Sunday, June 7, 2015

AT list of remarkable professional persons -- v2.0

Note: For older and newer versions of this list, click on the label "AT List". Newest additions are marked "*". Please make suggestions in comment.


This is version-2.0 of a tentative list of outstanding persons who have used their professional status to fight injustice, and who have thus disturbed power and suffered significant consequences.

Based on living professionals, these are folks who stand for what they believe, in the face of powerful and organized opposition.

André Marin*, former Ombudsman of Ontario
Alison Weir* (link)
Anhar Kochneva*
Bruce Allan Clark* (and link) (and link)
Carla Del Ponte*, UN investigator and jurist
Chelsea Manning (formerly: Bradley Manning)
Chris Hedges*
Cornel West*
Cynthia McKinney
Denis Halliday*

Desmond Tutu
Dieudonné M'bala M'bala*
 Edward Snowden*

George Galloway 
Gideon Levy*
Glenn Greenwald*

Haneen Zoabi* (article)
Harry Kopyto*
Hillary Mann Leverett* (story)
Ilan Pappe*
James Petras*
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jeremy Scahill*

John Pilger*
Judith Curry* (video)(video)
Julian Assange*
Kevin Annett*
Kim Dotcom*

Leonard Peltier*
Lynne Stewart
Mads Gilbert*
Malalai Joya*
Marinella Correggia*
Megan Rice*
Michael Parenti*
Michele Brill-Edwards* (video)
Mordechai Vanunu*
Muntadhar al-Zaidi (GIF)

Norman Finkelstein
Pamela Palmater*
Peter C. Gøtzsche* (video)

Ralph Nader
Ramsey Clark
Ray McGovern (former CIA officer)
Richard Stallman*
Rocco Galati* (video)
Salah Lamrani* (video)
Sampat Pal Devi (Gulabi Gang)*
Seymour Hersh*

Shiv Chopra*
Sibel Edmonds*
Steven Salaita*
Vanessa Redgrave* (video)
Ward Churchill
Wesley Clark*

Yanis Varoufakis* (Reevaluating as per: LINK)


I welcome your suggestions (in comment below!) of those who should be prominently added to such a list.

And, from recent history:




at

54 comments:

  1. LevantineJune 8, 2015 at 2:09 AM

    I'll emphasise what I suggested the first round: If the list is to make sense to me, the thinking behind it should be made more clear. I wonder, Why 'professional'? And how do you mean 'outstanding? And what suffered consequences are "significant"? Without a transparency about the thinking behind it, the list is apparently about making your own secular pantheon (sic).

    And the paradox of being "outstanding" "in the face of powerful and organized opposition" can be deeply problematic, because any opposition to "a person" that is really "powerful and organised" tends to make the person NOT outstanding, in the sense of being neither distinguished, nor prominent, nor unresolved.

    Anyway, to the nominees:

    Adding:

    1. Sibel Edmonds. There was a comment under your first entry that nominated her, but with stating wrong reasons. She suffered fairly significant consequences because of her speaking out as a professional. There was a youtube video of her being officially queried, she has her own book...

    2. Anhar Kochneva, an Ukrainian citizen

    3. Augusto Pinochet. The arguments are on the following links, arranged in order in which I initially read them:
    * http://www.lewrockwell.com/roberts/roberts189.html
    * http://www.policyofliberty.net/HPdA/RobertsAraujo.html
    * http://gonzalolira.blogspot.com/2010/08/social-security-and-chilean-afp-system.html
    I post the link bellow because it contains a dispute that helps the reader reach a conclusion:
    * http://www.opednews.com/articles/Is-America-Caught-In-The-C-by-paul-craig-roberts-110727-582.html?show=votes#allcomments


    Removing:

    * Edward Snowden *

    All the reasons I know stated here: https://jonrappoport.wordpress.com/?s=Edward+Snowden&submit=Search

    ReplyDelete
  2. wikispooksJune 8, 2015 at 5:06 AM

    Kevin Annet

    Don't be mislead by his apparently 'unhinged' latter-day campaigning activities against the UK Crown and the RC and Canadian established church hierarchies/institutions. I doubt there is anyone alive who has suffered more, both professionally and personally, in pursuit of genuine recognition and atonement for the horrors inflicted on Native Canadians at the hands of the Canadian State, than Kevin Annet.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Denis RancourtJune 8, 2015 at 3:09 PM

    @Levantine, @Wikispooks:

    That you both for important suggestions, now added your suggestions, except can't decide yet about Pinochet.

