[lbo-talk] Julian Assange arrested in London

[Wojtek S]

Voyou: "Assange's lawyer, unsurprisingly, attempts to put the best possible
face
on the allegations, and his account may not be terribly accurate. The
women Assange is accused or raping do not, in fact, say that the sex was
consensual::

[WS:]  The point is not whether the charges are true or false, but whether
they would have been pursued if anyone else but Assange were involved.  I
doubt.  Prosecutors have considerable discretion which cases to purse, and
they often do not prosecute cases if they feel they have little chances of
winning them.  The Assange case strikes me as being one of such cases - the
fact that Swedish prosecutors decided to go ahead anyway and that the
Interpol was put on highest alert strongly suggests that there were other
reasons.  I sincerely doubt that this would have escalated to this or for
that matter any level if a Joe Schmoe rather than Assange were the alleged
perp.

Wojtek