Christoforo had an Avenger for sale on his ebay site, which made me wonder if he was diverting (i.e., stealing) them and selling them himself, while the rightful purchasers get stiffed.

"Which of course makes it difficult for a recent political science graduate who doesn't read the language to find it so they will just make things up."

Or maybe they have contacts in the region with whom they communicate directly.

You're showing even more ignorance than you are accusing Stratfor of having.

"These places pretend to sell "experts" on anything you want at the moment"

And you know this based on?

Have you ever even seen Stratfor's work product?

You're talking nonsense.

"Your humanitarian project analogy may have been more meaningful before Google existed. " The information needed probably isn't *on* Google, because it isn't on any webpages, because in the example it's freaking Myanmar. It'd be transmitted by phone or text, not news websites.

So does a newspaper, a computer vendor, or a power company. So what?

"at least they are not wasting time attacking international charities"

One of the Stratfor customers in the released info was Doctors Without Borders, an international charity.

"In Anonymous I see a bunch of greedy, spoiled, whining kids."

You forgot "ignorant".

"But who, that can actually help Bradley Manning gives a fuck about Stratfor?"

There probably *are* people at the Pentagon who are customers of Stratfor, who could help Manning. Maybe they're civilians who started subscribing before coming to the Pentagon. Maybe it's someone with access to government intel who considers it a useful additional news source like their Washington Post subscription.

But as far as helping Manning... I can't see this being any more helpful than dropping a bag of flaming poop on the Secretary of Defense's front porch.

"Perhaps they are just an intelligence arm for corps that are trying to figure out new ways to screw indigenous people out of their natural resources."

Yeah, I'm sure that's why Doctors Without Borders is a customer. They're all about screwing indigenous people out of their natural resources.

"The very idea that the same person can be a world class expert on tobacco, nuclear power, coal chemistry, global warming, social security and health insurance should ring alarm bells in the head of everyone with the minimum standard of education."

What makes you think there's only one person involved?

If I run a humanitarian project operating on the border between Thailand and Myanmar, I need current information. I don't have time to wait for "books or papers by experts". I need to know about the recent Burmese military activity likely to send a stream of new refugees in my direction. Maybe that's in the papers, maybe not, so it'd be useful to have an additional source of information like Stratfor.

Simply put, you don't seem to understand what sort of service an outfit like Stratfor provides.

Er, no. If there's anything we know about trolls and bullies, it's that they often don't give a shit about whether the victims deserve it.

"What they serve is not justice. It is retaliation. And that's mob rule."

It's not retaliation if there's nothing being retaliated against.
Apparently one of the companies mentioned in the release is Doctors without Borders. I suppose a charity that provides medical care in war-torn regions and disaster areas finds it useful to have access to information and analysis of political and military situations in the regions where they are active.
What, exactly, is Stratfor supposed to have done that merits retaliation, if their service is useful to a group that does heroic work for people in the worst possible situations?

"There are career paths I personally didn't take because I realized the particular industry was corrupt to its core and I wanted no part in that. An honest living that does not make the world a worse place is an integral part of a clear conscience"
Since when does the dissemination of information come under such categories?
Do you object to libraries? What are you doing on the internet? Isn't it objectionable to you?

"There is no innocent employee of evil organizations. If you chose to act in support of such an organization, then you deserve what you get." And if some nut job decides that posting anonymously on a forum is "evil"?