The Nuclear Option: Changing the trajectory of the unjust

The Nuclear Option: 

Changing the trajectory of the unjust

Citizens of California,

Anonymous has observed for some time now the trajectory of justicein California with growing concern. 

We have marked the departure of this system from the noble ideals in which 

it was born and enshrined. 

We have seen the erosion of due process, the dilution of constitutional rights, 

the usurpation of the rightful authority of courts by the “discretion” of prosecutors. 

We have seen how the law is wielded less and less to uphold justice, and
more and more to exercise control, authority and power in the
interests of oppression or personal gain.

We have been watching, and waiting.

Two weeks ago today, a line was crossed. Two weeks ago today, Aaron
Swartz was killed. Killed because he faced an impossible choice.
Killed because he was forced into playing a game he could not win —
a twisted and distorted perversion of justice — a game where the
only winning move was not to play.

Anonymous immediately convened an emergency council to discuss our
response to this tragedy. After much heavy-hearted discussion, the
decision was upheld to engage the United States Department of
Justice and its associated executive branches in a game of a
similar nature, a game in which the only winning move is not to
play.

Last year the Federal Bureau of Investigation revelled in porcine
glee at its successful infiltration of certain elements of
Anonymous. This infiltration was achieved through the use of the
*same tactics which lead to Aaron Swartz’ death. It would not have
been possible were it not for the power of federal prosecutors to
thoroughly destroy the lives of any hacktivists they apprehend
through the very real threat of highly disproportionate sentencing.

As a result of the FBI’s infiltration and entrapment tactics,
several more of our brethren now face similar disproportionate
persecution, the balance of their lives hanging on the severely
skewed scales of a broken justice system.

We have felt within our hearts a burning rage in reaction to these
events, but we have not allowed ourselves to be drawn into a
foolish and premature response. We have bidden our time, operating
in the shadows, adapting our tactics and honing our abilities. We
have allowed the FBI and its masters in government — both the
puppet and the shadow government that controls it — to believe they
had struck a crippling blow to our infrastructure, that they had
demoralized us, paralyzed us with paranoia and fear. We have held
our tongue and waited.

With Aaron’s death we can wait no longer. The time has come to show
the United States Department of Justice and its affiliates the true
meaning of infiltration. The time has come to give this system a
taste of its own medicine. The time has come for them to feel the
helplessness and fear that comes with being forced into a game
where the odds are stacked against them.

This website was chosen due to the symbolic nature of its purpose —
the federal sentencing guidelines which enable prosecutors to cheat
citizens of their constitutionally-guaranteed right to a fair
trial, by a jury of their peers — the federal sentencing guidelines
which are in clear violation of the 8th amendment protection
against cruel and unusual punishments. This website was also chosen
due to the nature of its visitors. It is far from the only
government asset we control, and we have exercised such control for
quite some time…

There has been a lot of fuss recently in the technological media
regarding such operations as Red October, the widespread use of
vulnerable browsers and the availability of zero-day exploits for
these browsers and their plugins. None of this comes of course as
any surprise to us, but it is perhaps good that those within the
information security industry are making the extent of these
threats more widely understood.

Still there is nothing quite as educational as a well-conducted
demonstration…

Through this website and various others that will remain unnamed,we have been conducting our own infiltration. We did not restrict
ourselves like the FBI to one high-profile compromise. We are far
more ambitious, and far more capable. Over the last two weeks we
have wound down this operation, removed all traces of leakware from
the compromised systems, and taken down the injection apparatus
used to detect and exploit vulnerable machines.

We have enough fissile material for multiple warheads. Today we are
launching the first of these. Operation Last Resort has begun…

Warhead – U S – D O J – L E A – 2013 . A E E 256 is primed and
armed. It has been quietly distributed to numerous mirrors over the
last few days and is available for download from this website now.
We encourage all Anonymous to syndicate this file as widely as
possible.

The contents are various and we won’t ruin the speculation by
revealing them. Suffice it to say, everyone has secrets, and some
things are not meant to be public. At a regular interval commencing
today, we will choose one media outlet and supply them with heavily
redacted partial contents of the file. Any media outlets wishing to
be eligible for this program must include within their reporting a
means of secure communications.

We have not taken this action lightly, nor without consideration of
the possible consequences. Should we be forced to reveal the
trigger-key to this warhead, we understand that there will be
collateral damage. We appreciate that many who work within the
justice system believe in those principles that it has lost,
corrupted, or abandoned, that they do not bear the full
responsibility for the damages caused by their occupation.

It is our hope that this warhead need never be detonated.

However, in order for there to be a peaceful resolution to this
crisis, certain things need to happen:

There must be reform of outdated and poorly-envisioned legislation, 

written to be so broadly applied as to make a felony crime out of violation 

of terms of service, creating in effect vast swathes of crimes, and allowing
for selective punishment. There must be reform of mandatory minimum
sentencing. There must be a return to proportionality of punishment
with respect to actual harm caused, and consideration of motive and
mens rea. The inalienable right to a presumption of innocence and
the recourse to trial and possibility of exoneration must be
returned to its sacred status, and not gambled away by pre-trial
bargaining in the face of overwhelming sentences, unaffordable
justice and unfavorable odds. Laws must be upheld unselectively,
and not used as a weapon of government to make examples of those it
deems threatening to its power.

For good reason the statue of lady justice is blindfolded. No more
should her innocence be besmirked, her scales tipped, nor her
sword-hand guided. Furthermore there must be a solemn commitment to
freedom of the internet, this last great common space of humanity,
and to the common ownership of information to further the common
good.

We make this statement and do not expect to be negotiated with; we do
not desire to be negotiated with. 

We understand that due to the actions we take we exclude ourselves from 

the system within which solutions are found. 

There are others who serve that purpose, people far more respectable than us, 

people whose voices emerge from the light, and not the shadows. 

These voices are already making clear the reforms that have been necessary 

for some time, and are outright required now.

It is these people that the justice system, the government, and law
enforcement must engage with. Their voices are already ringing
strong with a chorus of determined resolution. We demand only that
this chorus is not ignored. We demand the government does not make
the mistake of hoping that time will dampen its ringing, that they
can ride out this wave of determination, that business as usual can
continue after a sufficient period of lip-service and back-patting.

Not this time. This time there will be change, or there will be
chaos…


We are you.
We are Anonymous.
We are Legion.
We do not forgive.
We do not forget.
Expect us.