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Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

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111–120 of 231 posts

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#111
post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

to be fair sneaking out of russia is probably not that hard given the huge land borders of the country.

If you've ever been near a russian land border, you'd know sneaking ain't an option - they're still very much into their 30 foot razor wire fences, and mile wide minefields. AFAIK, the only borders which aren't demarked as such are those which ramble across incredibly inhospitable desert, which serves the same purpose as razor wire and mines.

> 30 foot razor wire fences, and mile wide minefields.

LOL OMFG!

MILE WIDE !!! MINEFIELDS !!!

May be the confusion is with USA-Mexico border? o_O

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#112
"Snowden's temporary asylum request is still undecided and he is to remain in Sheremetyevo airport's transit zone for now, Reuters is reporting, citing the whistleblower's lawyer."

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/24/edward-snowden-m...

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#113
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I mean, Putin straight kills journalists." So does the United States of America. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rXPrfnU3G0 The United States government wants to make an example out of Snowden. There's no way he would serve just two years in prison.

Would it stretch your moral intellect too far to identify a key distinction there? Namely, intent matters: The U.S., as far as anyone has demonstrated, does not set out to kill journalists because what they write is inconvenient.

> The U.S., as far as anyone has demonstrated, does not set out to kill journalists because what they write is inconvenient.

I remember that prior to the invasion of Iraq, the US said that any journalist that is not embedded with US troops is fair game. That does sound like they didn't mind killing journalists they don't control.

This attitude also clearly shows in the bombing of the Al Jazeera offices in Baghdad, Bush's 2004 idea of bombing the Al Jazeera HQ in Qatar, or the attack on the Palestine Hotel.

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#114
post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Much better than China anyway. Why do you think Russia is a much better choice for him then China?

China is fairly stable politically, but they practice more active censorship and have worse human rights violations compared to Russia today. They have strict visa regulations, a strict national ID system, and they definitely spy on people's e-mails and phone conversations. Skype had to release a special, wiretapped version specifically for China. They lack even a semblance of democracy, and protests are forbidden. J…

I mostly agree but in the end, both countries are a bad fit for Snowden with regards to his activism. Also, China doesn't really have strict visa regulations at all (for example, pretty much anyone can buy a one year visa within a few hours in Hong Kong, no questions asked). On the other hand, it is probably easier to apply for citizenship in Russia and the Russian passport is more convenient for travel. In any case, I don't think Snowden ever really had a choice between Russia and China.

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#115
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I mean, Putin straight kills journalists." So does the United States of America. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rXPrfnU3G0 The United States government wants to make an example out of Snowden. There's no way he would serve just two years in prison.

Would it stretch your moral intellect too far to identify a key distinction there? Namely, intent matters: The U.S., as far as anyone has demonstrated, does not set out to kill journalists because what they write is inconvenient.

New York Times media correspondent David Carr: “If you add up the pulling of news organization phone records (The Associated Press), the tracking of individual reporters (Fox News), and the effort by the current administration to go after sources (seven instances and counting in which a government official has been criminally charged with leaking classified information to the news media), suggesting that there is a war on the press is less hyperbole than simple math.”

AP president Gary Pruitt: "Longtime sources have stopped talking to the Associated Press in response to the Obama administration’s secret seizure of the wire service’s phone records. This chilling effect is not just at AP, it’s happening at other news organizations as well. Journalists from other news organizations have personally told me it has intimidated sources from speaking to them."

Chief White House Correspondent for NBC News Chuck Todd: "You end up essentially criminalizing journalism when it comes to reporting on the federal government, particularly on national security. You know, I’ve had different conversations with people over the last week who are sitting there not quite comfortable having certain conversations on the phone."

Would it stretch your moral intellect to google any of the above? The US has successfully criminalized real journalism so there is no need to kill. Not a whole lot better.

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#116
post #59

It seems he accepted Putin's terms to not release anymore information. I wonder if that means no more information coming out, period, or that since most/all of the information is now with third parties that it's their responsibility. I doubt Putin likes being disrespected with loopholes and technicalities, but I more-so doubt that Snowden would halt the revelations altogether for the sake of his own safety. I suspect…

Now the headline has changed to: "Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now - lawyer"

... so it seems RT popped their cork too early. Explains why the Guardian didn't cover this yet.

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#117
post #69
post #59

It seems he accepted Putin's terms to not release anymore information. I wonder if that means no more information coming out, period, or that since most/all of the information is now with third parties that it's their responsibility. I doubt Putin likes being disrespected with loopholes and technicalities, but I more-so doubt that Snowden would halt the revelations altogether for the sake of his own safety. I suspect…

Snowden will halt the revelations abruptly. He would be a fool to break the agreement with Putin. Putin is a man of his word, and expects the same from Snowden. Information may continue to leak, but not from Snowden. His part of the show is finished (and luckily for him, he's not even bruised!).

>Information may continue to leak, but not from Snowden. His part of the show is finished (and luckily for him, he's not even bruised!).

In my opinion, being exiled from your home and living the rest of your life with the world superpower ready to kidnap you is relatively bruising.

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#119
post #59

It seems he accepted Putin's terms to not release anymore information. I wonder if that means no more information coming out, period, or that since most/all of the information is now with third parties that it's their responsibility. I doubt Putin likes being disrespected with loopholes and technicalities, but I more-so doubt that Snowden would halt the revelations altogether for the sake of his own safety. I suspect…

Didn't Snowden say that this was only temporary so he could secure a flight to a south american country at some point ?

Re: Snowden asylum still under review, stays in airport for now

#120
post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Snowden will halt the revelations abruptly. He would be a fool to break the agreement with Putin. Putin is a man of his word, and expects the same from Snowden. Information may continue to leak, but not from Snowden. His part of the show is finished (and luckily for him, he's not even bruised!).

> Putin is a man of his word :-)

Can you provide proof to otherwise? I'd imagine you've done proper research on the topic of Putin's honesty due to the flippant response.
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