Who did he rape? Who did he murder?
He actually didn't break a law. The law applied to him was ridiculous but his 'crime' was overdownloading free articles with the intent to distribute.
As Imani Henry (Workers World) points out, the federal government wanted to put Swartz away for "up to 34 years" and there was an effort to enter "a plea bargain to serve no time, based on his struggle with depression. But MIT refused to sign the deal."
These are the crooks, not Aaron Swartz.
These are the crooks. They've been bought by the corporations -- supposed institutions of higher learning and the White House. A Congressional investigation should have been immediately launched following Aaron's death. But how could the Congress launch such an investigation when they have been purchased by the corporations as well?
When no one could extract justice, Anonymous stepped forward.
Already this weekend, they've hacked the US Sentencing Commission website and made clear that they have US government files that could cause great embarrassment.
If the US government is hoping for sympathy, they better think again.
This reminds us of nothing so much as Ted Kotcheff's Fun With Dick and Jane starring George Segal and Jane Fonda, screenplay written by David Giler, Jerry Belson and Mordecai Richler. Specifically, it reminds us of the scene where Dick and Jane rob the phone company.
The customers aren't appalled. They applaud and shout out things like, "Shoot out the computers while you're at it!"
And that's going to be the general reaction in America because Aaron Swartz didn't have to die. He was put into a position by the US government and MIT where he had to make a decision. He never should have been put in that position. And the mood on this is just going to sour more and more as the months pass. Aaron Swartz isn't a martyr. He's a hero.
And people root for heroes.