Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Bad news for Ron DeSantis is great news for America.

Never forget that he train is barreling down on Trump, even as he dances on the tracks.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

I was promised a recession.

Of course you can have champagne before noon. That’s why orange juice was invented.

“Can i answer the question? No you can not!”

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

When the time comes to make an endorsement, the pain of NYT editors will be palpable as they reluctantly whisper “Biden.”

Spilling the end game before they can coat it in frankl luntz-approved dogwhistles.

The willow is too close to the house.

In my day, never was longer.

Republicans do not pay their debts.

Republicans would impeach Biden if he bit into a whole Kit Kat rather than breaking the sections apart.

The new republican ‘Pastor’ of the House is an odious authoritarian little creep.

Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

If you are in line to indict donald trump, stay in line.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Republicans don’t lie to be believed, they lie to be repeated.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

White supremacy is terrorism.

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / Military / Chelsea Manning / Well, that was interesting.

Well, that was interesting.

by | 53 Comments

This post is in: ,

I’m not sure what was happening here earlier, but not being able to post gave me time to try out the new swing and whips er, lawn mower.

What’s up with you all?

Thursday was the first day of the sentencing phase of PFC Manning’s court-martial.  He was, you will all recall, acquitted of the Art. 104 specification for “Aiding the Enemy” which could possibly have resulted in his imprisonment for life.  On Thursday, the Government witness stated under direct examination that the Taliban had executed a village elder in one village and claimed that they had found the man’s name and information in the Wikileaks document cache.  On cross-examination, it was revealed that the witness, having searched that cache for that victim’s name, could not find the name anywhere.  The Judge sustained the Defense’s objection to that part of the testimony and struck it from the record and stated that she would not consider it in her sentencing deliberations.  On Friday, two State Department personnel were on the witness stand, and one testified that she had overseen the very expensive and time consuming process to move DoS secured traffic off of SIPRNet (the system that Manning compromised) and onto JWICS, a more secure system for TOP SECRET traffic.  She testified as to the disruption in service this caused the State Department, as well as the financial cost, and the ongoing degredation of service, due to the various restrictions on that system and those who access it.  Another State Department employee spoke about how several human rights activists in different places have stopped talking to them because their security can no longer be guaranteed, and how several people had to be extracted from their home countries and relocated to the US or to other locations for their safety.  The court went into a classified session with this witness still on the stand.

Additionally, Manning’s legal team, consisting of David Coombs and two JA officers, filed several motions in relation to the Judge’s verdict, seeking to merge various specifications (and thereby limit Manning’s exposure to confinement) under the theory that convictions on multiple charges and specifications for singular or ongoing acts (referred to as multiplicity) is unfair and probably unconstitutional.  This has been an ongoing issue in the military justice system for some time.  For example, Manning was convicted of improperly accessing a secured computer on a certain date under one charge/spec.  He was also convicted of stealing government property (data) on that date, under another charge/spec.  He was convicted under another charge/spec for unlawfully placing classified data on an information system not rated or secured for that purpose (his own personal laptop) on that same date.  And he was convicted of espionage as a charge/spec for transmitting that data to a foreign national not cleared to receive it, again on the same date.  And finally, he was convicted of one charge/spec of conduct that was prejudicial go good order and discipline on that same date for committing acts that were violations of US law.  It is Manning’s team’s contention that all of these acts were subordinate parts of one predicate crime, and that Manning should only be liable for the most serious crime, espionage, which would reduce his punitive exposure to 10 years from 30 years for this particular incident on that particular day.  If they are successful, and there’s reason to believe they will be at least partly successful, they could reduce Manning’s maximum exposure from 136 years to something in the neighborhood of 100 years.  It is likely however, that the court will not merge the Article 134 charges/specs with the other charges because Article 134 covers that conduct that is prejudicial to good order and discipline or that conduct that brings discredit upon the service.  That is a uniquely military crime and will likely be treated as such, in accordance with recent developments in the military justice system.  As always, mistakes or bad information from me is solely my responsibility and not the responsibility of people who have very graciously given of their time and expertise to me.

The Army has set up a FOIA reading room, where the public may peruse filings and rulings and other such here.  Some organization has been creating transcripts by court reporters with the court’s permission and posting them on the web twice daily, but I can’t find the link for that.

