Snowden Emerges with Bizarre New Remarks, Implies that He Might Be Assassinated

[Galraedia]

Monday wasn’t a good day for Edward Snowden. Two different dispatches from the former-NSA-contractor-turned-Moscow-airport-resident were released in the space of an hour: a letter that was apparently delivered to President Rafael Correa of Ecuador, and a statement posted on the Wikileaks website. Both statements were equally bizarre, and it’s obvious that either Snowden is being poorly advised by Wikileaks, or he’s growing increasingly unhinged and confused.

The Ecuador letter began with Snowden complimenting Correa for “standing for the human rights of an individual against the most powerful government on earth.” Maybe Snowden isn’t aware of the fact that Correa recently authorized a Communications Law, intended to clamp down on the press by, among other things, prohibiting journalists from “undermining the prestige” or “reducing the credibility of any person or legal entity.” A “legal entity” obviously includes the government of Ecuador, and “any person” includes President Correa. Bravo, Ecuador.

Snowden continued:

While the public has cried out support of my shining a light on this secret system of injustice, the Government of the United States of America responded with an extrajudicial man-hunt costing me my family, my freedom to travel, and my right to live peacefully without fear of illegal aggression.

There’s a lot to unpack in that sentence, so let’s start at the beginning.

Read more: http://thedailybanter.com/2013/07/snowden-emerges-with-new-remarks-implies-that-he-might-be-assassinated/

[Tarheel_Dem]

1. "costing me my family, my freedom to travel, and my right to live peacefully".

Didn't he admit what he did was illegal? He's the one who separated himself from his family & freedom by committing a crime. Just ask any prisoner. I'm all tore up about poor Eddie.

He should come home, face the charges, hope he gets a sympathetic jury, and take his chances like anyone else who's committed a crime.

[frazzled]

2. I think he was confused from the beginning

The same kind of conspiratorial thinking that lie beneath this current outburst were behind his initial impulse to abscond with and publish these documents: the idea that the evil big brother government was "spying" on every single American.

It's the conspiratorial thinking of the Paulites, taken to even greater extremes than I thought possible.

But it's also mixed in with an incredible narcissism and what is probably a good bit of delusional thinking about his self-importance. And now he's having a persecution complex. Really, I think he needs help.

[dkf]

3. You don't seem to realize what Snowden represents.

Many commentators read "infrastructure analyst" as NSA-speak for a system administrator role, and many news reports of Snowden's leaks actually labeled him as being a sysadmin. But according to intelligence officials, the infrastructure analyst role refers to a position tasked with finding new ways to hack into foreign networks, to keep the NSA abreast of the signals intelligence it's charged with gathering.

http://mobile.informationweek.com/80256/show/e8846fc471edeb6484b9dfcf9038f9be/?


A close reading of Mr. Snowden’s documents shows the extent to which the eavesdropping agency now has two new roles: It is a data cruncher, with an appetite to sweep up, and hold for years, a staggering variety of information. And it is an intelligence force armed with cyberweapons, assigned not just to monitor foreign computers but also, if necessary, to attack.
--
And a secret presidential directive on cyberactivities unveiled by Mr. Snowden — discussing the primary new task of the N.S.A. and its military counterpart, Cyber Command — makes clear that when the agency’s technicians probe for vulnerabilities to collect intelligence, they also study foreign communications and computer systems to identify potential targets for a future cyberwar.

Infrastructure analysts like Mr. Snowden, in other words, are not just looking for electronic back doors into Chinese computers or Iranian mobile networks to steal secrets. They have a new double purpose: building a target list in case American leaders in a future conflict want to wipe out the computers’ hard drives or shut down the phone system.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/07/01/us/job-title-key-to-inner-access-held-by-snowden.html

He used his skills and access to look inward instead of outward. That is why the Government is terrified of him.

[railsback]

4. The dude split the country 3 weeks before coming out

and then blames Obama. Whatever.

[sigmasix]

5. this reflects on the lengths conspiracy theorists will go

There are a great number of people from the extremes of both the left and the right that have always fervently believed that our lives are actually lived in a "matrix-type" illusion that consists of ultimate government and corporate control of our very senses themselves. These latest "scandals" have been created with great care to be assured of maximum penetration into the world of the paranoid and hate-filled misanthrope. Many on the left have been taken-in by these manufactured confirmations of the existence of the "matrix". Anyone with an independent intellect can understand what the truth is whenever someone claims that President Obama is a traitor to our country. Don't let your voice be used to amplify further right wing conspiracy theories and attacks on our democracy. It's OK to be fooled by evil people- what's unforgivable is the continued toadying of some DU members for Greenwald, Snowden and Alex Jones- after the lies have become obvious. Seriously- no one will remember your mistake if you stop repeating it now that you know Snowden and Greenwald are conspiracy theory mongers, out to destroy Obama and America, not heroes to anyone but the forces of destruction and anarchy.

[The Stranger]

6. Exactly right -- only that in this case the conspiracy theory is neither conspiracy nor theory.

It is the horrible truth.

And we have only just briefly had the curtain pulled back to view this truth.

And extraordinary powers and extraordinarily powerful people are going to extraordinary lengths to discredit -- but not disprove -- what little we have seen thus far.

All of this indicates that the horrible truth is really all that horrible.

[truth2power]

8. "Discredit but not disprove". Exactly!...

I've just about given up trying to explain it, because I think some people are just deliberately obtuse.

If what Snowden says isn't true, then how can the US govt. charge him with espionage?

If what he's saying isn't true, then how come NONE of the former whistleblowers have called him out?

Which is it?

[truth2power]

7. Keep trying. n/t

[Demeter]

9. There are two conspiracis at work: (1) Trash Snowden

(2) keep building a fascist Amerikkka while the righteous get their asses handed to them