Free Josh Wolf Wiki
Samantha Wolf, the mother of the jailed video-blogger, Josh, has launched a wiki in support of the “Free Josh Wolf” campaign. It includes an excellent video, in which Josh explains how his footage of a demonstration in San Francisco led to him being jailed for contempt by a Grand Jury.
No modern campaign would be complete without a blog and a wiki. They are, I suspect, far more effective at drumming up support than smashing a policeman over the head (evidence of which may on Josh’s video, apparently).
I must admit, although I hate to see the courts bullying a principled blogger and journalist, I’m not quite sure if Josh is protecting a source in this case. Footage taken in public is not quite the same as a piece of information or document given to a journalist on a non-attributable basis.
But it’s surely time to let Josh go home. Come on, this is a talented young man with principles. Everybody’s made their point now.
My faith in US Justice is mighty thin (politically motivated prosecutors, plea bargaining, the prisoner’s dilemma, 99 year sentences, foot-shackles, lethal injections, electric chairs, and other barbaric practices). But it has been restored a little by the sight of Boy George sweeping up for five days in New York. This seemed like a case of a proportionate and possibly quite reforming justice in action. Perhaps judges in New York have a sense of humour and a sense of proportion. And it is a place where they have managed to reduce crime without executing people. I think that is a pretty good pointer for the way to go.
