Mafia Mentality: "But Snowden took an oath!"

[Towlie]

Would you condemn members of crime syndicates who break their oaths and reveal the crimes committed by those syndicates to the authorities? Would you side with the Mafia against a "rat"? Probably not, unless you're a big Sopranos fan.

The government has committed crimes against the people and Edward Snowden has exposed those crimes to us, in spite of any oath he may have recited to the criminals. If you take a position against Snowden, How do you justify a moral standard opposite of the standard you would ordinarily apply?

[Nuclear Unicorn]

1. It's the only way to make sure "I was just following orders" remains a viable defense!

[RC]

2. Was not part of that oath, upholding the Constitution?

Why of course it does -

Oath

I, [name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

5 U.S.C. §3331
http://archive.opm.gov/constitution_initiative/oath.asp

[Laelth]

3. +1 n/t

-Laelth

[Brickbat]

4. An oaf?

[byeya]

5. Omerta: trumps the Constitution and one's conscience

[COLGATE4]

6. I condemn members of crime syndicates who

break the law. I condemn Snowden because he broke the law.

[HipChick]

7. Mafia don't sign..

Snowden left a paper trail that can be used against him

[Daemonaquila]

8. So did the U.S. government, in violating constitutional principles.

But apparently that doesn't bother you.

By the way, ANYTHING can be "legal" if you set up a system where scared legislators give away the farm, the exec branch sets up a system for secret orders, and the judicial branch won't review any of it because... secret. Concentration camps, secret executions, unlimited surveillance, and more have all been legal here and/or around the world. But hey, legal, right?

[COLGATE4]

9. I am a member of the legal profession.

I have made it my life's work. I believe in our system of laws. The fact that you choose to run around with your hair on fire ranting at everyone and everything doesn't persuade.

[AllINeedIsCoffee]

10. The government didn't break the law and I will not

engage in hypotheticals that compares my representative government to crime syndicates, no matter how many disagreements I have with them.