tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post6302591185169465656..comments2024-03-10T01:30:55.745-08:00Comments on The Critical Mom: Will We Someday Celebrate Edward Snowden Day?The Critical Momhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05340482094492988140noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-21427256267121774462013-08-13T07:59:22.238-07:002013-08-13T07:59:22.238-07:00For everybody, on all sides of this controversy:
...For everybody, on all sides of this controversy:<br /><br />http://www.policymic.com/articles/47049/domestic-spying-how-the-nsa-is-watching-you-through-a-prismThe Critical Momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05340482094492988140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-63598596051171371662013-08-11T10:59:58.957-07:002013-08-11T10:59:58.957-07:00I wanted to add a question: when is it right to b...I wanted to add a question: when is it right to break an oath to one's country? Is the abuse of privacy so extreme, or gratuitous, that no excuse of being on the lookout for terrorists can justify it? Did the technology exposed by Snowden already exist right after 9/11? I ask myself that when I read Moustafa Bayoumi's account of persecution of Arab-Americans by the American government, and specifically by the FBI. (See this summary, <br />http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/How-Does-It-Feel-to-Be-a-Problem-by-Moustafa-Bayoumi-Reviewand the book is well worth reading). If, as many of these stories suggest, the FBI knowingly rounded up innocent people, what kind of country am I a citizen of?The Critical Momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05340482094492988140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-22431653241049424392013-08-11T09:59:46.745-07:002013-08-11T09:59:46.745-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.The Critical Momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05340482094492988140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-52667867070543086812013-08-11T07:49:06.453-07:002013-08-11T07:49:06.453-07:00Dear JRG, Thank you very much for writing. I unde...Dear JRG, Thank you very much for writing. I understand the serious issue of taking an oath. But I question what happens when the military, or the government, or the institution to whom one swears an oath, seems to re-define the operation they wish to keep secret, or never really defined, or revealed it, or abuses the use of secrecy. I don't really know--who does really know--what happened, but the appearance of Snowden's honesty to me speaks volumes, specifically his assertions that surveillance is being abused. If Snowden had come to his superiors and said, "I think this is abusive," or been to a military lawyer, could he have made either the government or the ordinary citizen aware in the way that he has? I'd be interested in hearing more from you and anyone else who either disagrees with my position or wishes to clarify some aspect of this case.The Critical Momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05340482094492988140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-84568520230985697762013-08-10T11:18:48.694-07:002013-08-10T11:18:48.694-07:00As a retired military person and now government em...As a retired military person and now government employee, I just have to disagree with your remark about his "bravery." I remind you he signed an oath (the same I signed) that he would safeguard sensitive and classified information. It's not for him (nor I) to unilaterally decide that one can violate that oath and release information, whether in protest or some dream of helping others. He signed an oath; he was trusted; he belied that trust. <br /><br />He was not brave; he could have disagreed with his government in so many ways, but not by publishing sensitive information. <br /><br />I'll quote President Eisenhower from 1959 (speaking about US intelligence services):<br /><br />"Success cannot be advertised: failure cannot be explained. In the work of intelligence, heroes are undecorated and unsung, often even among their own fraternity. Their inspiration is rooted in patriotism — their reward can be little except the conviction they are performing a unique and indispensable service for their country, and the knowledge that America needs and appreciates their efforts." JRGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14168221777533729430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-33411076313353128642013-07-21T16:44:13.989-07:002013-07-21T16:44:13.989-07:00Thanks. He does seem to elicit extreme responses....Thanks. He does seem to elicit extreme responses. What on earth is Obama really doing?<br />The Critical Mom's facebook page seems to be okay again, thanks to the intervention of the technically-savvy 14-year-old, who let me know it was "obvious" what I had done wrong . . . The Critical Momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05340482094492988140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-19705194154178794762013-07-21T15:13:45.923-07:002013-07-21T15:13:45.923-07:00I like the way you put it -- Snowden as a Rohrscha...I like the way you put it -- Snowden as a Rohrschach test. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6010339629775208651.post-12633246227127374982013-07-21T10:35:35.854-07:002013-07-21T10:35:35.854-07:00The Critical Mom's facebook account seems to h...The Critical Mom's facebook account seems to have been hacked or vanished and I have been asked to supply a new password--which took me directly to another account I had closed months, if not years ago. I hope I can sort this out with the unbelievably inaccessible facebook. Maybe they'll read this comment and fix things. (Pie in the proverbial SKY)The Critical Momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05340482094492988140noreply@blogger.com