Does anyone else think it's odd that not ONE of Snowden's friends,

[B2G]

family members, coworkers, classmates, etc. have said a single word about him? Usually they're coming out of the woodwork to get on the cable news by now.

[randome]

1. My unsubstantiated guess is that he doesn't have any.

Loneliness is often an underlying reason for someone wanting to be an abrupt 'hero'.

[hr]
[font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font]
[hr]

[B2G]

5. No family, coworkers, classmates, neighbors, acquaintances?

Really?

[struggle4progress]

39. Mebbe:

... Neighbors told the Post that Snowden and his girlfriend were noticeably standoffish and regularly avoided conversation ...
http://news.msn.com/us/who-is-nsa-leaker-edward-snowden

... When a neighbor in Hawaii tried to introduce himself, Snowden cut him off and made it clear he wanted no neighborly relationships ...
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2013/06/scavenger-hunt-snowdens-personal-life-full-swing/66101/

... Carolyn Tijing said: ‘We would say, “Hi, how’s it going? How are you?” and he would just rush inside’ ...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2339268/Edward-Snowden-IT-geek-Americas-wanted.html

... Neighbors in the couple’s Hono­lulu neighborhood of Waipahu said Snowden rebuffed their overtures. When members of Carolyn Tijing’s family, who lived across the street, tried to introduce themselves, Snowden said “fine,” kept his head down and kept walking to his house, Tijing said. “It was a no go, no conversation at all,” she said. Numerous members of Snowden’s class at Anne Arundel County’s Arundel High School, where he attended ninth and tenth grades, said they do not remember him. The principal at the time had no recollection of him either ...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/snowdens-girlfriend-a-dancer-and-nature-lover-said-to-be-shocked-by-his-actions/2013/06/11/01e2f31c-d29b-11e2-9f1a-1a7cdee20287_story.html

... The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports neighbors at Snowden's rented house in Waipahu said he and his girlfriend kept to themselves until they moved out last month ...
http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/blog/morning_call/2013/06/edward-snowden-source-of-nsa-leaks.html

[HiPointDem]

42. sounds like how spies act. however, the blog posts by ther girlf. show them with at least one

friend.

[former9thward]

37. Oh hes got a girlfriend!

I guess the Smear Machine will have to retool their talking points of a "desperate loner wanting to be a hero".

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/snowdens-girlfriend-a-dancer-and-nature-lover-said-to-be-shocked-by-his-actions/2013/06/11/01e2f31c-d29b-11e2-9f1a-1a7cdee20287_story.html?wpisrc=nl_pmpol

[morningfog]

2. No.

[former9thward]

3. The Smear Machine keeps on getting new orders.

[baldguy]

13. The biggest source for the "Smear Machine" is Snowden himself.

The guy's a douchebag, there's no new info in Greenwald's story, this is the same type of data that every corporation you deal with everyday gathers about you - AND IT'S LEGAL!

Some people on DU seem to be surprised by these "revelations" as if they're something new or any different from what the govt's been doing for decades, and they try to tag Obama as a fascist because the bureaucracy he inherited is following the laws Congress has passed, and which the courts have upheld. It's a paranoid, absurdist fantasy on par with Glenn Beck, Art Bell or Alex Jones.

[marions ghost]

19. A lot of America did not know the extent of the surveillance

Journalist Eugene Robinson professed "not to know." And he calls out Obama on not having our backs particularly. See article:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=2990799

If Eugene Robinson did not know, many many Americans didn't.

----------

You forget to mention that two journalists with excellent cred are supporting Snowden.

There is no way this type of blanket data mining should be legal. And you know it.

[graham4anything]

27. Alot of people give their whole life story with pix and numbers on facebook and think nothing of it

not me though.

[former9thward]

25. The laws may authorize a tactic they DO NOT ORDER it.

Almost every thing the Nazis did was legal under their system. I do worship "legal" as some others do.

[baldguy]

33. Your outrage is about 66 yrs too late.

It's not Obama you should be mad at - it's Harry Truman.