    DGR

    ReplyDelete
  4. NicolasJune 8, 2015 at 6:43 PM

    @Levantine

    All your arguments for removing Snowden rest on his (supposedly) lack of a high school diploma. You're attacking the person, not the evidence. Most of what he said is indeed vague, but it's neither technically true nor false. It's undefined. Just because we can't imagine how they could have pulled it off doesn't mean they didn't. The NSA is nowhere near as smart as you think it is. You're grossly overestimating what computers can do. I presume you'll also include Jérémie Zimmermann, Andy Müller-Maguhn and Jacob Appelbaum in your Assange-Snowden control theory. I guess you should include everyone who wants to popularize crypto. After all, if we want privacy and we question authority it implies we are just government puppets.


    By the way, the working assumption in cryptography is that you're being watched. Maybe this will help you understand that what matters are the technical details, not the size of his penis.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Denis RancourtJune 9, 2015 at 6:16 AM

    I just added Lucy Parsons !

    ReplyDelete
  6. LevantineJune 9, 2015 at 11:01 AM

    Nicolas,

    Thank you for the nontrivial response.

    "All your arguments for removing Snowden rest on his (supposedly) lack of a high school diploma."

    I accept the possibility that you may be right. Being neither a westerner nor a citizen of the country where Snowden resides, I lack the will to look into his case once again. What I do have passion for is for people to see - and make - the arguments pro and con and make their own judgements, in this as well as in every other case.

    ReplyDelete
  7. LevantineJune 10, 2015 at 6:01 AM

    I might bring to attention

    Andrei Sakharov, the Soviet physicist & dissident

    Frank Serpico, the ex- policeman

    Craig Murray, the UK ex-ambasador to Uzbekistan

    Vladimir Chamov, the Russian ex-ambassador to Libya. Standards among diplomats are so low that even his brief, modest conflict against Kremlin was impressive.

    People convicted of Holocaust denial offenses
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:People_convicted_of_Holocaust_denial_offenses
    You might interpret some of their activities as fights for justice. Udo Walendy confronts the mainstream dogma as a professional historian.

    Also,

    Milovan Djilas, the Yugoslav dissident

    H. Michael Sweeney, who I mention just because the reviews of his book “Professional Paranoid” sound intriguing and indicate he might fit the bill

    …

    Still, few of them seem to be a moral match to those professionals who declined lucrative offers to abandon their positions in countries targeted by imperialism. They mostly _chose_ to face the prospect of their annihilation. In 2011, such were a number of Libyan government officials and social / religious / cultural authorities. From among them, the ex- Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim is still alive and active.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Denis RancourtJune 10, 2015 at 11:20 AM

    Just added Shiv Chopra.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Denis RancourtJune 10, 2015 at 11:32 AM

    Just added Michael Parenti.

    ReplyDelete
  10. mulligasJune 10, 2015 at 9:59 PM

    The Gracchus Brothers, WEB Dubois, Paul Robeson, and Thomas Paine.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Denis RancourtJune 11, 2015 at 4:16 AM

    Thank you mulligas !
    I just added your suggestions of outstanding individuals from history.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Denis RancourtJune 11, 2015 at 4:52 AM

    Just added Sampat Pal Devi, od the "pink saris" Gulabi Gang.

    ReplyDelete
  13. LevantineJune 18, 2015 at 11:22 PM

    X days passed since my last comment, that was answering your call.

    It looks ignored, and even more: It looks boycotted.

    My response is exactly like this:
    “And they’re wandering, - “What is happening to me? All of a sudden, you know, I was … appreciated, and now I’m seen as a black sheep.”
    And it’s really a dramatic thing that happens to them, because they didn’t understand the _underlying_ ideology of the system. Instead, they went with their hearts.”

