NSA leaker Edward Snowden accuses US of 'threatening behavior,' plans to meet rights groups

[cal04]

(snip)
“I have been extremely fortunate to enjoy and accept many offers of support and asylum from brave countries around the world,” Snowden wrote in the letter. “These nations have my gratitude, and I hope to travel to each of them to extend my personal thanks to their people and leaders.

“By refusing to compromise their principles in the face of intimidation, they have earned the respect of the world. Unfortunately, in recent weeks we have witnessed an unlawful campaign by officials in the U.S. government to deny my right to seek and enjoy this asylum under Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

“The scale of threatening behavior is without precedent: never before in history have states conspired to force to the ground a sovereign president's plane to effect a search for a political refugee," he added, referring to the grounding of Bolivian President Evo Morales' jet in Austria last week amid suspicions that the leaker was on board.

“This dangerous escalation represents a threat not just to the dignity of Latin America or my own personal security, but to the basic right shared by every living person to live free from persecution,” Snowden said.



http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/12/19430597-nsa-leaker-edward-snowden-accuses-us-of-threatening-behavior-plans-to-meet-rights-groups?lite

[cantbeserious]

1. Thank You For Sharing

eom

[bUU]

2. Unimpressed with the pontification of a runner

Until Snowden engages in honorable civil disobedience - doing what he believes and peacefully taking society's prescribed sanctions for those actions - he's still going to be nothing but a domestic spy, running and hiding from being held accountable for his transgressions against society.

[Cleita]

3. This rumor has been picked up by three major news outlets.

It's happening.

[Oldenuff]

4. Honorable civil disobedience...

I would have supported that position at one time,but that is a time when I thought our government was honorable.I think he did the only thing he could do,because you and I both know that he would not have been treated fairly...or honorably by our government.He would have been slandered and made to appear to be a treasonous citizen,when in fact the opposite is true.

Honorable.Our government can't even spell it.

[ladjf]

27. Good explanation of why Snowden would have been unwise to put himself at the mercy of

the American Government. nt

[bUU]

33. Our nation is more honorable than Snowden

@all While it is trendy to bad mouth our nation, it isn't defense for Snowden's conduct. It's schoolboy rhetoric.

[Ichingcarpenter]

5. 'his transgressions against society'

Like Clapper lying to
Congress?

Like the NSA's transgressions against the world society?



the kettle is black

[Waiting For Everyman]

6. Take his spanking from the church of surveillance, huh

like a good little boy. Put his head in the noose, and hang like a good little cowering sheeple.

F*** that sh**. That is way too much b.s. this early in the morning.

[pinboy3niner]

7. If the consequences are severe and unjust, how is it "honorable" to simply submit to them?

It can be a choice to raise awareness by going to trial, but it can also be a choice to reject the premise of the charges and their consequences and defy them.

[Catherina]

9. You'd have a point if the goal was to impress you. Since not, unimpressed with ur pontification n/t

[Warren Stupidity]

11. What have you done to challenge the national security state?

[totodeinhere]

12. But "society's prescribed sanctions for those actions" does not include torture and

inhumane treatment which is what he would probably receive if he returns. The treatment of Bradley Manning proves that the government is capable of doing that. I don't blame him one bit for not wanting to return.

[Douglas Carpenter]

16. why on earth ANYONE would choose life outside of prison to life in prison is beyond me!!

[marions ghost]

24. You come from a different time

--pre Booshcheney. Now we have transgressions against society by RethugliCons in federal and state government on a daily basis. We as a society are suffering at their hands. There is no reason to think Snowden would be treated fairly or even legally, if he were here. He has effectively blown their secret anti-American surveillance operation. They want his head on a pike. These are backward, fearful times.

Run Ed, run.

[Laelth]

8. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[Catherina]

10. Here's the whole letter

...

Representatives of the US-based international organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) are unlikely to attend the proposed meeting with former CIA employee Edward Snowden in the transit area of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport.

"I have not yet made a final decision, but I think that I am not going to be able make it to the meeting," deputy head of the HRW Moscow office Tatyana Lokshina said.

Lokshina also made it clear that other HRW members would not be present at the meeting if she decided not to attend it.

"We think that Snowden has reasons to seek asylum," she said.

...

- I am not going to go. I am busy and I can't go there today. That's all I can say.

...

http://english.ruvr.ru/news/2013_07_12/Snowdens-letter-to-human-rights-activists-made-public-3751/

Explanation:

Senior researcher on Russia of the international human rights organization Human Rights Watch Tatiana Lokshinahas said to the Russian News Service that the invitation sent on behalf of Edward Snowden was probably not genuine.

