The word is in, Bradley Manning has officially been convicted on 20 charges including espionage, theft and computer fraud. The charge of aiding "the enemy" has been dropped and as of this writing he has not been sentenced, that will take place on Wenesday, July 30, 2013. This case is setting a new precedent for freedom of speech, freedom of the press and the protection of whistle-blowers. The spokesman for WikiLeaks Kristinn Hrafnsson speaks of hope for the future and says that whistle-blowers like Bradley Manning will not stop speaking out because of this one incident, but how do you measure that? How do you know?

Manning will likely spend the rest of his life in jail, he faces 136 in prison for simply telling the truth. There was a time when whistle-blowing would cost the president his job (Daniel Ellsburg), but today the government seems to have the ability to put anyone in jail who disagrees with them. The United States pokes and prods at other countries businesses, they invade and overthrow and intervene in places where their help is not welcome. Then they of all people have the nerve to point a finger at great heroes like Bradley Manning and say it is them who are a danger to others. That somehow giving hard evidence to what the whole world already knows is a danger to the "public".

The only people whistle-blowers are a danger to is the government and its status quo. An ignorant population that believes its "rulers" are infallible are easily manipulated into giving up half their lives for the sake of the psychopaths who sit at the top. When Manning goes to prison to possibly spend the rest of his life future whistle-blowers who do not even exist yet may very well second guess themselves. Why do people pay their taxes? So they don't get arrested? Why do they buy driving and and marriage licenses? Because of the threat of the state.

To say that there will always be more willing to speak out is an overstatement. Yes, there will always be someone, I can agree with that, but the same amount or more? Absolutely not, the government is exercising is control over the people they see as animals with this case. Government as I have said before is no solution to government. We can't just sit back and hope some super hero whistle-blower is going to save us for tyranny. We must start living for ourselves and rejecting the state.