Re: Your submission on the persistence of the Confederacy
Subject: Re: Your submission on the persistence of the Confederacy
From: Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk>
Date: 1/11/11, 12:00
To: Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com>

Thanks, Barrett; sorry not to get back to you sooner; yesterday washed away with Giffords fallout. I think I'll pass on this, though, just because I've already got a copy logjam. But please keep pitching.

Thanks, Matt


On 10 January 2011 21:42, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi, Matt-

Let me know if you'd be interested in a piece on the Texas prison system in conjunction with today's sentencing of Tom DeLay to three years.


On Wed, Jan 5, 2011 at 3:35 PM, barri2009 <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Okay, Matt, I'll get back to you soon on some ideas. Also, I'll be speaking at a rally along with gregg housh and possibly noam chomsky at nyc city hall april 7, will send press release soon if you want to forward to appropriate editors.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T


From: Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk>
Date: Wed, 5 Jan 2011 22:32:29 +0000
To: Barrett Brown<barriticus@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Your submission on the persistence of the Confederacy

Hi Barrett

Thanks for prompt. Read on the plane yesterday. To be honest, didn't feel this one was working for me: pars 1 & 3 were too full of generality, but then pars 2 & 4, while some interesting stuff, didn't really tell me enough about what Anonymous do and why; didn't feel the anti-state, libertarian, total free speech, full transparency argument had really been made and clinched; also the associate of yours who was hounded to death - that just posed so many unanswered questions and unsupplied backstory that it seemed odd to mention almost en passant and without fully substantiating the implication that he was hounded by Scientologists.

Sorry, but feel that perhaps this one should be a pass, but let's move on to some other ideas.

Best, Matt

On 5 January 2011 20:58, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi, Matt-

Any word on this yet? Should I query with some other ideas in the meantime?


On Tue, Jan 4, 2011 at 9:17 AM, barri2009 <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Great, thanks.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T


From: Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk>
Date: Tue, 4 Jan 2011 08:53:37 -0000
Subject: Re: Your submission on the persistence of the Confederacy

Travelling today back to NYC but will try to get back to you on Anon. Email/reddit business done and dusted; forget about it.
Best, Matt


From: Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com>
To: Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk>
Sent: Tue Jan 04 04:08:16 2011
Subject: Re: Your submission on the persistence of the Confederacy

Matt-

Have you had a chance to decide on the Anonymous piece? And is this e-mail complaint thing going to be a problem that will prevent me from writing further for the Guardian? Let me know when you have a moment as I need to know what I'll be placing where as the Tunisia operation proceeds. Thanks.

On Mon, Jan 3, 2011 at 10:41 AM, barri2009 <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Matt-

Apologies for that. My girlfriend's roommate sent her a threatening text message and came home with the intent of throwing me out because apparently he had decided she was not allowed to have guests over. I recorded the incident to protect myself since he was clearly nuts. He said that for all he knew I could be a burglar, so I replied that I wrote for several prominent publications and thus could be verified as probably not a burglar. I put the videos up after he complained to the landlord, who ended up taking our side; quickly thereafter he agreed to move out so I took them down. Obviously, some people on reddit decided that I was in the wrong, lacking context, and decided to contact you. Of course this has been an unusual incident and I will make sure that the guardian is not mentioned in any further context wherein someone could take offense. If this is of concern, I can send you the videos. Otherwise, I hope to hear back from you on the article.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T


From: Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk>
Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2011 05:00:09 -0500
To: Barrett Brown<barriticus@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Your submission on the persistence of the Confederacy

Hi Barrett

I will read and get back to you about this article.

But in the meantime, I need to mention that we have had a user complaint alluding to a personal dispute you were involved in that involved a YouTube posting of an argument and a reddit thread. It's no business of ours, except where, apparently, the Guardian's name has been associated with the dispute, which does make it potentially a reputational issue for us. I note that the YouTube recording has been taken down, which seems a good thing, but please leave the Guardian's name out of personal affairs like this.

Thank you,

Matt

On 2 January 2011 18:41, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Matt-

Let me know if this works for you.

Never in human history has there been a period that compares to our own in the degree to which the terminology employed at the end of a twenty-year period would have been entirely incomprehensible at its beginning. This is, or should be, the first sign that something is afoot. All significant human activity is the result of human collaboration, and over this same period the potential for human collaboration has exploded in a manner that has never before been seen. This is the second sign, and the fact that these developments and their implications have been greeted with the usual mix of silly and inane commentary for which our career media personnel have become known even to themselves is in turn a perfect indication of why this period has been so necessary, and why many of us are working to ensure that the dynamics now in play continue to accelerate.

