To The Free Gary McKinnon Movement,
As someone who has Aspergers in the United States I am appaled by your behavior. Your attempt at making Gary McKinnon get away scott free with the crimes that he has admitted too by saying that he has Aspergers he should not be held just as accountable as previous hackers such as Kevin Mitnick were.
Kevin Mitnick was locked in a maximum security prison for many of years. Gary McKinnon hacked into United States Department of Defense Computers – and in the process inadvertantley disabled several national security systems. I don’t care if he was searching for UFOs or where Dick Cheney has been the last 4 years – what he did put my life at risk as well as over a billion others.
I am appaled that you use Aspergers as an excuse for his actions – its not. I am appaled that you use Aspergers in attempt to stop his extradtion to the United States based on prison life would be torture. Prison is meant to be difficult, its meant as punishment for what people like Gary McKinnon did. I have no doubt anyone with Aspergers could survive a prison sentence.
I also must call your attention to how counter-productive your cause is for people with Aspergers attempting to advocate for their rights. Your countless excuses based on Aspergers syndrome has drawn a lot of negative attention to the direction of people with Aspergers. You have provided organizations who have spent plenty of money and time attempting to shut up autistic people the ammunition they need.
Gary McKinnon, its time to be a man. Its time to quite whining like a dang baby. Its time to pay the time for the crimes you have admitted too.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
I found this article interesting and relevant about this: http://neurodiversity.com/weblog/article/71/
It’s from Ari Ne’eman, before he was head of ASAN (and before ASAN existed). I wonder what he would think about the Gary McKinnon case.
I think perhaps autistic niavity played a large part in his actions. A more useful debate would question how such supposedly vital systems were left so vulnerable to an autistic pot-head, with a 56k dial-up connection, and an antiquated computer. It’s the systems admins that should be looking at jail time. But anyway, Gary will probably kill himself, rather than spend the rest of his life in a super-max.
@ Socrates: If Gary is going to kill himself then perhaps a state mental institution in the united states would be better for him.
56k dial up? Wow, I didn’t realize those still existed. He should serve some jail time and then go work for the CIA.
Zach, look in a mirror, I think you are the one who is counterproductive to our movement, with your narrow conception of the autistic spectrum, and lack of a broader knowlege or experience of Autism which results in your blogs on this issue coming accross as a sort of F*ck you Jack, I’m alrightism, whereby your perspective of the spectrum, at a possibly higher socially funtioning position than my own, is not liberating but creating division and an uberculture or elite whereby you can look down on those who trespass against your code of Aspie neo chivalry.
I suggest you be somewhat more circumspect, your recent blog could not even get the facts right as to which country had made a government appointment for an autism advisor.
What do you think about file sharing and copyright violation?
Do you agree with the recording industries purge on techno geeks who actually create more economic damage than Gary Mckinnon, or do you support piracy?
I would be interested to know.
I suspect if you ever found yourself on the wrong end of an injustice, you would be expecting the support of your peers in a campaign to free the Zach.
@laurentius-rex:
First off, I support upholding copyright protections of valid copyright holders – and as RIAA as of right now is the so called union of these copyright holders I uphold there rights to sue people who illegaly download music.
Second off, as far as Gary being on the wrong side of injustice – there is no injustice here. Mr Mckinnon has admitted to what he is accused of, and as such – he should pay his time.
Third – when I was severely depressed and needed help I camped out at a hospital trying to get said help. I was arrested for tresspassing – which I knew was a possibility when I did the actions I choose. So don’t go finger pointing at me about the justice system.
There is a saying, If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime. If you are using Asperger’s as an excuse for a crime, you’re putting it on the same level as mental illness, which is the last thing we want curebies to think that autism is! Grow up, Gary McKinnon!
Goodness me, such venom spitting. Has a psychological profile of Gary been released.
Can anyone here tell me if Gary has an immature psychology, his perception of mischief and criminal acts. Has Gary got comorbidity disorders with his AS.
He used old technology to access the Govt system, stated he was looking for UFO information. Gary appears quite child like and naive in personality.
Since dx with mild autism (AS) at 47 years of age I have met the most beautiful people like me. We have an immature psychology(Child like qualites)and are fearful of, “The Parent Type Personalities”, who are judgemental and harsh towards our actions throughout life.
I believe Gary should be afforded some compassion and understanding from the ASD community. I am not going to debate the wrong of his actions, but you are judging him harshly because he is ASDian.
Stop trying to fit in or be accepted by the NT world. Sacrificing an ASDian will not achieve this goal.
Gary McKinnon you have my support and understanding.
My son is almost 40, is highly intelligent, extremely articulate, and very accomplished technically in his own field, yet his social ‘age’ is more like 11, and yes, he has Asperger’s syndrome.
Zach, just because you have the mental capacity to understand something does not mean others have as well.
I am horrified that someone with Asperger’s is to be extradited for such a childish and childlike act. I wish him well.
A childish act that risked lives, and the safety of the United States.
NO the risk was by the US , what sort of idiotic state action deems it sensible to put clasified info ont he fcking interent it should of been VPN. it risked no lives, it was NASA not the NSA , are you aware of the actions of US state hacking into systems….
his crime was not being treated with the state care that should have been provided
This is just wrong nobody does something like this seriously thinkig of harm.
If Gary McKinnon did not have the mental capacity to realise that his actions could or did threaten the safety of the United States, then he is not capable of standing trial. It’s as simple as that.
Anna
Zach, it was never Gary McKinnon who risked anyone’s life. It was the people who were responsible for protecting those computer systems. Face it, if McKinnon was able to hack into those computers, others -perhaps far more dangerous others- could’ve done it too. McKinnon had no murderous intentions, and he thus poses no risk for national security.
In fact, his hack exposed the failing security of those important computer systems, causing the people responsible to look into more secure ways of protection sensitive information.
So Gary McKinnon has actually played a bit part in making the U.S.A. safer!
He does not deserve severe punishment, because he is NOT a dangerous criminal. Making ‘an example’ of him is cruel and inhumane.
By the way, you yourself call McKinnon’s act ‘childish’ thus contradicting yourself…..
The fact that you have asperger’s does not automatically make you an expert on the subject. I know quite a few intelligent, morally upright perfectly well-functioning computer-nerdy adults who are quite unable to oversee and anticipate possible consequences of their digital activities. And not all of them even have any kind of autism-related diagnosis!
Zach, no one is arguing that Gary should not face punishment, the question is should his Asperger’s be considered as mitigation for a lenient sentence, and should he be allowed to serve his sentence in a UK low security prison, which will have a less detrimental effect on his mental health. So far the American authorities have not conceded that Asperger’s will be admissable as mitigation, or that he can serve his sentence in the UK. I fully agree that he should have some accountability, but I also believe his Asperger’s should be taken account of too.