Corrosion of the principles which underpin Western civilization

[solex]

I start every day with a quick scan of the news, and then move on. However, today two items really stand out showing how freedom of speech and the rule of law which are fundamental to modern society are being aggressively corroded by governments and companies:

UK secret trial
A major terrorism trial is to be heard entirely in secret in a “totally unprecedented departure” from centuries of open justice, it can be disclosed.
For the first time in British legal history, two men charged with serious terrorism offences will be kept anonymous and the press and public will be excluded from their trial, the Court of Appeal heard.

MPs and civil rights campaigners said it was an “outrageous assault” on the principles of open justice and set a “very dangerous precedent”.
Prosecutors have successfully applied for the case to be heard in private on grounds of national security but media organisations are trying to overturn the decision.
Journalists have up until now even been banned from reporting the fact that a trial was to be heard in secret.

The move has fuelled concerns over the growth of secret justice in British courts, which has already spread to civil cases and celebrity privacy challenges.
But a major criminal case being heard entirely behind closed doors risks ripping up the very tradition of open justice in the UK, which dates back to the Magna Carta of 1215.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/10876499/Secret-terror-trial-is-assault-on-British-justice.html

LinkedIn censorship and collusion
A major international social networking company is being criticized for assisting with China’s aggressive censorship of matters concerning the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests.
 
At the request of Chinese authorities, the professional connection site LinkedIn is removing content from member’s sites that reference the protests or their subsequent violent suppression.
The content, which can take the form of posts, messages or other comments, is being removed without the members’ permission.

http://www.voanews.com/content/linkedin-faces-flak-for-censoring-on-behalf-of-china/1929613.html

Is anyone else sickened by these?

[goozman96]

Why would those two particular stories stand out to you? There's a lot more breaking stories every day than just those that you mentioned.

[Ron~Popeil]

I start every day with a quick scan of the news, and then move on. However, today two items really stand out showing how freedom of speech and the rule of law which are fundamental to modern society are being aggressively corroded by governments and companies:

UK secret trial
A major terrorism trial is to be heard entirely in secret in a “totally unprecedented departure” from centuries of open justice, it can be disclosed.
For the first time in British legal history, two men charged with serious terrorism offences will be kept anonymous and the press and public will be excluded from their trial, the Court of Appeal heard.

MPs and civil rights campaigners said it was an “outrageous assault” on the principles of open justice and set a “very dangerous precedent”.
Prosecutors have successfully applied for the case to be heard in private on grounds of national security but media organisations are trying to overturn the decision.
Journalists have up until now even been banned from reporting the fact that a trial was to be heard in secret.

The move has fuelled concerns over the growth of secret justice in British courts, which has already spread to civil cases and celebrity privacy challenges.
But a major criminal case being heard entirely behind closed doors risks ripping up the very tradition of open justice in the UK, which dates back to the Magna Carta of 1215.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/10876499/Secret-terror-trial-is-assault-on-British-justice.html

LinkedIn censorship and collusion
A major international social networking company is being criticized for assisting with China’s aggressive censorship of matters concerning the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests.
 
At the request of Chinese authorities, the professional connection site LinkedIn is removing content from member’s sites that reference the protests or their subsequent violent suppression.
The content, which can take the form of posts, messages or other comments, is being removed without the members’ permission.

http://www.voanews.com/content/linkedin-faces-flak-for-censoring-on-behalf-of-china/1929613.html

Is anyone else sickened by these?

Is it just me or is it getting dark out there?

[5flags]

Secrecy. The state must keep secrets to protect it from its enemy, right? Well, kinda. The state's primary enemy is its own people, and the vast majority of secrets are kept secret to prevent the citizenry from finding out.

A trial held in secret is not a trial. Secret justice? Do we really trust the state to exercise power without scrutiny or oversight? Sure, because they have certainly earned that trust. :/

If he's smart, he will answer every question with "On the advice of counsel, and on the grounds that this case is being held in secret, I decline to answer."

The erosion of the English legal system which, it has to be said, is the best in the world, is sad. With the slashing of legal aid budgets, complex and costly trials may not even happen.

[Charlie Prime]

Is anyone else sickened by these?

I am.  It has been known for a long time that all governments tend toward growth and consolidation of power at the expense of the individual.

They require periodic clipping back like weeds.  It left alone, they destroy sidewalks and houses.

Modern technology now allows this phenomena to occur on a planetary scale.

The time has come for a trim.

[Este Nuno]

I start every day with a quick scan of the news, and then move on. However, today two items really stand out showing how freedom of speech and the rule of law which are fundamental to modern society are being aggressively corroded by governments and companies:

UK secret trial
A major terrorism trial is to be heard entirely in secret in a “totally unprecedented departure” from centuries of open justice, it can be disclosed.
For the first time in British legal history, two men charged with serious terrorism offences will be kept anonymous and the press and public will be excluded from their trial, the Court of Appeal heard.

MPs and civil rights campaigners said it was an “outrageous assault” on the principles of open justice and set a “very dangerous precedent”.
Prosecutors have successfully applied for the case to be heard in private on grounds of national security but media organisations are trying to overturn the decision.
Journalists have up until now even been banned from reporting the fact that a trial was to be heard in secret.

The move has fuelled concerns over the growth of secret justice in British courts, which has already spread to civil cases and celebrity privacy challenges.
But a major criminal case being heard entirely behind closed doors risks ripping up the very tradition of open justice in the UK, which dates back to the Magna Carta of 1215.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/10876499/Secret-terror-trial-is-assault-on-British-justice.html

LinkedIn censorship and collusion
A major international social networking company is being criticized for assisting with China’s aggressive censorship of matters concerning the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests.
 
At the request of Chinese authorities, the professional connection site LinkedIn is removing content from member’s sites that reference the protests or their subsequent violent suppression.
The content, which can take the form of posts, messages or other comments, is being removed without the members’ permission.

http://www.voanews.com/content/linkedin-faces-flak-for-censoring-on-behalf-of-china/1929613.html

Is anyone else sickened by these?

The British secret trial is a pretty interesting one. Especially because like you pointed out Britain has a rich and long tradition of public justice which many countries have emulated in their own legal systems.

The linkedin thing is just linkedin being stupid. It's pretty laughable that a public American company would do something like that. It's not like linkedin is a very respected company anyway, and doing things like this just adds to their poor image.