Posted on 05/25/2009 8:53:35 PM PDT by smokingfrog
Musicians from such diverse groups as Pink Floyd and Boyzone have joined forces in a last-ditch campaign to halt the extradition to the US of north London computer hacker Gary McKinnon.
The family and friends of McKinnon, who has Asperger's syndrome, are hoping that a campaign also supported by well-known names including Terry Waite, Boris Johnson, Sting, Lord Carlile and Jane Asher, will finally bear fruit.
Next month, McKinnon is due to have what is likely to be his final legal appearance in a judicial review over the decision of home secretary, Jacqui Smith, to send him to stand trial in the US for hacking into the US defence department and Nasa computer systems in a search for evidence about UFOs.
An earlier judicial review ruled that Smith had failed to take adequate consideration of evidence of McKinnon's medical condition. If McKinnon failed in this bid for a reconsideration of the extradition decision, he could be sent immediately for trial in the US and face a lengthy jail sentence.
To help the case, Graham Nash has authorised a reworking of his song Chicago, written when he was part of Crosby, Stills and Nash in the wake of the violent 1968 Democratic party convention in Chicago and the subsequent trial of the so-called Chicago Seven.
David Gilmour, the Pink Floyd musician and political activist, has agreed to produce a fresh recording of the song to publicise McKinnon's plight.
Boyzone singer Keith Duffy has also expressed his support for McKinnon. "As the parent of a child with autism I know only too well that getting support at the right time can be crucial..
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Sounds like a cause without a clue.
So his excuse is that he is a social retard? Is that the best he could come up with?
Sounds like he needs to hire more lawyers and fewer musicians.
We can’t just let people hack into our sensitive state secrets and data. What are we supposed to do? Say if you have Asperger’s, or someone says you have Asperger’s, snoop away?
That said, I believe he will get a fair trial, and the jury can consider his ability to know between right and wrong.
These aging, has-beens just have too much time on their hands.
Mr. Hypocrisy, table for one.
Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!
Aging has-beens looking for some press by latching onto the defense of someone who blatantly violated US laws and national security i.e. a libdolt cause? Gee, I’m shocked. NOT.
Acid rot of the brain no doubt.
Come on, all he did was break US law.
If he was an American citizen, he’d be working for the Obama administration right now - just like Tim Geitner. :)
What a shame. I am an avid Pink Floyd fan, too. Love their music. But just like when I went to see Roger Waters at Jones Beach in 2006, and out comes this giant floating pig with the words “Don’t get slaughtered; vote democrat” and “Bush is a war monger” on them, it made me angry.
Shut up and sing. I want to tell these guys.
Now Gilmour, too. Another awesome musician who hasn’t a clue I am sorry to say.
With Dave, I just pretend he didn’t really say it. Waters is an absolute idiot and it can’t be ignored, but Dave never said anything objectionable in his life. In fact, I think he sits around playing guitar and pining for the Reagan years.
That’s what I tell myself. Now, I’m going to spin up some Mihalis.
Hey Sting forget the rainforests...save a hacker
I bet if he’d stolen their credit card numbers or (horrors!) shared their songs on a peer-to-peer network they’d want his head on a pike.
I thought the same exact thing.
Most excellent observation! Millionaire hypocrites defending an idiot. Kind of sounds like some of our congressmen doesn’t it?
He was searching for information on UFO technology.
I guess we should be thanking him for showing us how incredibly lax our computer security is.
Did he find anything? That's what I want to know. Supposedly he did some damage to their computer systems.
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