"I can't confirm that it is true. Perhaps, it's a fake. There are many rumors and media’s madness around this case. I’ve posted the text of the invitation on my Facebook so that people could look and make conclusions. It seems to me that it was rather awkwardly wordedstylistically. This document has caused my mistrust. But maybe it is true. I will go to Sheremetyevo and find out", she said.

http://english.ruvr.ru/news/2013_07_12/Human-Rights-Watch-doubt-the-authenticity-of-Snowden-s-invitation-4185/

Edit: Her twitter page says she's going now

Tanya Lokshina ?@TanyaLokshina 2h

I'm going to the airprot and HRW says: http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/07/03/countries-should-consider-snowden-s-asylum-claim-fairly …

https://twitter.com/TanyaLokshina/status/355620748926267392

[hr]

This is just bizarre:

The Voice of Russia ?@VoiceofRussia 14m

To show HRW does care about the situation,they send a representative but she won’t ask any questions - VoR's @PChernitsa_VR to #VoRradio

[randome]

13. I can see how this is going to shake out.

"Mr. Snowden, before we decide to represent you, we would like to see evidence of your claims."

ES: "Here. Look at this warrant for Verizon metadata records."

"Sure but...this is a legal warrant issued by your country's judiciary. Do you have anything else?"

ES: "How about this? It's a PowerPoint slide with the words 'direct access' printed right there. See it? Right there."

"Okay but...most experts who have looked at this have concluded that 'direct access' refers to secure FTP servers. Have anything else?"

ES: "I saw things, you authoritarian boot-lickers!"

"I see. Mr. Snowden, can you validate our parking tickets?"

If ever there was a moment for Google Glass to rise to the occasion, this would be that moment.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Birds are territorial creatures.
The lyrics to the songbird's melodious trill go something like this:
"Stay out of my territory or I'll PECK YOUR GODDAMNED EYES OUT!"[/center][/font][hr]

[zeemike]

15. Bwahahahaha.

Sure it is unconstitutional...but it is legal.
And don't ask how because it is a secret ruling by a secret court.

[JoePhilly]

26. A secret court that was created, and that we've all know about, since 1978.

[zeemike]

30. What does FISA stand for?

The F part is what I am interested in.
And if we all knew about it then why is it secret?....and did they leave out a letter that is secret....an D which stands for Domestic?...because the D is the secret?

[JoePhilly]

31. A monitored foreign (F) communication can have a domestic (D) end.

And if the person at the D end becomes a suspect, that aspect of the investigation is turned over to the FBI.

Its like this ... imagine that the local police obtain a warrant to wiretap "Bob". And then "Bob" calls you. The police do not have, and do not need, an additional warrant to listen to your end of that call.

Now, let's say that you become a suspect based on what you said to "Bob". The police will go and get a warrant to wiretap your calls specifically.

In the case of the NSA and their monitoring of (F) foreign communications, they can end up hearing the (D) domestic ends of calls. And if the person on the domestic (D) end becomes a suspect, the FBI is brought in for additional investigations.

[zeemike]

32. The question was rhetorical

I thought that was clear.
So they issue a warrant for everyone just in case we might be talking to some one they might be interested in...a clear violation of the 4th amendment.

And you need not tell how meta data is not protected because of bla bla bla...I have heard it many times before.
those arguments are stale by now...and so are the counter arguments...and repeating them will not make them true. .

[brooklynite]

28. This is a ridiculous assertion...

traffic in Moscow is terrible. They would have taken the train to the airport...

[allin99]

14. There's a very ugly article in the NYT this morning...

about the pressure and threats toward latin america. and the suggestion that we really should build better relationships with latin america so we can more effectively have them do our bidding in the future. No wonder i couldn't enjoy my 4th of July.

[Coyotl]

17. LIVE coverage

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/12/edward-snowden-to-meet-amnesty-and-human-rights-watch-at-moscow-airport-live-coverag

5m ago
WikiLeaks – which has helped Snowden since he left Hong Kong last month – has tweeted a picture of Julian Assange and free-software campaigner Richard Stallman holding up a picture of Snowden coloured to look like the famous Shepard Fairey campaign image of Barack Obama. "Yes we can" the picture is captioned.




11m ago
Radio journalist Nik Batalov sends this picture of the pack of waiting journalists at Sheremetyevo airport. “Here it’s hell,” he tweets.

[Catherina]

18. Possible (attempt) live video

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1155606982001/

[Catherina]

19. HR lawyers adds that HRW has bad relationship with Venezuela and hopes that won't....

Human rights lawyer Renata Avila says the UN High Commissioner for Refugees should be visiting Snowden along with Human Rights Watch today, since the UNHCR has "the mandate to facilitate his travels".

She adds that Venezuela has a "sour relationship" with HRW and she hopes that the meeting will not jeopardise Snowden's chances of gaining asylum there.

Avila says that the most important aspect of the Snowden case is the fact that "asylum is a human right. There is a set of BINDING rules for all states to accept, without exception."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/12/edward-snowden-to-meet-amnesty-and-human-rights-watch-at-moscow-airport-live-coverag#block-51dff774e4b019f8d7037abf

[Catherina]

20. Russia cannot extradite Snowden - deputy Nikonov

Russia cannot extradite Snowden - deputy Nikonov
Вячеслав Никонов



State Duma deputy Vyacheslav Nikonov

Photo: RIA Novosti

Russia has no right to extradite former CIA officer Edward Snowden, State Duma deputy Vyacheslav Nikonov said. He came to the Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport to meet with Snowden.



