Monday, June 26, 2006

New York Times should be Punished

I think newspapers need to think about the War on Terror before they publish any old leak that comes down the pike. I'm all for the First Amendment but newspapers need to have some judgment when it comes to keeping secrets during a war. And it seems that Tony Snow agrees with me.

"Certainly nobody is going to deny First Amendment rights. But the New York Times and other news organizations ought to think long and hard about whether a public's right to know in some cases might override somebody's right to live," Snow said. "And whether, in fact, the publication...could place in jeopardy the safety of fellow Americans."

The Times needed to have the same thinking that they kept the knowledge that FDR was wheelchair bound under wraps. Sometimes the American people do not need to know every secret thing the government does during a wartime situation.

I mean if civil liberties were infringed and crimes were committed then they should blow the whistle. But when they get a leak and then go to the White House who raise objections they should not say "let's publish this anyway." There should be some kind of consequences for leaking top secret information like this. It is kind of like publishing troop movements or the battle plan during the war. This should be investigated and if there was wrongdoing then there should be some kind of punishment.

It think at the very least the leak should be plugged since that person is acting like a double agent giving away our secrets in order to strengthen Al-Quida postions and warn them that they are being tracked.

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