The WikiLeaks cablegate saga has claimed its first victim, with the chief executive of a leading German space company losing his job over remarks he made to US diplomats, the BBC reports.
Berry Smutny is alleged to have told the officals that Galileo -- a major EU space programme, was a "stupid idea". Galileo is essentially a sat-nav project that works alongside GPS, providing accurate location data. The project is long overdue, however, and is well over budget.
In a 2009 meeting with eminent emissaries in Berlin, Smutny apparently said Galileo was a waste of taxpayer money, and "primarily serves French interests". He also reportedly commented that Galileo was "doomed for failure" and would "have to undergo drastic scalebacks for survival".
Understandably, OHB-System -- the company Smutny headed up -- wasn't too happy, and in a statement said its supervisory board had "passed a unanimous resolution to revoke Mr Smutny's appointment".
Smutny admits he met the US officials, but denies making the imprudent remarks.
In other WikiLeaks news, the Guardian reports that a Swiss banker has handed over financial details of 2,000 "high net-worth individuals" he says are involved in tax evasion. Their names will not be revealed; rather the intention of the leak is to expose exactly how these people are getting out of paying their taxes.
What do you think about the WikiLeaks saga? Is it good that so much previously secret information is being pumped into the public domain? Or might it be harmful in the long-term? Sound off in the comments section, or on our Facebook wall.
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anonymous 18 January, 2011 19:35
If anything, I believe it's more harmful in the short-term, as institutions are scrambling to adapt and do damage control. I imagine it's much harder to be productive while constantly defending the poor decisions made in secret.
But I feel the long-term is where the benefit lies. The possibility of leaks will always loom, and so politicians and business-people will be force to ask "Would the general public be outraged if this were to come out?" That's a good thing.
Naryan 19 January, 2011 04:58
For right now, it's not good, harmful even. But this kind of this is the foundation of what we need for the future. A good base on which to build institutions, and as such, I think it's a "good" thing.