Reading Diary II

Article I: (The New York Times) “Hackers Shut Down Government Sites” by Ravi Somaiya

This article is a follow up to the ‘Anonymous Hacking Suspects Released on Bail’ story that has appeared in many different forms among the major news sources, except now Anonymous has gone from disabling credit card companies to disabling government websites. I think this story should be in the public’s interest because it seems that ‘hacktivism’ is on its way to becoming a word that is often seen in headlines. With the rise of Wikileaks & Julian Assange the internet may be on the verge of a ‘cyberwar’, or at least that’s what Anonymous believes, and the fact that this hacker group has been able to shut down government web sites shows that rebellion can be just as apparent on the internet as it is on the streets of Cairo. I think it would be in the public’s interest to know about this ‘hacktivist’ group, because it seems that Wikileaks has handed Anonymous the digital torch, to carry on in the name of anti-secrecy and I don’t think this will be the last time we will hear from Anonymous either. First they shutdown websites in Tunisia then Egypt, what’s next is anybody’s guess but it seems for certain that there will be a next time. Ravi Somaiya in her article seems to convey that authorities have said they have made progress on the case but then she does not give any specific details on these ‘arrests’ and ‘seized equipment’ and she follows the lack of details with this line that hints at the authorities lack of evidence: “They declined to provide further details.” Either authorities don’t have much tow work off of when it comes to catching an internet activist group that is located all around the world or they are withholding facts from the press. The public should know be alerted of Anonymous’ strength and threat they might pose.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/03/world/middleeast/03hackers.html?scp=1&sq=anonymous%20hackers&st=cse

Article II: (The Washington Post) “Rumsfeld Remains Largely Unapologetic In Memoir” by Bradley Graham

The public should be notified of what Donald Rumsfeld has to say in his new autobiography and this article does just that, summing up 600 pages into something manageable. For those still not sure why the Iraq War was so riddled with problems the reason behind that confusion has to do mainly with Donald Rumsfeld the former secretary of defense. Bradley Graham in this article, which is not a book review it just highlights certain passages and quotes, shows Mr. Rumsfeld (the man who is given much of the responsibility for the Iraq War) to be spreading around the blame in President Bush’s cabinet, citing Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell specifically. The public should have known that there was this much confusion amongst their top government officials; it’s almost a crime that they didn’t. Bradley Graham, instead of insulting and blaming Mr. Rumsfeld, paints a rather well rounded whole-hearted picture of the former defense secretary. I personally feel that this sort of well-balanced portrait will appeal to more people than would a total one sided and negative view of Donald Rumsfeld, which could of easily been done. I was surprised to find out that the majority of the memoir is about his last position, and not much of his long and fruitful political career spanning all the way back to the 70’s. The man who held his position through the Abu Gharib Controversy even though he was urged to resign made sure that he got his message through in this memoir and people should listen up because what ‘Rummy’ has to say may just change their perspective on things. I felt that this article deserves much public interest because the public itself should have been known that there is really not one person to blame for the Iraq war but many.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/02/AR2011020205505.html?nav=hcmodule