Snowden Interview

[Jacob]

May be of interest to some here: http://www.ndr.de/ratgeber/netzwelt/snowden277.html

[CountDeMoney]

Still a douchebag.

[garbon]

Nope, I don't have time for that.

[Neil]

I'm not really interested in hearing his attempts to make himself look principled and justified in order to hide the fact that he just wanted to be famous.

[DGuller]

It was an interesting interview, but I think it avoided some of the tougher questions, and let him get away with stating the most positive case for himself.  For example, some of Snowden's revelations concerned spying on potential enemy nations.  His off-hand statement that his revelations didn't hurt our national security are hard to believe, and impossible to confirm in such a short period of time anyway.

[Sheilbh]

Especially given that just tonight some documents have gone round the internet that were redacted but could be copy-and-pasted to reveal the names of NSA and GCHQ employees. Basically exactly what Snowden and Greenwald have said they were always careful to avoid.

[Capetan Mihali]

Transcript of interview:

"I'm cold,' Snowden said softly, 'I'm cold.'
'You're going to be all right, kid,' Yossarian reassured him with a grin. 'You're going to be all right.'
'I'm cold,' Snowden said again in a frail, childlike voice. 'I'm cold.'
'There, there,' Yossarian said, because he did not know what else to say. 'There, there.'
'I'm cold,' Snowden whimpered. 'I'm cold.'
'There, there. There, there.

[KRonn]

It was an interesting interview, but I think it avoided some of the tougher questions, and let him get away with stating the most positive case for himself.  For example, some of Snowden's revelations concerned spying on potential enemy nations.  His off-hand statement that his revelations didn't hurt our national security are hard to believe, and impossible to confirm in such a short period of time anyway.

Yeah, I feel now that his motives were as much or more to sabotage US intel gathering and give the info to US opponents, rather than any grand interest in exposing wrong doing by NSA.  He went straight to opponents of the US, to nations that would benefit the most at learning of US intel practices. He may have exposed workings that go too far domestically but he did irreparable damage to US intel gathering vs terrorists, and nations not so friendly to US interests.

[DGuller]

He went straight to opponents of the US, to nations that would benefit the most at learning of US intel practices.

To be fair, what choice did he have?  The enemies of US are your only potential allies when US decides you are its enemy, and Snowden would've been the enemy of the state even if his disclosure were 100% perfectly surgical in blowing the whistle on the bad stuff.

[grumbler]

He went straight to opponents of the US, to nations that would benefit the most at learning of US intel practices.

To be fair, what choice did he have?  The enemies of US are your only potential allies when US decides you are its enemy, and Snowden would've been the enemy of the state even if his disclosure were 100% perfectly surgical in blowing the whistle on the bad stuff.

Look up something called "The Pentagon papers" and a man named Daniel Ellsworth, and you will see that your assumptions are incorrect.

[The Minsky Moment]

Edward Snowden still thinks very well of Edward Snowden.

[KRonn]

He went straight to opponents of the US, to nations that would benefit the most at learning of US intel practices.

To be fair, what choice did he have?  The enemies of US are your only potential allies when US decides you are its enemy, and Snowden would've been the enemy of the state even if his disclosure were 100% perfectly surgical in blowing the whistle on the bad stuff.

If he had to go outside the US, then of course he went to opponents, or those nations who were less likely to turn him over to the US. But if he was all about the domestic privacy then I have to think that he had other alternatives within the US justice department or what ever is in place for whistle blower protection. But he also turned over so much other sensitive intel data, beyond domestic privacy, for the world to see.

[The Brain]

At least Snowden gets called to interviews.

[Sheilbh]

Thanks interview's interesting, though not as tough as I'd like (also where did the guy get the idea the British government can't spy on Brits: MI5? ). I totally agree with Snowden here though 'In general, I would say it highlights the dangers of privatising government functions'

[Jacob]

Thanks interview's interesting, though not as tough as I'd like (also where did the guy get the idea the British government can't spy on Brits: MI5? ). I totally agree with Snowden here though 'In general, I would say it highlights the dangers of privatising government functions'