Posted on Jun 7, 2021
Daniel Ellsberg: The 90-year-old whistleblower tempting prosecution
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Posted 3 y ago
Responses: 3
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
For 50 years, the study went virtually unnoticed until 2017, when Mr Ellsberg published the full document online, which was highlighted by the New York Times newspaper last month.
In theory, Mr Ellsberg's disclosure could put him at risk of prosecution on the same charges he faced for leaking the Pentagon Papers.
Now aged 90, Mr Ellsberg says he is not intimidated by the possibility of prison. In an interview with the BBC, he explained why.
For decades, Mr Ellsberg has been a tireless critic of government overreach and military interventions. His opposition crystallised during the 1960s, when he advised the White House on nuclear strategy and assessed the Vietnam War for the Department of Defense.
What Mr Ellsberg learned during that period weighed heavily on his conscience. If only the public knew, he thought, political pressure to end the war might prove irresistible.
The release of the Pentagon Papers was a product of that rationale, which underpins Mr Ellsberg's latest disclosure, albeit in a different context.
For 50 years, the study went virtually unnoticed until 2017, when Mr Ellsberg published the full document online, which was highlighted by the New York Times newspaper last month.
In theory, Mr Ellsberg's disclosure could put him at risk of prosecution on the same charges he faced for leaking the Pentagon Papers.
Now aged 90, Mr Ellsberg says he is not intimidated by the possibility of prison. In an interview with the BBC, he explained why.
For decades, Mr Ellsberg has been a tireless critic of government overreach and military interventions. His opposition crystallised during the 1960s, when he advised the White House on nuclear strategy and assessed the Vietnam War for the Department of Defense.
What Mr Ellsberg learned during that period weighed heavily on his conscience. If only the public knew, he thought, political pressure to end the war might prove irresistible.
The release of the Pentagon Papers was a product of that rationale, which underpins Mr Ellsberg's latest disclosure, albeit in a different context.
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The idea of nuclear war over Quemoy and Matsu is ridiculous. Scares me that they even considered it
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