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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsHave We All Been Fooled By Edward Snowden?
At this point, the Edward Snowden saga seems to be running out of steam. The latest is that Venezuela and Nicaragua (out of at least 27 countries he asked) have offered him asylum so the story is almost at an end for now. The U.S. government will probably keep trying to extradite him so that they can prosecute but that may be years in coming. IF he manages to find asylum in the first place.
Through this whole business, Ive remained of two minds about Snowdens tale. While I am certain that what he has reported is true, Im unsure of motivation. With what I have just read, though, I think Im getting a clearer picture. One I will try to paint for you.
Snowden used to post on a website called Ars Technica: its a site for professional techies (alpha geeks is what the site says). He frequented the Internet Relay Chat rooms quite a lot, shooting the breeze with whoever happened by. This began when he was stationed in Geneva in 2007: an IT guy for the CIA in a foreign land, he probably enjoyed this little bit of home. His posts under user name TheTrueHOOHA from that time show someone who is decidedly unworldly: he complained about almost everything in Switzerland, from the price of food to the women. Over the years, he changed from an insulated, opinionated American into an opinionated, snarky ex-pat. One of the biggest changes in his opinions is what he thought of leakers. Back then, he was not a fan. In January of 2009, the following exchange took place in the chat room:
SNOWDEN: WTF NYTIMES
SNOWDEN: Are they TRYING to start a war? Jesus christ theyre like wikileaks
User19: theyre just reporting, dude.
SNOWDEN: Theyre reporting classified shit
User19: shrugs
User19: meh
SNOWDEN: moreover, who the fuck are the anonymous sources telling them this?
SNOWDEN: those people should be shot in the balls.
Read more: http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/07/06/have-we-all-been-fooled-by-edward-snowden/#ixzz2YIIfR9rf
villager
(26,001 posts)usGovOwesUs3Trillion
(2,022 posts)backscatter712
(26,355 posts)woo me with science
(32,139 posts)cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Isn't that a little redundant?
pecwae
(8,021 posts)Some don't seem to mind as long as the fooler is of the same political party the foolee.
madokie
(51,076 posts)I smelled a rat right from the start
99Forever
(14,524 posts)That's rat spelled NSA.
madokie
(51,076 posts)99Forever
(14,524 posts)... about your fellow citizens Constitutional Rights.
You are so very patriotlike.
Mojorabbit
(16,020 posts)The story has not run out of steam so the article starts out with an untruth.
How many posts have we had with a similar title in the past week?
HipChick
(25,485 posts)cali
(114,904 posts)and mass surveillance, or is this just all about Edward Snowden to you?
Zorra
(27,670 posts)Go figure.
cthulu2016
(10,960 posts)Unless that's your argument then you don't have an argument. How else could he have "fooled" me?
Galraedia
(5,027 posts)Example: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023137494
If Snowden was interested in the truth he wouldn't be making false claims and exaggerations.
reformist2
(9,841 posts)Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)How can you, OP, be so crazed about the underling while unconcerned about the company that allowed him to do this? I find that to be a fully fragrant contradiction.
think
(11,641 posts)and Halliburton, Blackwater, Caci, Bechtel, The Carlyle Group....
animato
(153 posts)CakeGrrl
(10,611 posts)His "asylum" will end up being his just reward, while some of those supporting him sound like they're picking out a vacation spot for a job well done.
Short-term, non-reality based thinking prevails.
Whisp
(24,096 posts)according to some here - Ars must have fudged in the copy or HOOHA was not Snowden - nevermind the pics of himself he posted! It's all the NSA trying to trick us! That cannot be true because it is not complimentary to Eddie the Great.
villager
(26,001 posts)n/t
bvar22
(39,909 posts)NO.
Have some here been fooled by the Government LIES in its attempts to cover up the ever expanding Surveillance/Security State being constructed to protect the 1%
in violation of several Constitutional Prohibitions?
Clearly.
allin99
(894 posts)Scurrilous
(38,687 posts)southernyankeebelle
(11,304 posts)Vinnie From Indy
(10,820 posts)eom
sibelian
(7,804 posts)Rex
(65,616 posts)Nice hit piece.
brush
(53,852 posts)and a traitor.
That much is known.
I thank him for exposing NSA, but fuck him with the fleeing and turning over classified info to foreign countries.