    Evita Ochel - Denis Rancourt - Aug 2013 29:37
    (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujvvSoce_f8)

    Well, I doubt there is much system on the side of Activist teacher...

    ReplyDelete
  14. Denis RancourtJune 19, 2015 at 9:04 AM

    I just added John Pilger.

    He has suffered in that his life-long contributions and risk-taking are disproportionately important compared to the establishment's peripheral recognition of his work. And, he has suffered the gargantuan stupidity of his service-intellectual critics.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Denis RancourtJune 22, 2015 at 9:05 AM

    I just added Aaron Swartz.

    ReplyDelete
  16. NicolasJune 24, 2015 at 11:09 AM

    Richard Stallman and Derek Bryce-Smith.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Denis RancourtJune 24, 2015 at 12:13 PM

    Thanks Nicolas. I just added Richard Stallman! I won't add Derek Bryce-Smith at this time, because he simply (brilliantly) did what every establishment academic should do, and was not fired or shunned for his views and work.

    Fascinating, nonetheless:
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derek_Bryce-Smith

    ReplyDelete
  18. Denis RancourtJune 24, 2015 at 2:51 PM

    Just added Megan Rice.
    US political prisoner just released from jail on appeal.
    85 year-old anti-nuclear direct-action peace-activist nun.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Denis RancourtJuly 1, 2015 at 10:05 AM

    Just added Kim Dotcom (kim.com)!
    That brilliant internet warrior.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Denis RancourtJuly 1, 2015 at 4:53 PM

    Just added Lenny Bruce.
    US freedom of speech icon.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Denis RancourtJuly 3, 2015 at 5:37 AM

    Just added:
    Steven Salaita
    Michael Hastings

    ReplyDelete
  22. Denis RancourtJuly 5, 2015 at 5:05 AM

    Just added:

    Wilheim Reich.
    Amazing case. How easily we are allowed to forget the brilliant radicals!

    Mikhail Bakunin.
    Like I have said: The list is incomplete! Possibly the most deeply influential political scientist in modern history.

    ReplyDelete
  23. NicolasJuly 13, 2015 at 1:56 PM

    Yanis Varoufakis, for his incredible bravery and resistance to the Fourth Reich.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Denis RancourtJuly 14, 2015 at 9:38 PM

    I just added Yanis Varoufakis (Greece) and Malalai Joya (Afghanistan).

    ReplyDelete
  25. Denis RancourtJuly 19, 2015 at 7:53 AM


    Reevaluating the status of Yanis Varoufakis, as per "What Stinks about Varoufakis and the Whole Greek Mess?". Also, why did he resign rather than stay and fight?

    ReplyDelete
  26. Denis RancourtAugust 22, 2015 at 3:09 PM

    Just added Denis Halliday, former Assistant Secretary General of the UN, who resigned over the genocidal sanctions that killed 1 million people in Iraq.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Denis RancourtAugust 24, 2015 at 8:24 AM

    Just added physicist and Nazi holocaust survivor Hajo Meyer. He was protected from harsh backlash because he was a holocaust survivor, but there is a clear effort to be remarkably silent about his politics and clear words.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Denis RancourtSeptember 13, 2015 at 6:59 PM

    Just added Dr. Peter C. Gøtzsche, who is taking on a critique of big pharma.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Denis RancourtSeptember 19, 2015 at 1:00 PM

    I just added the amazing Canadian native rights lawyer Bruce Allan Clark.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Denis RancourtSeptember 20, 2015 at 5:36 PM

    I just added Canadian lawyer Rocco Galati.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Denis RancourtOctober 17, 2015 at 7:20 AM

    I just added Gideon Levy !
    There is no excuse for the degree to which this list is incomplete. Please send me your suggestions.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Denis RancourtOctober 17, 2015 at 2:59 PM

    I just added "John Brown (abolitionist)".

