Blowing the lid on spying on all Americans...good Blowing the lid on spying on other countries...bad Offering that info to other countries...really bad
This pretty much echoes my thoughts on the matter. The one I think I will say which is different than the Bradley Manning case is that Snowden's leaks probably didn't put anyone in danger and legitimate fear for their lives. We know that Manning's leaks did in fact endanger people's lives.
I have sympathy for your point of view, but there is one and only one thing that Beck and Greenwald have in common. Comparing them is ridiculous. One in an educated, agenda-driven lawyer turned journalist. The other is a proudly uneducated, dollar-driven shock jock turned TV "political" huckster. Come on.
I think it's pretty clear that they aren't listening to American phone conversations, unless you have gone 9-11 conspiro on us. I am sorry but to think that any administration isn't going to use their powers to prevent terrorist attacks by pushing the limits of our legal system is naive. Furthermore, that's their job. It's to push things to protect the people. Thats why the gov't has 3 branches with differing roles. The gov't is only asking the phone companies for data they can analyze. It's not like someone is going, he, look Northside called his mom 7 times today. No, they are looking at suspicious numbers and patterns to identify leads into terror plots. And it works.
Yes, but not as much. Given enough time an investments, most intelligence agency can develop the ability to spy effectively on others. The bottom line being you showed the impetus to make such investments, so you bet it's a problem. No, the ACTIONS of the U.S. government makes it the worst, whether you choose to deny it or not. For example, when it comes to China, the U.S. intelligence community (and their various) predecessors has been actively involved in Chinese affairs since at least the early 1930's, directly influencing events in that country (especially involving the civil war) since before the current Chinese government ever came into existence, leading directly to deteriorating relations between the CCP and the U.S. since at latest the early 1940's. It may have happened any ways, but that is mere speculation. Currently, it is flying spy planes 12nm off the Chinese coast which I guess is an improvement to outright flying in U.S. airspace 60 years ago; dropping sonar buoys into their shipping lanes, surveying the littoral shores and reefs; it has initiated, supported and funded various separatist groups, quite a few with potential terrorist ties; heck, it planted several hundred bugs on that toad Jiang Zenmin's presidential plane several years back, including in the shower. Nothing the Chinese government remotely approach the sophistication and breadth of the American approach. You can choose to ignore it all you want, but the latest Snowden incident doesn't mean ****. The Chinese are well aware of the extent of American espionage, which makes the whole "Snowden telling the Chinese we're spying on them" even more laughable. And of course if you're gonna spy, then spy; don't blow sunshine up somebody's rear end and feigning outrage when you're doing far worse
If he had blown the whistle on Iran, China, Russia or north Korea most American would have called him a hero of free speech and wanted him to win a Nobel prize. And wanted him to get asylum.
being a traitor to the fascist state our government has become is a badge of honor. He is not a traitor to the american people, only to those who wish to hide their criminal acts under the guise of secrecy and national security. snowden is a true american patriot. Rebelling against tyranny for the freedom of the people is as american as you can get. If you want to say 'but treason is helping americas enemies' then you might as well arrest the whole Obama administration for aiding terrorists in Syria Treason.. hah wtf is with the trial of the fort hood shooter in a CIVILIAN COURT? He said straight up his motive was militant Islamic religious convictions and to help the Taliban fighters How is that not an act of War? he just told us his motive, he said he was fighting for them. He said his entire motive was to turn redcoat and take the enemies side, tried as a civilian haha I just want to add First amendment trumps all. Congress doesn't even have the authority to pass laws attempting to maintain secrecy outside of a military context amongst military personnel, they just do it any way. The only contract which in a legal way surrenders the rights of a citizen is a military enlistment, at which point you are under UCMJ jurisdiction not the civil authorities. In case you missed it shall make no law Plus he isn't 'giving' secrets to China. "he's also indicated that he has more information he intends to leak, saying that he'd like to "make it available to journalists in each country to make their own assessment." He's releasing to the world as an American citizen because he doesn't want his country to become like the China and Russia that you rail against. What good is a democratic election when candidates are monitored and threatened by a secret section of the gov't? What good is a constitution when journalists and whistleblowers are threatened, arrested, and otherwise silenced using "secret laws"?
Because spying on emails and phone calls is exactly the same as vaporizing tens of thousands of people in an instant and creating radioactive fallout for miles. If you really believe that, you're nuts.
The Supreme Curt has uniformly held over time that the freedom of speech is not absolute. That's why it remains illegal to yell "fire" in a crowded theater. There are time, place and manner restrictions, exceptions for fighting words and even sedition. If you have clearance to classified or sensitive information, you cannot go spreading it around and expect to not go to prison. This guy has betrayed the country that entrusted him.
In one sense its a crazy comparison.. but when you think of the very real possibility of who this puts in office and the wars we cause that are unjustifiable now and in the future... General Clapper is a traitor, should be on trial for perjury at a minimum. This corrupt pos we call our congress indicts Barry Bonds for lying about taking steroids, but this guy just goes on about his business. This is just a broken system, rotten to its core. And now, everyone one of these filthy douche bags is subject to being controlled through blackmail when our lovely government gathers dirt on them by spying on them illegally. The whole system is officially a sham with that going on. The people that are the most compromised, the most corrupt, are the ones that get the power positions, because they are easy to control. Judges with the most shady things in their private lives, now get the critical jobs. Russ Tice said they were tapping supreme court judges before they were confirmed, and while they sit on the bench. When you take that into consideration, and the consequences it may lead to, and our countries future and put it into long term perspective. It could very well be compared to a nuke.
The text clearly says "shall make no law" not "shall make no law, except in limited circumstances such as defamation, slander, state secrets, etc....... The meaning is quiet clear, clear as day
What a sham that the "left" and "center" don't care about violating basic rights of non-Americans, and then they are surprised when citizens and governments of those countries shield a whistleblowing US citizen from the US government? When the extremist citizens of some of those countries chant death to America and burn your flag, how does someone like me convince them not to hate Americans? If you don't care about the 3rd world countries, what is there to say to Europeans about how their leaders bend over for the US government while the US gov tramples on their right to privacy which is a right in their countries and in the EU? I know that in reality the left disappeared some time ago and it's a right vs slightly less right arena these days, but it is disgusting nonetheless from the slightly less right.
Voted for Obama Still Liberal but....... Quoting Henry David Thoreau: “Unjust laws exist; shall we be content to obey them, or shall we endeavor to amend them, and obey them until we have succeeded, or shall we transgress them at once? Men generally, under such a government as this, think that they ought to wait until they have persuaded the majority to alter them. They think that, if they should resist, the remedy would be worse than the evil. But it is the fault of the government itself that the remedy is worse than the evil. It makes it worse. Why is it not more apt to anticipate and provide for reform? Why does it not cherish its wise minority? Why does it cry and resist before it is hurt? Why does it not encourage its citizens to be on the alert to point out its faults, and do better than it would have them?”
The program didn't stop the the Ft Hood shootings or Boston bombings. What was stopped has been the subject of controversy and quite possibly stopped by more conventional methods. Also, the NSA has more data than it can ever properly analyze. Rather than collecting mounds and mounds of data there should be a targeted approach at analyzing pertinent data.
I think what's more scary isn't the explicit information we give out (phone number, email address, credit car details etc), but the information other people can guess about us based on our habits online (time spent looking at restaurants, certain pages).
Amnesty International: http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/usa-must-not-hunt-down-whistleblower-edward-snowden-2013-06-24