Reader Interactions

53Comments

  1. 1.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Yeah, I was getting that “database error” thing for a long time. And I see in Kay’s thread downstairs that there are a bunch of duplicate comments, from me and several others.

    Today is my birthday (which I am proud to share with Omnes Omnibus) so I’m going out soon to get my free birthday drink at Starbucks and try to chill in what will likely be another hot, muggy day. Dinner tonight with friends/relatives.

  3. 3.

    NickT

    I just wish the NSA would post the pictures (which we all know they have!) of John Cole on top of the new cat tree.

  4. 4.

    Violet

    FYWP is in full effect. My name and email address disappeared again. They seem to be back now. I entered them in a previous thread to comment and then they showed up on their own in this thread.

  8. 8.

    the Conster

    This site has the hinkiest commenting platform I’ve ever seen. I guess it’s part of this place’s charm. At least it’s free – we could be paying to read BJ and not get to comment, like at Sully’s.

  9. 9.

    Suzanne

    @Violet: Yes. FYWP. Also, this blog still works like shit on the iPad. Still cannot click on anyone’s links in the iPad site, and the columns still wrap badly on the desktop site on the iPad in portrait mode.

  11. 11.

    Violet

    @Suzanne: Does every iPad user have this problem? That’s gotta be a lot of people. Have you tried switching from Mobile site view to the Regular view, or whatever it is?

  12. 12.

    Suzanne

    In better news, I lost another pound and my Weight Watchers app told me that I am “losing weight too fast”. I ate tacos and gelato for dinner last night. Full of win.

    My clothes are really baggy now. Huzzah.

  14. 14.

    Suzanne

    In better news, I lost another pound and my Weight Watchers app told me that I am “losing weight too fast”. I ate tacos and gelato for dinner last night. Full of win.

    My clothes are really baggy now. Huzzah.

  15. 15.

    furlyfly

    I see the crack IT geniuses of Ball Juice are at it again. Struggling to make something as simple as wordpress work properly.

  16. 16.

    Suzanne

    In better news, I lost another pound and my Weight Watchers app told me that I am “losing weight too fast”. I ate tacos and gelato for dinner last night. Full of win.

    My clothes are really baggy now.

  17. 17.

    ranchandsyrup

    @BGinCHI: I’m not sure if we’ll have time for that or bed bath and beyond but we will be taking the Red Dragon (not exactly street legal but keep that on the down low) to make up time.

  18. 18.

    Mustang Bobby

    All systems are functioning within normal parameters. Laundry is done, Chapter 14 of the 500-page untitled/unfinished novel is ready for Monday night’s writer’s group, and … oh, wait, I hear a nap calling. BBL.

  20. 20.

    Ted & Hellen

    but not being able to post…

    Glad to know Cole finally gave you that time out I’ve been recommending for so long.

  24. 24.

    Suzanne

    @Violet: yes, I believe this is an ongoing problem for all iPad users. The desktop site looks bad on the IPad if you like to use your iPad in portrait mode, because the right column is really wide, but the middle column, with the posts, gets very narrow, like three words fit on a line. (In landscape mode, it’s fine, but I don’t like using it in landscape because the keyboard takes up half the screen, so commenting is difficult.) The iPad site itself is glitchy, too….can’t click links, or hit the top of the window to scroll I stanly to the top dog the page. Before the redesign, the site was perfect. This last redesign was really a huge step back in quality for me.

  25. 25.

    Suzanne

    @Violet: yes, I believe this is an ongoing problem for all iPad users. The desktop site looks bad on the IPad if you like to use your iPad in portrait mode, because the right column is really wide, but the middle column, with the posts, gets very narrow, like three words fit on a line. (In landscape mode, it’s fine, but I don’t like using it in landscape because the keyboard takes up half the screen, so commenting is difficult.) The iPad site itself is glitchy, too….can’t click links, or hit the top of the window to scroll I stanly to the top dog the page. Before the redesign, the site was perfect. This last redesign was really a huge step back in quality for me.

  26. 26.

    Suzanne

    @Violet: yes, I believe this is an ongoing problem for all iPad users. The desktop site looks bad on the IPad if you like to use your iPad in portrait mode, because the right column is really wide, but the middle column, with the posts, gets very narrow, like three words fit on a line. (In landscape mode, it’s fine, but I don’t like using it in landscape because the keyboard takes up half the screen, so commenting is difficult.) The iPad site itself is glitchy, too….can’t click links, or hit the top of the window to scroll I stanly to the top dog the page. Before the redesign, the site was perfect. This last redesign was really a huge step back in quality for me.