Wikileaks, a force that was ignored by a news media incapable of identifying important trends until such time as it became impossible to disregard, has ushered in a new period of human history in which state actors have lost the privacy that they never deserved in the first place. Anonymous, a similarly misunderstood harbinger of the coming age, has taken a series of actions to defend that organization, including information campaigns and DDOS attacks on national governments - including Tunisia, as of this writing - that have welcomed the new age with tighter controls on what their citizens are allowed to see. As someone who has worked with and promoted certain factions of Anonymous for a number of years, I would like to explain what it is that is happening and why it will continue until such time as individual liberty escapes its controversial status.

Throughout history, the majority has been consistently wrong and consistently willing to initiate violence in service to the local flavor of foolishness. Not long ago, many took for granted the divine right of kings - and some still do, of course. Today, many in the West believe that anything is moral just so long as it is done in some accordance with the will of the voting population of a particular nation-state; to some, even a king’s intent will suffice. Actions of extraordinarily lesser negative impact on the innocent, taken by any organization that lacks the arbitrary status of a “state,” are meanwhile denounced with a fervor that the more fair-minded might reserve for those who routinely cause the deaths of women and children - for instance, the large majority of American voters who have exercised their “rights” to topple one dictator while propping up others, and who pat themselves on the back for their participation in a civic entity that has made such a mockery of the rule of law that those of us who were born too late to see the America that once existed no longer feel any loyalty to its government whatsoever.

This is the context that has turned Anonymous from a Dadaist cultural phenomenon into a geopolitical harbinger. Its first notable target was the violent white supremacist and FBI informant Hal Turner; its second was the Church of Scientology and the degenerate manner in which it deals with critics and apostates; its third was the government of Australia on the occasion of a proposed internet censorship policy that would have opened the door for further state control of expression, as such policies always do.

Over time, Anonymous has changed. Some of us are no longer anonymous, for one thing; my associate Gregg Housh was outed by the Church of Scientology after they discovered he was one of the five participants who launched the Chanology raids via a YouTube proclamation, and thus now gives interviews to those outlets that care to know more; my associate Sean Carasov killed himself last month after a great deal of legal harassment from the “Church” that helped to ensure that his career would never see a revival. Others have been arrested as well, and more will be arrested in the future. This will stop nothing. And the typically flawed reception that the movement has received from those who will justify most any government action will not change the fact that we have entered a new age in which individuals around the world can form their own entities to counter those that now exist, and will do so increasingly as the implications of our time become more widely understood. And they will indeed be made understood, soon and forever after, to all who choose to listen.

On Fri, Dec 31, 2010 at 1:22 PM, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Indeed. I'll have it to you by then, no problemo. Thanks and Happy New Year.


On Fri, Dec 31, 2010 at 1:24 PM, Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk> wrote:
OK, let's go with that; trust you to do it your way. Can you keep to more like 600-700 words, tho?

For 2/3 Jan?

Best for 2011.

Thanks, Matt


On 31 December 2010 13:17, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
That sounds great to me, I really do want to focus on Anonymous anyway since it is so often poorly covered (and understandably so). 1,000 words?


On Fri, Dec 31, 2010 at 12:28 PM, Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk> wrote:
Hi Barrett

No need to invoice; you should get an email shortly confirming payment. Was a great success; thanks for checking out the thread.

Could be up for comment on Anon, but feel a bit WikiLeaked out right now. Could we angle it another way... maybe look at Chanology and Housh instead and their work?

Best, Matt


On 30 December 2010 15:46, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
You have quite a few very well-informed commenters, particularly relative to what I'm used to. Let me know if I should send an invoice (if you're still able to pay a stipend for this first one). 

I've been working with the Anonymous movement in general and the fellow who launched the Chanology operations against Scientology in particular and have been trying to make the case for some of what they've been doing in support of Wikileaks. I may be doing my third book with that fellow, Greg Housh, who himself has been doing the media rounds over the past few weeks in defense of both organizations. Let me know if you'd be interested in a piece on Anonymous and why, whether or not one approves of everything they've done, it represents a new sort of crowd-sourced dynamic that will only grow more significant as the information age continues to develop. 


