wikileaks

I've only just recently heard about wikileaks.com. I know its been up for quite awhile, so this may not have the kairos appropriate for a good chunk 'o' rhetoric, but I think it's worth writing about. It seems it's mission has been criticized as much as it has been revered, and I think there's good arguments on both sides. Those in favor of wikileaks would probably maintain a deductive syllogism similar to:

Honest governments are good governments

wikileaks promotes honesty within governments

wikileaks promotes good governments

and those opposed:

Countries depend on a degree of secrecy to maintain safety

Wikileaks prevents countries from being secretive

wikileaks makes countries unsafe to live.

While I've noted that their are good arguments on both sides, for the sake of this entry I will argue in favor of wikileaks.

I believe honesty naturally leads us into a place of vulnerability. Admitting faults to the masses will inevitably put a faulty entity into a vulnerable place where criticism can and should be expected. It seems Criticism in recent years has gone out of style; slight of hand by government officials and the uses of fear tactics in those same governments as well as in the methods of corporate advertisements are in no shortage, and it is rare that serious action is taken against them; but until those whom such falsifiers serve are educated enough to put dishonesty in its place, and the purveyors of it into a vulnerable situation, dishonest organizations, whether governmental or private, will have no need to re-evaluate their character. A democracy by its very definition has no place for secrecy amongst its practitioners, and the thought of something in a democratic agenda being disrupted by honesty is very disconcerting. Yes, a vulnerable position can be considered less safe then a protected one, but all the more reason to expedite the process of legitimization in faulty organizations. The thought of a government or a controlling entity necessitating lies, is far more unacceptable than a period of vulnerability whilst creating an honest infrastructure.

www.wikileaks.com