  27. 27.

    Suzanne

    @Violet: yes, I believe this is an ongoing problem for all iPad users. The desktop site looks bad on the IPad if you like to use your iPad in portrait mode, because the right column is really wide, but the middle column, with the posts, gets very narrow, like three words fit on a line. (In landscape mode, it’s fine, but I don’t like using it in landscape because the keyboard takes up half the screen, so commenting is difficult.) The iPad site itself is glitchy, too….can’t click links, or hit the top of the window to scroll I stanly to the top dog the page. Before the redesign, the site was perfect. This last redesign was really a huge step back in quality for me.

    FYWP!

  28. 28.

    Fort Geek

    I’m relaxing and basking in the knowledge that I fixed half the things that were keeping our house air conditioner from working right. My cost: $40 in parts.

    Also basking in the knowledge that when those two parts didn’t fix the problem, I had the good sense to stop and call in an A/C guy, who found the other two bad parts (including the thermostat). My cost: $190. If he’d had to replace the other two items, that cost would have been a good bit more.

    Feelin’ pretty damn good.

    [Happy birthdays to the birthday folks]

  29. 29.

    Suzanne

    @Violet: yes, I believe this is an ongoing problem for all iPad users. The desktop site looks bad on the IPad if you like to use your iPad in portrait mode, because the right column is really wide, but the middle column, with the posts, gets very narrow, like three words fit on a line. (In landscape mode, it’s fine, but I don’t like using it in landscape because the keyboard takes up half the screen, so commenting is difficult.) The iPad site itself is glitchy, too….can’t click links, or hit the top of the window to scroll instantly to the top of the page. Before the redesign, the site was perfect. This last redesign was really a huge step back in quality for me.

    FYWP!

  32. 32.

    Three-nineteen

    I’m listening to my cat try and get kibble out of the new automatic feeder. She’s got 3 hours before mealtime. I heard a couple pieces come out, but I think those were stuck in the chute from the last feeding. So far, so good I guess.

  34. 34.

    dance around in your bones

    This place has been hinky for me all day. Database error, “connecting” for ages w/o ever connecting, comments just disappearing, my nym and email gone with the wind, downfor everyoneorjust me giving it’s down! it’s up! variable results….for a while there I got paranoid that I’d been banned for some unknown reason (of course there could be no GOOD reason!).

    I shoulda known it was just FYWP.

  42. 42.

    lojasmo

    Heh. I recently bought a used Subaru from a used car dealership in WA. I have not yet taken possession of it, or registered it, but I just got an offer for 15% discount on service from my local subaru dealership.

    Thanks a lot, Obama.

    Happy birthday to Omnes and SiubhanDuinne

  45. 45.

    Cassidy

    @the Conster: Or something as crazy as front pagers deleting comments and banning commenters while being too chickenshit to do the same to certain child rape apologists who gleefully hoped another front pager get raped anally. Imagine if we had to deal with that!

  47. 47.

    fuckwit

    I just wanna know who the hell is that in that picture on the wall there? Can’t figure it out.

  49. 49.

    sharl

    Some organization has been creating transcripts by court reporters with the court’s permission and posting them on the web twice daily, but I can’t find the link for that.

    That was the result of a crowd-funded effort coordinated through the Freedom of the Press Foundation, to bring in a stenographer (freelancer Alexa O’Brien was about the only one in attendance doing that before then; very difficult to do that and conventional journalism simultaneously).

    After some initial opposition from officials, Judge Lind ultimately approved it. Here is a pic of the stenographer and the tool of her trade (by Xeni Jardin of Boing-Boing, who attended a number of the final days leading up to the verdict).

    ETA: There may be more than one stenographer in rotation; not sure if Rhonda is the only one on duty.

  52. 52.

    Steve Crickmore

    Bradley Manning will likely spend more time in jail than the whole long list of the scores of US soldiers accused and convicted, by the US military, of torturing, murdering and raping civilians and children, (some of them massacres and all actual sentences combined) in the long occupation and war of Iraq. Nice to know what crime the US and our mililtary justice system thinks is far and away the most significant crime…and who we really are as a people!

  53. 53.

    CTVoter

    Thanks for the summary of Manning events. (and if the site is still weird), no apologies for multiple posts of this.

Comments are closed.