#edward snowdon – @diegueno on Tumblr

As FPF co-founder and iconic whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg told me last week: I've been waiting 40 years for Edward Snowden, and his revelations are the most important in US history, including the Pentagon Papers. Despite the importance of his revelations, the US purposefully stranded Snowden in Russia by canceling his passport while he was in transit from Hong Kong to Russia, essentially forcing him into exile.We already know the government will attempt to intimidate and crush whistleblowers who challenge national security state orthodoxy. Genuflect and get in line – or pay the heavy cost. Look no further than Thomas Drake, Bill Binney, and J Kirk Wiebe, three NSA whistleblowers whose homes were raided and lives were destroyed for the cardinal sin of informing the American public about crimes committed by their government.It's hard to blame Snowden for not wanting to come back and rot in a US jail. Chelsea Manning spent three years in jail awaiting trial, nearly a year of it in torturous conditions. She has now been sentenced to 35 years in prison for leaks exposing war crimes, which have been almost universally acknowledged as having caused no real harm to the US, while those recorded in the "Collateral Murder" video have gone uncharged.Mr Snowden may have the faint suspicion that his rights would not be protected – given that a prosecution under the Espionage Act would leave him no way to mount a public interest defense if he came back to stand trial. Often, we export our US ideals, sometimes rightfully, sometimes tragically. Now, our action is drenched in irony: Russia is providing safe haven to our American whistleblower, and East Berlin, where the Stasi once roamed, is now where journalists and privacy rights advocates feel safe to work. Not so in the US these days, it seems. Whether whistleblower, source or journalist: expose crimes, become the hunted. What must students think when they see some of the brightest minds – and the fiercest watchdogs – of a generation unable to practice journalism in America?

Will Eric Holder guarantee NSA reporters' first amendment rights? | John Cusack | Comment is free | theguardian.com

Source: theguardian.com

#journalism #free speech #national security #Chelsea Manning #Edward Snowdon #Daniel Ellsberg #civil liberties

diegueno

I have been forced to make a difficult decision: to become complicit in crimes against the American people or walk away from nearly ten years of hard work by shutting down Lavabit. After significant soul searching, I have decided to suspend operations,...I wish that I could legally share with you the events that led to my decision. I cannot.I feel you deserve to know what’s going on--the First Amendment is supposed to guarantee me the freedom to speak out in situations like this. Unfortunately, Congress has passed laws that say otherwise....As things currently stand, I cannot share my experiences over the last six weeks, even though I have twice made the appropriate requests.

Encrypted email service used by Snowden mysteriously shuts down — RT USA

Source: rt.com

#privacy #security #surveillance #civil liberties #Lavabit #national security #tech #NSA #Edward Snowdon

diegueno

It is unfortunate that so much of Congress and the media’s focus is on the whereabouts of Edward Snowden. We should focus our time and attention on ensuring that law-abiding Americans are not unnecessarily subject to intrusive surveillance; making sure our media organizations are not targeted merely for informing the public; closing Guantanamo and releasing those individuals who pose us no harm; and demanding that legal safeguards are in place with respect to our government’s shortsighted use of drones. These are the overriding, critical issues facing the Congress, not the whereabouts or motives of Edward Snowden.

Rep. John Conyers quoted in Snowden’s Whistleblowing Creates Climate for Critical House Vote on NSA Surveillance | The Dissenter.

You can take action on that vote here.

#Edward Snowdon #surveillance #privacy #telecommunications #John Conyers #NSA #civil liberties #Fourth Amendment

diegueno

I have a lot of esteem for Glenn Greenwald, he is a brilliant civil libertarian. Here he discusses Edward Snowdon's revelations about how the the national security apparatus is conducting universal surveillance on every piece of telecommunication on the planet.

(via Journalistic Blowback | Adbusters Culturejammer Headquarters)

Source: adbusters.org

#civil liberties #Glenn Greenwald #Edward Snowdon #Fourth Amendment #Morning Joe #telecommunication #surveillance

diegueno

#Snowden didnt expose legal stuff. He exposed illegal acts, from perjury to potential constitutional violations: salon.com/2013/06/11/put…— David Sirota (@davidsirota) June 11, 2013

The idea here – which has quickly become the standard talking point for partisans trying to defend the NSA program and the Obama administration – is that while you may object to the NSA’s mass surveillance system, it is nonetheless perfectly legal as is the conduct surrounding it. Therefore, the logic goes, Snowden isn’t an honorable “whistleblower” he’s a traitorous “leaker” – and the only criminal in this case is Snowden and Snowden alone.

The first – and most simple – way to debunk this talking point is to simply behold two sets of testimony by Obama administration national security officials. In one, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper categorically denies that the government “collect(s) any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans.” In another, the Guardian reports that NSA director General Keith Alexander “denied point-blank that the agency had the figures on how many Americans had their electronic communications collected or reviewed.”

Put the NSA on trial

Source: salon.com

#NSA #Edward Snowdon #surveillance #security #national intelligence