The Place Where Ludington Talks
Edward Snowden: Hero or Traitor?
Anyone following the news of late has surely now heard of Edward Snowden, the man responsible for dropping the bomb that the federal government has been spying on millions of phones as well as what many people do on the internet. The question now is this.... is he a hero for doing so or a traitor? I've been wrestling with this question since this story hit the news. Normally, I tend to think more traitor when someone releases information (as in the Wikileaks story of a few years ago) but at this point, I think I might have to go for hero. The reason why I'd say hero at this point is that so far, Snowden has not released any private information, he's simply let Americans know that the government has been keeping a much closer eye on everyone then we were led to believe. I have to wonder how the people that voted for Obama feel these days having been lied to as one of Obama's more notable talking points during his run for the presidency was that he was going to have his attorney general go through all the stuff that Bush did regarding wiretaps and such and basically get rid of it all. We know of course come to find out that not only did the AG not do this (and should we be surprised, Eric Holder is such a ridiculous joke), the administration expanded on what Bush had done. Bush's administration had at least targeted their searches for a very small number of information. Obama's on the other hand is much, much more widespread. I can only hope that those that berated Bush and company for what they did will berate Obama just the same if not more so.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Willy on
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He is neither a traitor or a hero. He is a citizen who took it upon himself, at great peril to his well being, to inform the public of the Government corruption that continues to plague the American people.
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Permalink Reply by XLFD on
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Isn't that a definition of 'hero'?
I researched further and looked up that definition and it said: "A person, typically a man, who is admired for courage or noble qualities." Courage itself being defined as "The state or quality of mind or spirit that enables one to face danger, fear, or vicissitudes with self-possession, confidence, and resolution."
Definitely a hero, but as for Bradley Manning (of wikileaks fame), the jury on him should still be out as his court martial enters the third week, but his behavior looks a bit more traitorous in nature, his motives appear less heroic.
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I have to disagree with that definition. One can be a coward and very un-noble and be a hero. To me a hero is someone who risks their life to save the life of another. Sorry X but I do not include firefighters or law enforcement personal as hero's because they are being paid to do their job. Mr. Snowden did the "right" thing in exposing Government corruption. He did what every good citizen "should" do as an obligation to all Americans. The word hero is over used now days
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It is a broad definition, so I wouldn't blame you for not agreeing, because heroes should be rare, by their nature. I would agree that firefighters, cops and even military people should not be called heroes just by dint of their profession. I know several examples of each that were far from heroic in their actions and behaviors. They should , however, be respected, and honored when they perform their duties with distinction.
And don't forget, the vast majority of firefighters (69%) are volunteer firefighters who either work totally without pay or get very little in remuneration for their service, and so you might want to expand your definition to all those people that respond to calls at all hours to help save lives and property of their community for nada or peanuts, not to mention a lot of other volunteers in other professions less dangerous.
One would believe thaty many other people had the duty to 'whistleblow' in this case, and yet couldn't because of their fears and the very real dangers involved with doing so against such an organization. If Snowden is sincere and has used proper discretion, he's very heroic, IMHO.
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Permalink Reply by masonco on
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I knew there would have been serious attacks on him when he identified himself and it did. They have a person to attack now. I don't think he was expecting such savagery from USA.
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Permalink Reply by blahblah on
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Hero.
The definition of a word is not an opinion. You can't disagree with a definition of a word. If you do, it is YOU who is using the word incorrectly.
Obviously, not all people of a certain profession will be classified as heroes. Being paid for doing a heroic activity doesn't change the act being heroic. Example: Full time firefighter Jon goes in to save a woman from a burning house and it collapses on him. Just because he was making $12 an hour (or whatever their compensation is) doesn't mean that his act of giving up his life to attempt to save another, is no longer heroic.
"I have to disagree with that definition. One can be a coward and very un-noble and be a hero. To me a hero is someone who risks their life to save the life of another."
