VOA标准英语2013--Defense Opens in Manning WikiLeaks Case

 

Defense¹ Opens in Manning WikiLeaks Case

It is his lawyers' chance to try to convince a panel of military jurors that Bradley Manning is a whistleblower, not a traitor². 

The defense opened its case Monday with a combat video leaked by Manning of a 2007 U.S. helicopter attack in Baghdad that killed civilians³ including two employees of the Reuters news agency. 

Manning has admitted leaking information. His lawyers want some charges dismissed, arguing Manning was a na?ve young man who acted out of an interest to help, not hurt, the United States by exposing what he believed was wrongdoing by U.S. forces in Iraq. 

The prosecution⁴ rested its case last week, saying Manning committed espionage⁵ and aided the enemy.   Despite much anticipation⁶, observers note prosecutors⁸ did not present evidence showing the material he leaked caused major damage to U.S. national security.

Retired⁹ U.S. Air Force Colonel Morris Davis, a former chief prosecutor⁷ at Guantanamo, is among a long list of witnesses called by the defense.  Davis spoke¹⁰ to VOA earlier.

“Certainly, there's been embarrassment¹¹. But there's a big difference in being embarrassed and being harmed and I just haven't seen much evidence of there being any harm.  So I think he ought to be held accountable but it ought to be a punishment that fits the crime and not what the government thought the impact was going to be," he said. 

More details of the damage Manning may have caused could emerge in the sentencing phase, when the judge weighs the punishment with the amount of harm done. 

Manning's leaks appear indiscriminate. They included 700,000 classified documents, diplomatic cables, and government-owned videos of U.S. troops in combat. 

That's unlike the case of former intelligence analyst¹² Edward Snowden, who released smaller amounts of specific information about U.S. overseas cyber offensive  activities as well as domestic surveillance operations. 

The two men had some things in common:   They were tech-savvy individuals in their 20s who operated in low-level but sensitive positions. 

Manning's supporters hope the young private has started a trend. 

“I think that the base of support that we've created around and for Bradley Manning might have helped Edward Snowden feel more comfortable leaking or feel it's more important. I think we've created a culture that while the government doesn't like it, we laud¹³ whistleblowers and realize their importance," said Nathan Fuller of the Bradley Manning Support Network

The case raises questions of how the U.S. military and intelligence agencies will deal with potential security risks among individuals who, like Manning, show clear signs of emotional troubles or at the very least unease about their assigned missions. 

In Monday's testimony¹⁴, a chief warrant officer who worked with Manning described him as the best and most productive analyst on his team, albeit¹⁵ weak in his ability to assess information. 

Manning's trial is due to continue through next month. 

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 traitor   

n.叛徒，卖国贼

参考例句：

• The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。
• He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。

3 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

4 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

5 espionage   

n.间谍行为，谍报活动

参考例句：

• The authorities have arrested several people suspected of espionage.官方已经逮捕了几个涉嫌从事间谍活动的人。
• Neither was there any hint of espionage in Hanley's early life.汉利的早期生活也毫无进行间谍活动的迹象。

6 anticipation   

n.预期，预料，期望

参考例句：

• We waited at the station in anticipation of her arrival.我们在车站等着，期待她的到来。
• The animals grew restless as if in anticipation of an earthquake.各种动物都变得焦躁不安，像是感到了地震即将发生。

7 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

8 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

9 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

10 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

11 embarrassment   

n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫

参考例句：

• She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
• Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。

12 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

13 laud   

n.颂歌；v.赞美

参考例句：

• Kathy was very pleased to have graduated cum laud in her class.凯西在班上以优等成绩毕业，她为此而非常高兴。
• We laud him a warmhearted man.我们称赞他是个热心人。

14 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

15 albeit   

conj.即使；纵使；虽然

参考例句：

• Albeit fictional,she seemed to have resolved the problem.虽然是虚构的，但是在她看来好象是解决了问题。
• Albeit he has failed twice,he is not discouraged.虽然失败了两次，但他并没有气馁。