On Mon, Dec 27, 2010 at 3:05 PM, Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk> wrote:
Look forward to that; don't be a stranger:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/dec/26/american-civil-war-usa

Do post in the thread if you have time, please.

Regards, Matt


On 26 December 2010 16:46, Barrett Brown <barriticus@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks, Matt. I'll get back to you at some point soon with a couple of ideas for future columns.

On Sun, Dec 26, 2010 at 8:23 AM, Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk> wrote:
Hi Barrett

Just to let you know that your piece is all set up to run tomorrow; will send you link when live.

Best wishes,

Matt


On 24 December 2010 04:23, Matt Seaton <matt.seaton@guardian.co.uk> wrote:
Hi Barrett

Jonathan has kindly forwarded me your piece about the memorial to Robert E Lee in Texas etc, which I like very much and would gladly run on Comment is free America (and the main Cif).

If you could please send me a short biog and a head-and-shoulders photo (preferably colour) of yourself, that would be great. If you could provide some weblinks for the references in your article, that would be a bonus (though I can find some if necessary).

I'm on a very tight budget, which means I can't always pay for content, but I can find one of our modest fees for this. Please feel free to pitch ideas in future.

Best, Matt

--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444



--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk www.observer.co.uk To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber --------------------------------------------------------------------- This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately. Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way. Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this e-mail. You should employ virus checking software. Guardian News & Media Limited A member of Guardian Media Group plc Registered Office PO Box 68164 Kings Place 90 York Way London N1P 2AP Registered in England Number 908396



--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302



--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk  www.observer.co.uk

To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer
visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also
be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify
the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately.
Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use
the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way.

Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer
viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this
e-mail. You should employ virus checking software.

Guardian News & Media Limited

A member of Guardian Media Group plc
Registered Office
PO Box 68164
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1P 2AP

Registered in England Number 908396




--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302



--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk  www.observer.co.uk

To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer
visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also
be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify
the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately.
Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use
the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way.

Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer
viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this
e-mail. You should employ virus checking software.

Guardian News & Media Limited

A member of Guardian Media Group plc
Registered Office
PO Box 68164
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1P 2AP

Registered in England Number 908396




--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302



--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk  www.observer.co.uk

To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer
visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also
be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify
the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately.
Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use
the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way.

Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer
viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this
e-mail. You should employ virus checking software.

Guardian News & Media Limited

A member of Guardian Media Group plc
Registered Office
PO Box 68164
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1P 2AP

Registered in England Number 908396




--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302



--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302



--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk  www.observer.co.uk

To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer
visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also
be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify
the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately.
Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use
the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way.

Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer
viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this
e-mail. You should employ virus checking software.

Guardian News & Media Limited

A member of Guardian Media Group plc
Registered Office
PO Box 68164
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1P 2AP

Registered in England Number 908396





--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk  www.observer.co.uk

To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer
visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also
be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify
the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately.
Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use
the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way.

Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer
viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this
e-mail. You should employ virus checking software.

Guardian News & Media Limited

A member of Guardian Media Group plc
Registered Office
PO Box 68164
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1P 2AP

Registered in England Number 908396





--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302



--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk  www.observer.co.uk

To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer
visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also
be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify
the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately.
Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use
the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way.

Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer
viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this
e-mail. You should employ virus checking software.

Guardian News & Media Limited

A member of Guardian Media Group plc
Registered Office
PO Box 68164
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1P 2AP

Registered in England Number 908396





--
Regards,

Barrett Brown
512-560-2302



--
Matt Seaton
Editor, Comment is free America
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/america
Direct line: 212-584 9938
Cellphone: 202-372 7444
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit guardian.co.uk - newspaper website of the year
www.guardian.co.uk  www.observer.co.uk

To save up to 33% when you subscribe to the Guardian and the Observer
visit http://www.guardian.co.uk/subscriber

---------------------------------------------------------------------

This e-mail and all attachments are confidential and may also
be privileged. If you are not the named recipient, please notify
the sender and delete the e-mail and all attachments immediately.
Do not disclose the contents to another person. You may not use
the information for any purpose, or store, or copy, it in any way.

Guardian News & Media Limited is not liable for any computer
viruses or other material transmitted with or as part of this
e-mail. You should employ virus checking software.

Guardian News & Media Limited

A member of Guardian Media Group plc
Registered Office
PO Box 68164
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1P 2AP

Registered in England Number 908396