Wikileaks van guy harassed again

DC-area photographer Chris Wieland writes in: "Stumbled upon the Wikileaks van guy getting searched by capitol police today!"

As if!

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Guest

I really wish my country would stop depleting my reasons for loving it.
- Frank W
  
  A while back, I met an American guy who wore a t-shirt with the text “America – love it or leave it.” In Amsterdam, Europe.
  - yadayada
    
    I live in Germany. I should get one of those shirts, too.
    
    (Off topic: Why is every word I write in a comment underlined for spell check?Well, every word except I, live, a and in.)
    - Antinous / Moderator
      
      Because spellcheck is set to German?
      - yadayada
        
        Ah. Firefox doesn’t read the environment to set the spellcheck language. I didn’t even know I could change this, because it’s only happened on BoingBoing. Thanks.
      - Antinous / Moderator
        
        A few years ago, my spellcheck kept switching to French for absolutely no reason. Very annoying.
      - http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby
        
        Try being a Brit using MS Word, it doesn’t matter how many times you to tell it you’re not American, it still wants to put a ‘z’ in everything.
      - benher
        
        Nathan: But think of how many vowels you save!
http://glitch.tl/ Michael Smith

I bet you could fit a lot of leaks into that van. Better back it up to the whitehouse.
Offlogic

Hey, what’s with the damaged bumper? I know this guy that can fix that, cheap.
- bcsizemo
  
  I noticed that too. If I was an officer I might stop him just to make sure it wasn’t going to fall off in traffic. (Maybe it’s dented in the front causing the edge to flair, but it’s hard to tell from this angle.)
  - http://www.jjsaul.com Jim Saul
    
    JMB98115 below noted that it was sold on Ebay recently, so I checked the carfax link there out of curiosity. In the description the seller states “Front bumper is bent, but sturdily attached”:
    
    10/25/2009 REAR IMPACT WITH A PARKED VEHICLE (Case #:0910250038)
    
    I’d have thought that meant rear of the van while backing, but whatever.
    
    In any event, what a perfect composition for the photo, with the capital, the globe graphic seemingly dripping onto the driver, the brand unobscured…
    
    And he’s wearing a t-shirt that says “New Jersey, only the strong survive.”
unit_1421

Between the farce of a trial and a bullet to the back of the head in a Baghdad alley, I’m sure Pvt. Manning prefers the farce. What hand Hillary Clinton jacks off Vladimir Putin with should not be a Top Secret item, but I’m pretty sure that that nothing genuinely sensitive was actually taken or Manning would not be alive.
- http://twitter.com/GideonTJones Gideon Jones
  
  Far as I know, the van has nothing to do with either Wikileaks or Manning, and is an “art project”.
  - http://boingboing.net/ Rob Beschizza
    
    It’s basically a splendid trolling exercise, right?
    - http://twitter.com/GideonTJones Gideon Jones
      
      Something like that.
    - http://mordicai.livejournal.com Mordicai
      
      To be fair, “splendid trolling exercise” sort of covers whole periods of art & music.
  - JMB98115
    
    …and transferred owners on or about 09JAN.
    http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-F-350-Box-Truck-WikiLeaks-Top-Secret-Mobile-Information-Collection-Unit-Contemporary-Art-Truck-/180788175283?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item2a17d0a1b3
- http://imcravingpresidency.tumblr.com/ SedanChair
  
  No, there was plenty of sensitive material. We’ve lost considerable influence over several client states as a result. But killing Manning won’t plug the leaks. They feel compelled to make an example of him.
  - Cowicide
    
    Please explain. Citations welcome.
    - http://imcravingpresidency.tumblr.com/ SedanChair
      
      Dude, I’m not saying it’s bad that we’ve lost influence. Still want those citations?
      - Cowicide
        
        Yes, I dude.
    - http://imcravingpresidency.tumblr.com/ SedanChair
      
      Tunisians were able to read the unsparing assessment of the kleptocratic regime oppressing them, courtesy of US Ambassador Gordon Gray’s cables, secured by Wikileaks. Egyptians were able to read hitherto secret details of the role of Omar Suleiman in renditions, of Egypt’s abject services for the US and Israel.
      
      http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/02/18/the-tweet-and-revolution/
  - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_4ZWSYPO6WWJT4TCJYPZLIS5YOM DD
    
    “client states”?
    - http://imcravingpresidency.tumblr.com/ SedanChair
      
      Wikipedia was just down for the one day, you know:
      
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Client_state
      - Mantissa128
        
        Thanks for the link. I prefer “vassal state” myself, although “puppet state” will do.
- zarray
  
  I’ve heard Manning is on an unpleasant nude suicide watch and other ‘not-torture’ that’s meant to intimidate.
Jeremy LaGant

1996 called and they want a word with you. If you park a big-ass vehicle in front of a government building, questions will be asked.
- Antinous / Moderator
  
  He’s parked so far from the Capitol, he’d need a nuke to damage it.
  - http://twitter.com/GideonTJones Gideon Jones
    
    Though to be fair, the Supreme Court is directly behind the camera in those photos. I doubt either of those things played a huge factor in the search, just pointing out the geography.
    - Jeremy LaGant
      
      Indeed, Gideon. He is parked close enough to be able to make the top stories on the news for the next 2.5 months if the van were to be part of anything remotely out of the ordinary.
    - mappo
      
      No, the Mall is directly behind the camera. He’s on the west side of the Capitol in the picture.
  - mappo
    
    There’s a permanent no-truck zone a few blocks around the Capitol in all directions. He’s getting harassed about the same amount as every other U-Haul that drives into that zone.
  - http://twitter.com/bazimmerman Brad Zimmerman
    
    In today’s America you’ve just come up with a detailed plan for attacking the White House and electronically transmitted to your hordes of followers.
    
    The Secret Service will now nuke you from orbit and Pakistan for good measure.
- ialreadyexist
  
  It’s not clear whether it was parked or pulled over.
niro5

He’s parked on the west side of the Capitol. Nothing but kickball players and no parking zones there…woah woah woah guys, I think we just solved our mystery!
rufustfyrfly

The scrutiny paid to this truck is more than a little ridiculous, as Clark has absolutely nothing to do with the actual organization Wikileaks (though they do retweet him from time to time).
FnordX

Wasn’t it Robert Anton Wilson who wrote about driving trucks around with “International Cocaine Smugglers” on the side? Trucks that contained no cocaine. You drive them around long enough for the cops to stop you multiple times, make a big stink about it, sue them for unlawful search and seizure, etc. And then, after they stop, smuggle all the cocaine you want.

International cocaine smuggling has nothing to do with wikileaks, it’s just one of those things the truck reminded me of.
- flickerKuu
  
  I’m so doing this. Why does the cop in the photo want to punch him? “Why I oughta’…”
  - http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby
    
    I think he’s speaking into a radio.
nixiebunny

He could have more fun if he bought a van small enough to be permitted to drive around the Capitol buildings legally.That said, this photo is a keeper.
http://openid.aliz.es/Anonymous Anonymous

Free speech eh?
Bill Hart

If it has nothing to do with Wikileaks and is just art, we should be critiquing it as such. In my opinion the juxtaposition of the white van and the white capitol building with a symbol of the law dressed in black is poignant if it is not funny. One can imagine the words spoken, “so yeah, I’ve heard about this van, heh, would you mind if I take a peek at what’s inside? It’s a bit of a slow day pulling over prams and wheelchairs.”
benher

If it’s an art project, I spot the Man-Child! Just look at that law enforcement official’s frankly disturbingly large forehead.