I’m inclined to agree. I was conflicted on Snowden initially, but it seems like enemy of our enemy is our friend in this case, and our alphabet agencies have effectively gone rogue and need to get taken down a level. Pardon Assange too.
Yes, same here. I have been teetering on that fence for years as well, leaning more pro-Snowden than against.
Had he revealed information that put our troops in danger like, oh, I don’t know, the NYT did, I would feel differently. But, giving up our disgusting, filthy, owned and operated by foreign interests “intelligence” agencies (how’s that for an oxymoron?), yup, he becomes a patriot.
The bad actors have no defenses. They’re thugs and criminals of the worst kind. They are not our protectors. They are our abusers. An unholy percentage of domestic abusers fool their victims into believing that their over-control is just because they’re so “protective”. You see, it’s for her own *good*.
One on one or on a grand scale, abuse is abuse. It thrives in secrecy. Abusers count on victims’ silence. This is especially true with children. Monsters threaten to kill their parents, even their pets, to keep the child victim quiet and obedient.
We are a nation of cowed victims, living in a giant defensive crouch, wearing our muzzles.
I hate going out in public. It’s like living in a f*****g Twilight Zone episode. And I’m in a red county in a red state with virtually no enforcement.
President Trump pushed back. Abusers don’t appreciate that. Snowden, a private citizen, pushing back was unthinkable. Assange has been like a gnat they could never swat away.
So, yes. Free Snowden, and Assange while we’re at it.
And for the love of gawd, Manafort. Not the most sympathetic character (neither was Blago) but, in no way deserving of the horrific treatment he has received. The guy is over 80. He didn’t do a damn thing that half of K Street doesn’t do every day.