"The code" is a good basic model of loyalty and works well enough in many instances. However, it is trumped by loyalty to the country.
We need some whistle-blowers and we need them now. Our country is in deep kim-chee right now and we need some real patriots to step forward and make secret information - public. I am not talking about the schematics to advanced weapons systems or Col. Sanders' secret formula with 7 herbs & spices. I mean the secrets that Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Miers, Gonzalez and their corporate sponsors are hiding from us and trying to keep hidden.
(This diary is cross-posted at my new blog: The National Gadfly
The basic rule of "the code" is: you don't rat on your friends. Don't crack under pressure, don't give up your information that was entrusted to you. It is a strong argument built around a definition of an individual's moral character that is proven by loyalty to a group or a person.
So, in Washington, when Dick Cheney gives someone a high profile appointment; he/she is expected to keep their mouth shut if they get caught. "Scooter" Libby is a perfect example. He obstructed justice so that his superiors could evade prosecution. Although the excuse of national safety was no doubt used, it was always about loyalty to the person in the position of power.
In the private sector, people sign "confidentiality agreements" to facilitate and enforce this expectation. Open your mouth and open yourself up to death by legal fees.
The code is everywhere and it hides many things that are of great value to a great many people. All sorts of information is locked up in private safes around D.C. (and across the country); on computers, printed on paper and recorded in audio or video mediums. Things that the American people have a right to know. This is not secret military strategy or private patents for successful merchandise operations.
* I am talking about direct knowledge of law breaking by elected and appointed officials that knew they were breaking the law.
* I am talking about proof of financial misdeeds that are now going to break our economy or bankrupt our great grandchildren.
* I am talking about evidence that over 90,000 Iraqi civilians and over 4100 US service men and women have died in Iraq, for something other than the WMD lie that was handed out to the press.
* I am talking about proof of the propaganda inflicted upon the citizens of this country and the people of the world for the greed and avarice of Cheney/Bush & Co.
* I am talking about knowledge of waste and fraud in purchasing, lobbying, federal and local government spending.
I am saying that there are people lying to us all in order to gain power and wealth in a mesh of government and corporate entities and people.
There has been a deliberate attack on the US Government during this administration. The intent is to disempower the Legislative and Judiciary while amassing all power in the Executive. They will not stop on their own. It is up to the genuine deed-holders of this country: "We, the people" to rein them in. In this case, the pen is mightier than the sword because information is how we can effect change.
The people that have violated the public trust must be brought to justice and their misdeeds must be made public. Some of these people (Cheney/Bush, ahem) swore to uphold The Constitution of the United States of America. Many swore no such oath, but it is the mission of the organization that they work for. Still others simply work for a private or publicly held company, operating in violation of health or financial laws. These people, by breaking the law or their word have nullified "The code" and any loyalty they were once owed.
It is time for real patriots to step forward. It is time for people with proof to choose our country over a personal loyalty.
So, now I speak to you directly, whoever you are, sitting in your office, your home or in an airport. You know where information is. Your country needs you to get the information out into the open. There are thieves and liars that are counting on you to help them continue to lie and steal and by their merits - cause others to die, live in poverty, disease and misery. They do this from the very positions that were created to combat the ills they themselves foster.
Here is the thing, and you know it too - silence is a choice. Who will pay the price for your silence?
All you need to do is get the information out. Go to wikileaks and submit it anonymously. We'll take it from here.
- gadfly