"...in a truly enlightened, tolerant and eductated scoiety like, say, the USA they wouldn't do things like that, would they?"
I knew someone would say something along those lines. God bless the Reg forums; they never disappoint.
No society is perfect. Every society without exception does grotesque things in the name of justice. I seem to recall it wasn't that long ago you guys on your side of the pond were apologizing for thanking Alan Turing for helping to win WWII by throwing him in prison for the crime of homosexuality, after which he was, if I recall correctly, hounded to death.
Every society has an imperfect system of justice, no question about it.
However, to score political points off the US or the UK or other countries by playing off a guy who's set to be *executed for writing file uploader software* strikes me as a bit crass. No society is perfect, but that doesn't mean all societies are therefore equal in the way they treat their citizens.
Yes, the Bradley Manning thing is a shameful and inexcusable debacle, no question about it. There's that, and then there's *executing a guy for writing file uploader software*. I know which one my money says is worse, and given a choice between living in, say, the US or the UK, and living in Iran, I know which one I'd pick in a heartbeat.