New York Times and Guardian to share Snowden material

This is a very brave undertaking, considering the total contempt for the law displayed by those that the Snowden material exposes. These journalist are high profile though and far less likely to be targeted by the perpetrators of illegal surveillance activities than the rest of us. The Miranda affair was supposed to frighten everybody into silence but it has had the opposite effect. Most times when my faith in human nature gets restored it's due to the brave actions of a journalist or two .
And I get a warm feeling everytime somebody sticks it to the spooks.

 

Well, dey gave it to Obama didn't dey?...

Snowden Nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
January 29, 2014 ~ NSA leaker Edward Snowden has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

 

Granny says dem commies is always spyin' on us...

Snowden asks Putin on live TV show if Russia spies like US
April 17, 2014 — Edward Snowden, the former U.S. security contractor under asylum in Russia, made a rare appearance Thursday, asking President Vladimir Putin if the nation spies on its citizens like the United States.

 

That rings true to me. Nobody was ever in any doubt that governments spied on each other. Nobody was ever in any doubt that Soviet-era secret police spied upon Russians as well. The shock has been that the US has become far , far worse than any other evesdropping fascists anywhere in the world.

 

Granny be backwards! The anti-capitalists in DC have been spying on their own country and exploiting and victimizing their own people with their own information. Unless who that's what Granny means by dem "commies".

 

Good. The more exposure, public embarrassment and ridicule these idiot spooks get subjected to the happier I become.

 

Snowden should be strung up by his neck.

I understand what he was trying to do that being trying to expose illegal activities by some branches of the U.S. Government but he could have done this without compromising people in the field which he did and if such a thing happened to a members father or son or daughter I don't think they would be speaking well of Snowden.

AboveAlpha

 

We shouldn't need spies. This is the 21st century. We should be abandoning violence as a way of life. Exposing criminal activities- and that's what spying is- helps us all along that road.

 

Yeah...that ain't going to happen anytime soon.

There is what a person HOPES the world could be....and then there is the way the world is.

If you had even the smallest amount of knowledge about even 1/1000th of what U.S. Intel. Groups and Agencies have had to deal with and counter over the last 10 years you wouldn't be able to sleep at night.

AboveAlpha

 

I don't differentiate between ' our ' criminal and ' their ' criminals. I'd like to be rid of them all.

 

The criminal element that was exposed to exist is a tiny percentage of the total number of very good people who work very hard attempting to keep American's safe.

For anyone to think such people are not needed just take a look at the Ukraine.

AboveAlpha

 

Is that really the function of secret police in any country? to keep common citizens safe?

 

It is by design intended to counter any possible threats by gathering intel. thus allowing operations to eliminate such threats.

AboveAlpha

 

America is not safe from pollutants, genetically modified pseudo-food, nuts with automatic weapons, horrendous road tolls or fracking. The ' spy ' fraternity is doing a lousy job at keeping America safe.

 

Such things are not in our arena

AboveAlpha

 

Switzerland has an armed citizenry. I wonder if they have, or have ever had, secret police to keep them safe?

 

Well it's time that they were, considering the massive annual American death toll attributed to those- avoidable- factors. Give the spies some worthwhile and legal employment. Reading our mail isn't going to save America.

 

There is a big difference between members of the various U.S. Intel. Groups and a Secret Police.

Such a thing is more a Russian creation.

AboveAlpha

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The largest and most heavily armed populace exists in the United States.

AboveAlpha

 

They are police, and they work in secret, like the Savak, the Gestapo, and the Inquisition, so what is the difference?

 

They work in secret yes but their activities and budget is overseen by a congressional committee.

AboveAlpha

 

Well, I guess that makes everything okay.

 

It does make a difference as the Soviet KGB and now Russian Intelligence has virtually no oversight.

AboveAlpha

 

Name any example of NSA eliminating a threat.

 

NSA and CIA have zero oversight. Both of them keep much of their operations secret, even to the congressional committees who are meant to provide "oversight". If they can't know the whole story then oversight is impossible.

What about the Bill of Rights? Did you ever swear an oath to the Constitution?

 

Yeah, and how was he supposed to do that without going public? Secondly I frankly couldn't care less how many spooks and their illicit activities are 'compromised'. The fewer of the goons there are, the cleaner the world will be.