"Russia has no right to extradite him by international law. He is under protection of Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which says any person who asks for political asylum cannot be extradited," he stressed.

Voice of Russia, Interfax

http://english.ruvr.ru/news/2013_07_12/Russia-cannot-extradite-Snowden-deputy-Nikonov-1051/

[cal04]

21. Thank you for all the updates.

Deutsche Presse-Agentur's Nikolaus von Twickel quotes Russian news agency Interfax as saying that Snowden has left his room in the airport's capsule hotel and is now waiting in the transit zone for his meeting.

"#Snowden is waiting in the transit zone and left his room in the CAPSULE HOTEL" (Interfax urgent)

— Nikolaus von Twickel (@niktwick) July 12, 2013

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/12/edward-snowden-to-meet-amnesty-and-human-rights-watch-at-moscow-airport-live-coverag?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed




:large
https://twitter.com/obk/status/355672291050418177/photo/1
This is the Snowden-messenger

[randome]

23. Snowden withdrew his request for Russia.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]Birds are territorial creatures.
The lyrics to the songbird's melodious trill go something like this:
"Stay out of my territory or I'll PECK YOUR GODDAMNED EYES OUT!"[/center][/font][hr]

[cal04]

22. meeting with “around eight” human rights figures has begun. The meeting is not allowed to be filmed.

Ellen Barry of the New York Times reports that Snowden’s meeting with “around eight” human rights figures has begun. The meeting is not allowed to be filmed.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/12/edward-snowden-to-meet-amnesty-and-human-rights-watch-at-moscow-airport-live-coverag?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed

[cal04]

25. Edward Snowden. Photograph: Tanya Lokshina of Human Rights Watch

Tanya Lokshina of Human Rights Watch sent that picture of Snowden, with Sarah Harrison of WikiLeaks on his right.

Snowden looks much the same as he did in his Guardian interviews from Hong Kong, dressed in a similar open-neck shirt, with stubble and glasses, although his hair is a little longer.



http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/12/edward-snowden-to-meet-amnesty-and-human-rights-watch-at-moscow-airport-live-coverag

[polynomial]

29. Snowden, analyze this:

Somehow the reasoning used by our mainstream media is cluttered with diversion, deception, fraud, and just plain total irresponsibility, or accountability in American leadership. This spans our congress, senate, president, and the radio and cable networks of top journalist along with the second string warm up types.

Just a plain fact in political confrontational issues that are reported that have been on going in the Jewish-Arab part of the world American shows leadership “without warrant” for the past fifty years.

Our country has been giving our tax money plus military supplies to what are called “rebels” in many instances of undetermined origin or allegiance to include unknown reasons for or against American policies that are flipping faster in unknown timing than hot cakes sold and served at a fast food restaurant in prime time breakfast with compelling coupon specials.

Billions of dollars spent, more like squandered through diplomatic secret channels for decades, besides secret service individuals jeopardized or outed via media and previous political persons. As Valerie Plame. Contra.

Ladies and gentleman of America if we really had good analysis in political journalism America would not be in such a “fright culture” in the circle psychology in terror, fear, guns, secret security, person lockup shows, dishonest labeling, identity theft, commercial culture driven by corporate corruption greed, or what America has is a hardwired radio, cable industry over priced delivering hate, distrust, and most of all misinformation with awkward to failed citizen education. Tons of guns are hidden with facts of suicide in domestic and in military with crazy atrocities done via post traumatic mental screw ups.

So, now American elites call Snowden a trader committing treason by exposing what some might call a secret intelligence hazmat spill. Or worse how many Secret Intelligent Hazmat spills have not been made public. From my view this takes a very strong persona gravitas to be able to slog through this stuff, for we know Cheney/ Bush did it with the medias complicity.

The New York Times or other news agencies even being under the shield of the first amendment are loaded with editors that have violated America’s right to know over and over many times. Now, here is Snowden, deeply seated in the secret intelligence market place as a subcontractor, a private corporation tied to the stock market, the famous Booz Allen and Hamilton.

In the time of war, may or may not be subjected to rules and reasons applied to the war, exposes a business marketing Holocaust, or what can be characterized as a secret intelligence hazmat spill perpetrated by insider corporate persons under the shield of national security has to be the biggest and best scheme ever, the perfect profiteering scam developed for good reason to be called “Too Big To Fail” rampant in a derivatives market place with no rules the constitution does not apply.

Unless someone blows the whistle like Snowden. A subcontractor like Black water, an intelligence mercenary gone honest, yet considered a treasonous person. Many might say he could be a solder of fortune the movie industry is foaming for the copy rights where here the Russians are key players in this thriller.

America is too big to keep a secret like this, failure at fraud is a central value theory the basic normal to any statistic, the pressure by this fraud will create small leaks like Snowden that whistle before the big blow out.