See, now it gets confusing. Words mean something. We all share a reality, and we all have our own personal realities too. When we communicate with each other, we need to use the words in their context that everyone understands and agrees upon. What good is having a conversation about anything, when someone wants to redefine words as they see fit? Snowden gave his life, to give us information. Sure, maybe he didn't save a baby from a burning building... He gave us more.
It is pretty simple really. Snowden took it upon himself to give us all 100% undeniable proof that our government is completely overstepping its bounds. Not just a wild conspiracy theory. UNDENIABLE PROOF. He has risked his life. Given up his job, his family, his friends. What has "HE" gained from this? His life is now in shambles. He has sought asylum and been turned down in over 20 countries. The US is breaking laws to not let him seek asylum. Can you imagine being in his shoes for just one night? How much sleep can you possibly get when you know the strongest military that we have ever known, wants nothing more then to end his life and silence him? What are the chances of him getting a fair trial? %.001 or %.0001?
What is he charged with? Giving state secrets to the enemy.... you and I. Isn't that.... kinda scary?
At a time when we all know that our government is running rampant. Using illegal chemicals to fight wars... wiretapping not "anyone" but "everyone"...go ahead and debate what "your" definition of hero is. One thing you can't debate, is Snowden is more of a patriot then all of us combined on this forum drinking coffee from our nice houses, and trying to define his actions.
NSA has over 80,000 employees. Not to mention all of the sub contracting that happens. So over 100,000 people have seen PRISM in action. (likely, this number is a very conservative estimate). So 1/100,000 = %.00001. If 99.99999% are afraid to do something, how can you possibly say that that the ONE PERSON that finally did something, only did it because he "should" have done it? The man is a hero, by definition. Maybe not by skewed perspectives and opinions in individual realities.
Enjoy counting sheep tonight, while Snowden is counting his last days, hunted by our military in hopes of not giving him a fair trial. He risked his life for everyone. The man is like a modern day Jesus, but its real this time.
He expected the savagery. He knew exactly what would happen. He didn't stumble upon the position he is in. If only more of us had the balls to stand up for what is right, we wouldn't be living under the most corrupt government of all time. You don't ever get into a position to know about PRISM but are uneducated on the lengths that our military complex system will go to to end your life. But hey, this coffee tastes great. I think I will go get some McDonalds and tune into American Idol...back to sleep America.
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Permalink Reply by AQUAMAN on
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Quite a definitive post there blahblah, I like most of your thinking, thanks. The fact remains though, that people like this are few and far between, and I for one, am grateful and proud he is who he is.
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Thank you AQUAMAN! I had a hard time dealing with our day of celebrating our freedom yesterday, while I hoped that another country will stand up for our American hero. It is hard for me to type about something I feel so emotional about yet stay on a point. So, honestly... I am thrilled that you enjoyed most of it. That is 1 more person then I thought I would have even slightly agreeing with me. Yes, very few and far between are our patriots these days. I think that is why it is important, for us to support him, and mainly to educate others on the truth. Snowden DID what we DREAM about. If we don't support him, we deserve to be steam rolled by our corrupt government.
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blahblah
That is a well thought out and stated post. There's one word that sort of clarifies my point of view and that would be "interpretation". Believing someone to be a hero and someone actually being a hero is a matter of interpretation.
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Very insightful post, blahblah, much of which I agreed with when making my assessment of Snowden above.
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Michigan's most faithful-to-the-Constitution Representative Justin Amash made the Sunday 'Meet the Press' circuit and made the assessment that Snowden is a whistleblower not a traitor-- though his support was not total, as reported on MLIve: http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/08/nsa_leaker...
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It's amazing how the liberal press is not questioning Snowden's reasons for doing what he did and are portraying him as a traitor. He definitely is not a traitor but he is, as Amash states, a whistleblower. It's also amazing how many people think it's ok for the Government to infringe on their freedoms and Constitutional rights. They say it's for security reasons but how do we know there is really a security risk and to what extent is that risk real.
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