Post by X factor on Aug 22, 2013 16:56:40 GMT -5
To be honest with you, I really didn't have much interest in this story, until I found out today that 'Bradley Manning' was sentenced to 35 years in military prison.
But even that didn't really spark much interest until the story was followed by..(to para-phrase)...
"From this day on I'd like to be known as 'Chelsea Manning'.......
After hearing that...then it became a 'story' to me, one that grabbed my interest, one that separated itself from all the other daily headlines.
This goes way back to that whole 'Wiki Leaks' scandal, a few years ago, when then Private Manning released classified documents to Wiki Leaks which revealed how the U.S. Government did things behind the scenes.
A more up to date version of Manning would be the whole Snowden incident...the guy who fled to Russia after claiming to be shocked at how the NSA (Patriot Act) was intruding, spying, on ordinary citizens.
The whole Wiki leaks/Manning scandal was just as big, if not bigger, when he released stuff to Wiki Leaks, which went on to share much of it with the world...
A bit of history on the Manning case and trial...
The above link will get you up to date on the whole Manning thing.
This being the 'Twylight Zone'...I just tend to gravitate towards more 'odd' stories with some kind of edge.
Bradley Manning was living, not a dual, but like triple or quadruple identity...I find that incredible.
He was..
1. Bradley Manning
2. Private Bradley Manning
3. Soldier
4. He became a hero, activist to some
5. He became a traitor to others (mainly the Government complex)
6. All the while, during this public sharade, he, Manning, was coping with, dealing with, a dual gender identity on the inside...(I can only imagine how lonely it all must of been)
7. And now he's a Prisoner
That's a lot...
And I find it odd that he would announce his new gender identity right before he's sent off to prison, to be around other males...
Good thing he'll be serving his time in a military prison, with stricter standards and safe guards than civilian prisons...otherwise the poor fella would be in for one hell of a ride, while locked up with other soxually deprived males.
Even still, if I had been his attornies, I would have advised Manning to keep his gender identity to himself, for now....for his own personal protection.
This story has many angles and edges to it.
Wanting to 'be a woman' as manning put it...doesn't mean you want to be a 'ho'...as guys in prison see it.
And he will have to make that very clear to his cell mates in Prison.
This story will be an interesting one to follow over the years, will he grow his hair out?
The Army has already said they won't pay for his 'sox change'...
Army says 'Manning will serve his time as a man'...
Will he be exploited by other lonely male inmates?
This is one saga that will play out for many years to come...
And I will do my best to stay up to date on his progress...heck I may even try to write him while he's in prison...ya just never know...
Much more to follow...
