> the most serious charge against the 25-year-old Army Private, one that carries a term of life in prison: "aiding and abetting the enemy". The government's theory is that because the documents Manning leaked were interesting to Osama bin Laden, he aided the enemy by disclosing them. Harvard Law Professor Yochai Benkler explained in the New Republic in March why this theory poses such a profound threat to basic press freedoms as it essentially converts all leaks, no matter the intent, into a form of treason.<p>That this is considered his main crime for which he could spend his life in jail should be extremely scary to all of us.
Why can't charges be specific and limited to the actual crime of 'unauthorized disclosure of classified information'. As a coder, this bothers me. Intuitively this reeks of slippery slope.