[/caption]Wikileaks has been releasing documents for years that relate to secretive government agencies from all over the world, among uncovering other scandals, and providing information that may or may not be useful. But their most recent release of tens of thousands of documents on the Afghanistan war, along with video tapes of civilians being killed by American soldiers in incidents that were largely covered up, have unleashed a slew of problems.
The latest set of top secret documents don't tell us much more than what we already knew to be true, much of which has been admitted - more or less - by the military. Mistakes are often made in war, and civilians fall to 'friendly fire', as do fellow soldiers. It is tragic, but not unheard of.
You could argue that some of the information uncovered recently show a much deeper problem of disorganization and perhaps lack of training in the modern incarnation of the Army, and with the necessity of supporting two costly, deadly wars, this is probably true. The number of casualties have been extreme, and the many scandals, from secret prisons to the gunning down of unarmed civilians, is a dark part of our history that we will have to face for generations to come.
Whatever mistakes may or may not have been made, the release of the documents talking about them could have been in the same thread of error.
I have the utmost respect for those who run Wikileaks, and Julian Assange in particular. The Australian-born website owner has put himself at risk many times for the sake of providing proof to the public. Transparency is a major issue, especially in a time that is full of secrecy from all sides.
But, as White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has pointed out, there are major risks now involved for both international and U.S. soldiers, and informants who have come forward to assist in military operations against the Taliban.
"You have Taliban spokesmen in the region today saying they're combing through those documents to find people that are cooperating with American and international forces," Gibbs was quoted by CBS.
"They're looking through those for names, they said they know how to punish those people."
They are now all but begging Wikileaks not to release the remaining 15,000 documents, and they might be wise to listen. That doesn't mean they can't be released in the future, to show the facts of a war that has been very much operated on the fringe, like most. But if they put it off until the eventual end, they could save many lives while still exposing the truth.
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