[Puzzledtraveller]

17. I think it speaks more to the ones doing the smearing

Negatively. If that's the mode in which some people think it makes me wonder what kind of people they are.

[Recursion]

4. Maybe his friends are actual friends, and not publicity-seeking vultures?

If a friend of mine were charged with a crime, cable news is the last place I would be.

[In_The_Wind]

8. I like the way you think.

[G_j]

20. now there's a thought!

a rational thought!

[stevil]

31. Good Point

Been there myself.

[loli phabay]

41. yup or he may just intentionally isolate himself, a lot of people who live in that world do that

Basically you have cordial relationships with people but keep everyone distant.

[markiv]

6. they havent said a single word for OR against him

he took an action, whether treasonous or heroic, that just made him an enemy of the state

i doubt they were consulted on it

they're probably scared to death

[B2G]

9. I can understand that his family & close friends might be

But former classmates, coworkers? What would they be afraid of?

[HappyMe]

22. Maybe they aren't afraid of a damn thing.

Not everyone wants to get dragged into the drama/scandal du jour. There is also the possibility that a few people have been asked and they didn't have much good to say.

[cali]

7. "Usually they're coming out of the woodwork to get on the cable news by now."

Really? When, where? What similar situation are you comparing this to? Post some freakin' evidence for your claim.

[B2G]

15. Jeez, lighten up. I'm not idicting Snowden of anything.

I support what he's done. I am against this insane intrusion into our lives.

Everytime something big happens in the news, you always get friends/acquaintances commenting on the indivudual. School shootings are a perfect example. And the media tracks them down and always finds some who are dying to talk. To shed light on who they are and why they might have done what they did.

This time...nada.

[Whisp]

16. Zimmerman dad and bro. the idiots. n/t

[sibelian]

10. Goodness. I feel differently about him now.

I can't even tell the way in which I feel differently, but, you know, I do.

It was enough when you said "odd".

[SummerSnow]

11. I wouldnt say a damn thing...

wouldnt want his drama

[onehandle]

12. Wait until he's been snatched up and placed in a federal prison awaiting trial. nt

[randome]

18. I'm sure Nancy Grace is clearing her calendar as we speak!

[hr]
[font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font]
[hr]

[Little Star]

14. I just posted about his girlfriend who is speaking....

Here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022990837

[Egalitarian Thug]

21. Maybe he just has brighter friends and family than is typical. n/t

[newfie11]

23. Defend him and have big brother on you case

No thanks!
Not at this time.

[B2G]

24. I think you're exactly right. We are officially afraid of our government

and that in itself is terrifying.

[newfie11]

30. +1. Nt

[Erose999]

26. Nobody wants to get on the wrong side of the NSA and the spooks. Fuck that.

[kelliekat44]

40. Can anyone here honestly say that NSA or anyother intelligence agency actually harmed a US

citizen as a result of PRIZM activities?

[Erose999]

43. After seeing what has been done to PFC. Manning, I don't doubt that the spooks would resort to

extrajudicial means to retaliate against whistleblowers. We live in the world of NDAA and the Patriot Act, after all.

[CanonRay]

28. They are probably scared shitless

[UTUSN]

29. They perform to higher, deeper standards than he does. n/t

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

32. That's almost as ominous as him having a girlfriend and dropping out of high school. EEK!

[ljm2002]

34. Given the seriousness of the legal situation he's in...

...they're all probably worried that their phone numbers show up on his list and are trying to recollect what, if anything, they said to him, or he said to them, about this NSA spying issue.

He's probably #1 on the list of terrorists to watch. And we know what that means: scan the phone records and see who else has been associating with this criminal. And ferret them out.

I'm only sort of kidding.

[Quantess]

35. This OP is borderline more suitable for "Creative Speculation" forum.

I heard that one of Snowden's friends is the 6-inch alien found in the desert. Dead aliens tell no tales.

[cherokeeprogressive]

36. They're like ants on the sidewalk on a sunny day.

Scared to death the giant with the magnifying glass will notice them.

Staying out of the light is the smartest thing to do at the moment.