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FBI agent tries to copyright torture manual, inadvertently makes it public (motherjones.com)
84 points by DavidChouinard on Dec 23, 2013 | hide | past | favorite | 23 comments



I would not be so quick to assign incompetent label to the agent in question. Is it possible that this is form of civil disobedience?


Plausible deniability is always best in situations like this.



The intermediary article has a much better headline, at least.


Maybe if this were /r/nottheonion


You prefer "You'll Never Guess Where This FBI Agent Left a Secret Interrogation Manual" as a headline? Linkbaiting on full display there.


I think an important question is whether the version in the LOC is the real version. Since there are so many red flags, it would make a good deal of sense that they simply placed a watered down version of the material in the LOC for a "lucky" reporter to find and take the heat off them.

Basically, this version is a sensitive detector for describing government wrongdoing, but it is not specific - it doesn't prove that certain forms of wrongdoing were not in the training manual.


That's assuming the government is "smart" and nothing they've done recently would actually indicate they are smart.


My two questions now are, 1. Is there an uncensored version online yet? 2. If there is not, does anyone know if I am allowed to go down to the library of congress and scan/photograph the contents (If so, I live close by and can go do it tonight/tomorrow).


From the Mother Jones article:

Because the two versions are similar, a side-by-side comparison allows a reader to deduce what was redacted in the later version. The copyright office does not allow readers to take pictures or notes, but during a brief inspection, a few redactions stood out.


Well shit, anyone else have any ideas? Depending on how strict they are with stalking or watching you I think typing things up on my phone wouldn't be to difficult to do nonchalantly.


Google Glass.


Get a hundred people in there to each memorize a page :)


Hacker news DC Meetup: Library of Congress - Torture Section


BRB getting $2000


Do the redacted parts have the interrogator ask algorithm and data structure questions to a person led to believe they would only be asked about html and javascript features?


Flamebait title. Where is the torture in this "torture manual"? Maybe a better title would be: Submitter editorializes title for more clicks, makes it to the front page.


I wonder will happen to this individual who copyrighted the material under his name.


I wonder why Mother Jones went to so much trouble to not mention his name.


Anyone have a link to information contained in the manual?


It seems like that will be hard to come by since "the copyright office does not allow readers to take pictures or notes". All we seem to have are the rememberings of those who've been in to see it.


Yet... I can't seem to find a link to it? Wouldn't mind reading.


URL to non-redacted version?




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