Assange and Pinochet: Two Revealing Extradition Cases

Julian Assange, WikiLeaks founder and hate object of the U.S. establishment, has lost his latest appeal in Britain to keep him out of the clutches of Sweden, from where he will most likely be handed over to the tender mercies of the U.S. Government and the vindictive Obama regime.

Assange has lost at every stage of the legal process in Britain. But allowing the process to drag on and on with much complicated rigmarole allows the perception of fairness and due process.

Augusto Pinochet, the fascist mass murdering U.S.-installed dictator of Chile and international assassin, also had an extradition case in Britain, pursuant to an arrest warrant issued by a Spanish judge over Spanish citizens murdered by Pinochet. (Pinochet murdered at least 4 U.S. citizens, and the U.S. didn't give a fig[1]) The holding of Pinochet on a country estate while the matter was disposed of provoked howls of outrage from the likes of Margaret Thatcher, who is treated as a Reaganesque icon by the U.S. media and is the subject of a sympathetic biopic starring Meryl Streep, for which she received an Oscar. Thanks, "liberal" Hollywood!

Pinochet was NOT extradicted, despite his undisputable crimes.

Yet in Assange's case, who hasn't even been charged with a crime, and is wanted only, ostensibly, for questioning (oddly, the Swedish prosecutor who is making the extradition demand- not even a judge!- refuses to question him in Britain, as Assange and his lawyers have repeatedly offered), extradition is approved.

So tell me again how there's nothing political in this?

The BBC has been running propaganda stories on the theme that there's no political interference on either Britain's or Sweden's part. What bunk.

And recall that Sweden helped the CIA kidnap at least one Muslim man out of Sweden to be tortured elsewhere in "secret." So Sweden has proven its willingness to "cooperate" with the Godfather of "the West" in "the War On Terrorism."

Well, I guess it could be worse. Many among the U.S. elites have openly called for Assange's execution or assassination.[2] Of course, once he's in a U.S. prison, he can easily be murdered, either by putting carcinogens in his food (as happened to Jack Ruby) or having another prisoner knife him in the shower, etc., etc. There are soooo many ways for them to kill their prisoners. Given the open, rabid hatred of the U.S. political and media classes for Assange, his life is in real danger in the U.S.

1) The four were:

Charles Horman, for years the only known victim. Somehow the fact that Frank Teruggi was murdered at the same time was kept secret by the U.S. media. Apparently his family had less pull.

 Frank Teruggi Jr., a student on the FBI's shitlist for attending a "Conference on Anti-Imperialist Strategy and Action'' held by former Peace Corps volunteers who, the FBI said, ``espouse support of Cuba and all Third World revolutionaries.'' Well he obviously deserved to die for that!

These two were murdered by the Chilean military after getting a green light from a U.S. Army Colonel in Chile. So nice to have the U.S. military protecting "our" security.

Ronni Karpen Moffitt, murdered for riding in a car with Orlando Letelier, who CIA bombmaker Michael Vernon Townley targeted on instructions from DINA, Pinochet's secret police. The Cuban exile terrorists who planted the bomb got off scot-free, and Townley served a mere three years in U.S. prison.

Boris Weisfeiler, a mathematics professor who "disappeared" in 1985. The military seized him while he was hitchhiking in Chile. His body has never been recovered. He was 44. I only ever heard of this victim while doing research for this post! Man, the U.$. media does a good job keeping these crimes quiet!

But boy, an official enemy kills some Americans, and the howls of outrage never cease! 

Double standard, anyone? 

See also "F.B.I. Helped Chile Search For Leftists, Files Show," NY Times, 2/10/99.

2) Among those who bellowed for Assange's death were "nice" Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich, Republican Congressman Peter King, foreign toadies of U.S. Imperialism like Canadian "political scientist" Tom Flanagan, an adviser to right wing megalomaniac Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and, predictably, Murdoch's Minions at Fox "News."

Numerous bloodthirsty politicians and neo-fascist windbags have called for Assange's death, including Representatives Mike Rogers and Sarah Palin, William Kristol (spawn of Irving Kristol, an intellectual godfather of "neoconservatism" who urged Nixon to crush campus anti-war protests in the days before the Kent State massacre), and so has Democratic Party poohbah Robert Beckel.

There's also a list at http://www.peopleokwithmurderingassange.com/the_list.html

Given Obama's micromanaging of assassinations (now he's putting teenage girls on his death list, as the NY Times revealed 5/28 online and in print 5/29/12) it may come down to his personal decision whether Assange lives or dies, at least until Obama's out of office. [NY Times, "Secret ‘Kill List’ Proves a Test of Obama’s Principles and Will." What a weird title!]

If there ever were a Nuremberg trial for Obama, he can't pretend he was unaware of the drone assassinations as he personally approves every victim on the list. Oh, and now he's given the CIA carte blanche to murder any "military-age" males spotted in certain geographical regions. Amazing.

Partly his motivation is to prevent a "terrorist incident" from spoiling his reelection. He just better hope that his vicious crimes don't boomerang on him by provoking retaliation against American civilians.