Good thing that he came forward before he miraculously 'disappears' or is otherwise arrested of some irrelevant crime. Unlike the Assange or Manning cases however, this guy uncovered an actual abuse of power, so it's hard for people not to sympathize with him and hopefully he won't be prosecuted ruthlessly. If on the other hand the US (and allies) begin a new crusade against him, it is literally a case of a government fighting its own people. Leadership needs to be accountable and that cannot happen without whistleblowers.
Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
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Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#192The best near-term result from this would be to end the reliance of NSA/IC/DOD/USG on private contractors and vendors of anything but the most COTS of COTS products. End the contractor gravy train. No services. All inherently governmental functions to be performed solely by current government employees, at defense, law enforcement, or civil service wages.
The overt purpose is to prevent leaks.
The actual purpose is to remove the profit motive from expanding the military industrial complex. This will both dramatically reduce the scope and reduce the capabilities of the military and intelligence communities, so they will have to focus on real threats with their remaining resources.
You also won't get anyone good to do anything they don't truly believe in for a GS-11 to GS-13 salary, whereas plenty of good people will do mildly evil or at least banal stuff for $250k/yr contractor salaries.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#193Earlier quoted context omitted.
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Whether or not we can effectively realize change while restricting ourselves as Gandhi advocated remains to be seen. I think it is premature to assume that it is sufficient (and certainly premature to chastise those who feel strongly about this recent news). Just one example of something that goes beyond Gandhi's approval (which may or may not be necessary in this particular case) is targeted industrial sabotage. Car…
Gandhi's approach is guaranteed to work for those who turn to it because the core values are, "I don't want to live in a violent world nor inflict violence on others." If it turns out the world is immutably violent, you will probably die at the hands of somebody else, but at least you were consistent with your values - you no longer live in a violent world, and you didn't hurt anyone to get there. Of course it is all predicated on the belief that after enough unarmed protestors have been shot, violence will come to an end, due to a combination of compassion for the victims, guilt over one's actions, and outrage against the aggressors.
Whether it would be effective for non-believers (i.e. the people who aren't willing to put their lives on the line) against other regimes is hard to say. I'm not sure it has been tested outside of India or ever will be, since it requires suicidal amounts of willpower to follow through.
So, while not advocating suicide-by-aggressor civil disobedience, I also think it's purely speculation as to what would happen if it were tried on a large scale. Closest thing that comes to mind is the Tiananmen square tank man, and that was one guy.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#194I'm usually against whistleblowers...but given Snowden's risk, acknowledgment and sacrifices, FOR ONCE (Bradley aside), I do believe in Snowden's character and motivation!
I do agree that it's only a matter of time before some media outlets demonize him. Given his current position, I understand why he would disclose his identity.
1) He has to know that they would suspect and/or discover him as the whistleblower.
2) For his safety. The gov may not send a seal team in after him (esp. in China territory), but nothing stops motivated bounty hunters.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#195Earlier quoted context omitted.
I would be shocked if information didn't come out about him that will "discredit" him. More over, I am sure there are laws that if don't flat out make leaks like this a crime, there are laws that can be interpreted in a way as to make a credible enough case against him. That would tie him up in court for years.
What would they discover that wouldn't have disqualified him from holding the security clearance he did? They would have to assert that their screening procedures are deeply flawed.
Either evidence that has come to light only now the guy's face and name are in the news -OR- fabricated evidence made to look like that.
e.g. the police weren't able to find the coked-up hit-and-run driver who crippled my adorable child but I'd recognize his face anywhere, and that guy on TV is him for sure.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#196Earlier quoted context omitted.
No reason, but PRISM as explained in #1 doesn't seem like that big of a deal, or at least, not that much more shocking then what we already knew.
As far as I can see, this debacle is entirely the fault of one journalist at The Washington Post, and the people who believed his interpretation of some aspects of some PowerPoint slides. A lot of hot air was also generated by people who had forgotten about interception facilities like Room 641A, and thought it was news.
Previous instances of abuse don't legitimise abuse.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#197White House Petition to Pardon Edward Snowden: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/pardon-edward-snow...
I want to see this get lots of votes, just so the White House has to write a response. Even though I know what they will say...
They never responded to the Aaron Swartz petition and it reached twice the required signatures to "guarantee" a response.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#198Earlier quoted context omitted.
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As Harry Potter in _Methods of Rationality_ observed, non-violent resistance only worked against the British because (at the time; not to say the British haven't had some bloody years) the had no stomach for butchering helpless men. Against the Nazis, however, it would be useless, because their capacity for violence was much higher. So the question you have to ask yourself, before non-violently resisting, is whether…
The fact that countering protest strategies (as distinguished from philosophies) are absorbed by the state and its authorities is the reason why marching in the streets and White House petitions and any other marginally (or not) effective approaches no longer work.
Though the repercussions remain to be seen, this week we find that leaking is possibly the most effective form of protest available today, and certainly more effective than picket signs and camping in parks.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#199Earlier quoted context omitted.
They'll come get him in Hong Kong. I meant the Chinese.
His public disclosure makes that exceedingly unlikely. At this point, China would rather let Obama reap the shitstorm alone.
Exactly, China doing nothing is a free PR win for them because they look tolerant while the US is clearly attempting to close down discussion.
I think he made one of the best choices he could but, as he says, he can't ensure his own safety anywhere really.
Re: Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind revelations of NSA surveillance
#200White House Petition to Pardon Edward Snowden: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/pardon-edward-snow...
Just as I was about to sign the petition (I've only signed 1 other one before to revoke the Westboro Baptist Church, lol)....I plan to run a "successful," startup someday soon, do you think it's safe to sign a petition (esp when I don't believe Aaron Swartz's demise was self-inflicted).