    ReplyDelete
  33. LevantineNovember 20, 2015 at 9:16 AM

    I found time to return to Snowden. I've just listened to this talk which well outlines the fishiness of the whole affair with him:
    http://www.spyculture.com/operation-snowden-tom-secker-on-tmr/
    As one of the talkers says, there is a possibility he really believes in what he was doing _and_ is used as a patsy.

    a nomination: Alison Weir, the journalist not the historian
    We could add
    "Bobby" Fischer the chess player
    James and JoAnne Moriarty, though I doubt they whistleblowed in 'professional' roles
    Nicholas Kollerstrom
    Giovanni Falcone, Paolo Borsellino and Rocco Chinnici
    Ricardo Semler: his conflict with corrupt state authorities is recounted in chapter 28 of his book “Maverick!” His struggle for participatory democracy is the book's story.

    David F. Noble was fired from MIT because he was “too radical,” according to Chomsky

    Lastly,

    Down with faux heroes staring at us from the screens & pages of establishment media!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Denis RancourtNovember 20, 2015 at 5:16 PM

    Thanks.
    I just added Alison Weir and David F. Noble.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Denis RancourtDecember 10, 2015 at 2:59 PM

    I just added John Trudell.
    Better late than never!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Denis RancourtDecember 15, 2015 at 7:21 AM

    I just added Muntadhar al-Zaidi.
    He spent a year in jail for throwing a shoe at mass-murderer George W. Bush.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Denis RancourtDecember 26, 2015 at 7:14 PM

    I just added Seymour Hersh. He should be recognized as an outstanding journalist in the mainstream. Instead, his articles barely get out. Given the importance of his work, and given his access to top establishment figures, this is a blackout.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Denis RancourtJanuary 12, 2016 at 9:41 AM

    I just added Dr. John Virapen, who died in 2015.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Denis RancourtJanuary 17, 2016 at 5:52 PM

    I just added Nelson Mandela.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Denis RancourtJanuary 19, 2016 at 7:31 AM

    I just added Dr. Michele Brill-Edwards, Canada.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Denis RancourtJanuary 20, 2016 at 8:30 AM

    I just added Hillary Mann Leverett.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Denis RancourtFebruary 1, 2016 at 10:54 AM

    I just added Salah Lamrani.

    ReplyDelete
  43. Denis RancourtFebruary 2, 2016 at 3:53 AM

    I just added James Petras.

    ReplyDelete
  44. Denis RancourtFebruary 6, 2016 at 2:17 PM

    I just added Cornel West and Chris Hedges.
    Thank you Wayne Workman for those suggestions!
    I need more help...

    ReplyDelete
  45. Denis RancourtFebruary 7, 2016 at 2:11 PM

    I just added Ray McGovern, former veteran CIA analyst

    ReplyDelete
  46. Denis RancourtFebruary 8, 2016 at 8:52 AM

    I just added Marinella Correggia, Italian anti-war activist.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Denis RancourtFebruary 8, 2016 at 1:16 PM

    I just added William J. Brennan, Jr., former US Supreme Court judge extraordinaire.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Denis RancourtFebruary 10, 2016 at 6:58 PM

    I just added Carla Del Ponte.
    Balls of steel award.

    ReplyDelete
  49. Denis RancourtFebruary 10, 2016 at 7:04 PM

    I just added Andre Marin.
    Fired by the Ontario Liberal government for doing his job too well.

    ReplyDelete
  50. Denis RancourtFebruary 27, 2016 at 7:11 PM

    I just discovered and added Vanessa Redgrave!

    ReplyDelete
  51. Denis RancourtApril 5, 2016 at 1:37 PM

    I just added Ilan Pappe.

    ReplyDelete
  52. Denis RancourtMay 1, 2016 at 7:08 AM

    I just added scientist Judith Curry.

    ReplyDelete
  53. Denis RancourtMay 9, 2016 at 3:32 PM

    I just added Israeli whistle-blower Mordechai Vanunu.

    ReplyDelete
  54. Denis RancourtJuly 1, 2016 at 6:41 AM

    I just added Knesset member Haneen Zaobi. Wow.

    ReplyDelete

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