignations struggle4progress Aug 2013 #27
Why I resigned from the WikiLeaks party (Daniel Mathews) struggle4progress Aug 2013 #28
WikiLeaks Party falls apart struggle4progress Aug 2013 #29
Cannold quits, Wikileaks haemorrhages struggle4progress Aug 2013 #30
Milne mocks WikiLeaks preference blunder struggle4progress Aug 2013 #31
I LOVE you, Prosense. I posted about this yesterday Number23 Aug 2013 #38
"its first preferences to far-right wing candidates and parties in New South Wales, including the.. Cha Aug 2013 #45
The WikiLeaks party could learn about transparency from the Pirate party struggle4progress Aug 2013 #47
Assange and company are hardliners against government services which Dawson Leery Aug 2013 #53
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