ready, set, whisper!

Pfc. Bradley Manning

Not that it wasn't to be expected in one sense, but the veil of secrecy has begun to be lowered on the trial of Pfc. Bradley Manning, 25, the intelligence analyst accused of the single biggest release of classified documents in American history.

The trial that puts a single man's freedom and life on the line is all about secrets and it is unlikely that the specifics and backstory and factual facets of those secrets will be examined: It is easier to jail one young man and throw away the key.

The government that has accused Manning seems to rest its secrecy arguments on a premise that resembles this: "Manning released secrets and did harm. But the circumstances and facts surrounding those secrets are secret, so we can't discuss them. In short, we cannot publicly divulge what harm was done. We can only allege that that harm was done ... and ask you to trust us."

It all sounds a bit like the Russian or Chinese legal system that Americans are wont to excoriate.