Is it about Snowden, the NSA, or the Constitution?

[kentuck]

Some say it is not about Snowden - it is about secrecy and spying on the American people.

Others ask if it is not about Snowden, why are so many cheering for his escape?

Because, in my opinion, if Snowden manages to escape it is a victory for our Constitution and our Fourth Amendment rights. It is a defeat for the NSA and those secret judges that declare it legal to spy on whomever they want.

If Snowden escapes, that means this story does not end. Our Constitution lives to fight another day against the evil and paranoid forces of big government and the NSA. Those are the cheers you hear...

[Cleita]

1. Good way to put it.

I actually thought he was wrong, but I was grateful that he let us know, and now, thanks to you we need to admit our Constitution has been so violated by the people who are sworn to uphold it that we have to change things.

I've been sort of following the events in Egypt. They are so passionate as to die for these things. We don't seem to be able to want to die unless we are forced out on to a battlefield that some oil company has decided for us.

[nashville_brook]

2. good point.

[railsback]

3. If Snowden 'escapes' to one of these poor countries

he'll involuntarily vanish within the year.

And the NSA will keep spying, judges will keep ruling, Americans will continue to give away their metadata because that's just the way today's world functions.. And then we'll get back to the important stuff, like stopping Republicans from actually taking our rights away in broad daylight.

[kenny blankenship]

7. You mean he'll be assassinated by the Unitary Executive Death Squad Glee Club?

[railsback]

8. There's a whole variety of ways to die in small, poor countries

and nobody would give a shit.

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. There is a whole variety of ways to die in the US

And nobody gives a shit either. Actually our life expectancy for women while giving birth is lower than Cuba and Venezuela, for example.

[Tx4obama]

4. It's about two SEPARATE issues

One issue is that Snowden publicly admitted to committing crimes.
Snowden knowingly committed crimes and should be arrested and made to stand trial.

The other issue is that meta-data collected and owned by 3rd parties (tele-coms) is NOT protected by the 4th amendment.
When folks do not like a current law or court ruling then the thing to do is to work to change the law.

[kentuck]

5. Unless, of course...

It is no longer possible to work within the system to change the law because the system is corrupt. It is not as it was when Nixon was President or when Ellsberg broke the Pentagon Papers. We live in a different country since 9/11. We have Congressmen and Senators with no backbones. We have leaders that are married to the intelligence industry and the paranoia of the the Defense Department and the CIA. This was the only way this story could be told.

[struggle4progress]

20. Um ... do you actually remember the mood of this country in Nixon years?

[Nanjing to Seoul]

15. So now a confession means complete guilt. So much for the 5th amendment.

You are one of the biggest people on DU that wants Snowden strung up by his feet and publicly flogged. Why? He embarrassed Obama? If Obama stopped this program as he campaigned he would in 2008 instead of sanctioning and expanding it, he wouldn't be embarrassed.

[Tx4obama]

17. I do NOT want him to be strung up by his feet and publicly flogged.

I just want him to be arrested and stand trial.

That is what the laws of our country state should be done.

[Nanjing to Seoul]

18. Don Siegelman. Sorry, I don't trust the government in this case. Granting asylum

makes him someone else's problem.

The trial will be a kangaroo court. . .Bradley Manning's trial is proving that. Don Siegelman's trial proved that.

And if they can't convict him, they will Karen Silkwood him.

[hlthe2b]

6. Pretty much how I feel... Snowden and all his flaws are not the real issue for me. n/t

[tavalon]

10. NSA and the Constitution

Snowden gave his life for the truth and so his part of the story is over. Yeah, he's still walking but even if he keeps getting to suck air, his life is forever destroyed and he was willing to do that for his country. I don't know many who would have.

[Hydra]

11. It's about all of it now

The Gov't wants to get their hands on Snowden, break him, and then show trial him. Does the double duty of putting his leak in question and putting a warning out to anyone else who would follow him.

While this wasn't about Snowden, I think that if he gets caught and brought back for torture, it's going to hurt what the push that we've started here.

[killbotfactory]

12. Secret courts and secret laws say what they are doing is okay. So Snowden is bad, mmkay? nt

[rhett o rick]

13. Sadly we not only have to fight the Republicans, we also have to fight the Democrats

that emulate the REpublicans. The Democrats that want to lynch Snowden and ignore the violations of the Constitution. These Democrats are DINO's.

[blkmusclmachine]

14. .

.

[davidpdx]

16. It's about multiple issues

1) the NSA's information gathering, the degree to which they gathering information, and how much of it was unconstitutional; 2) the lack of oversight of the information gathering; 3) the use of contractors; 4) whether backgrounds checks were done properly; 5) the acts committed by Snowden that breached national security; 6) what will happen to the remaining information once he reaches a country where he has asylum (I am assuming that will happen).

Notice I didn't put anything in there about reforms, that is because I think we need answers to most of these questions before deciding what needs to be changed.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

19. All of the above. The whistle blower, what he revealed, and what is threatened.