Edward Snowden Charged With Espionage

[SnakeMasteR]

Edward Snowden Charged With Espionage

According to the Washington Post, the U.S. government has brought the hammer down on NSA leaker
Edward Snowden, charging him with one of the most serious offenses: espionage. Snowden, who is holed
up in Hong Kong, is currently searching for asylum with the help of fellow leak-enthusiast, Julian Assange
of Wikileaks.

Federal prosecutors filed criminal complaint against Edward Snowden

Ironically, The Post and USA Today report that charging Snowden with a heavy political crime could make
it harder to extradite him. “The treaty, however, has an exception for political offenses, and espionage has
traditionally been treated as a political offense. Snowden’s defense team in Hong Kong is likely to invoke
part of the extradition treaty with the United States, which states that suspects will not be turned over to
face criminal trial for offenses of a “political character,” explains The Post.

The extradition process could drag on for months. “Prosecutors now have 60 days to file an indictment,
probably also under seal, and can then move to have Snowden extradited from Hong Kong for trial in
the United States… Any court battle is likely to reach Hong Kong’s highest court, and could last many
months”.

The harsh indictment should worry those who fear Snowden will face the same treatment as Wikileaks
source Bradley Manning who was reportedly driven to suicidal thoughts from “extreme” 23-hour-a-day
solitary confinement.

In an interview with Charlie Rose, President Obama refused to comment on how Snowden would be
punished.

For good measure, we’ve included a screenshot of live Google search results that show the world still has
its priorities straight with regard to the most important “bradley".

Source

[Ambrocious]

I feel so very bad for Snowden....he may never see his family again for being brave enough to expose that our government is basically monitoring the whole world. Sure, to an extent these tactics are used to defend the nation but they are also used to hurt and kill many other individuals through supremacy of information. If you have a stranglehold over the flow of information you can pretty much eventually get any agenda shoved threw by knowing exactly what needs to be done.

This isn't just about privacy either. This is about holding a monopoly on information which if you ask any tech guru, they will tell you that information security is PARAMOUNT. If you hold an information monopoly however, the fear that you are no longer the only big dog on the street is quit disturbing when you suddenly realize that your method of dominance is exposed. Power misplaced indeed...

"In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists, and will persist.

We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals so that security and liberty may prosper together."

Dwight D. Eisenhower - 34th President of the United States of America

Had we all never been alerted to this misplaced power, it would continually be abused to the destruction of many nations, of that I am almost completely assured of. I still think Snowden is a brave hero who is risking life and limb in taking the stance against what Dwight D. Eisenhower warned us about.

[dMog]

not that i am condoning this ambro... but do you not think the Russians and the Chinese the North Koreans and MILITANT Muslim leaders are not doing the same damn thing... the new super computer that China just built...ie the biggest and best supercomputer on the playground...it just happens to be built by their MILITARY ...now is that going to be used solely for peaceful purposes??? if you think so then you really are as naive as we all think here ...truth is... it IS a big bad world out there, and the leaders and military of the so called free world are NOT the only bullies on the playground vying the supremacy of the sandbox...stop deluding yourself on that thought and once in awhile be glad you live in one of the FEW countries that allows you keep your life and the life of your family for your constant publicly speaking out against the "police state" that is suppressing you...you truly have no idea how lucky you are in that respect..I have actually traveled to countries and have friends that either live or have lived in such countries where people simply disappeared for publicly saying they did not love their leaders... and they would never dream of saying the things you say about your leaders... some are afraid to even think such thoughts...just in case someone can read their minds

[Ambrocious]

not that i am condoning this ambro... but do you not think the Russians and the Chinese the North Koreans and MILITANT Muslim leaders are not doing the same damn thing... the new super computer that China just built...ie the biggest and best supercomputer on the playground...it just happens to be built by their MILITARY ...now is that going to be used solely for peaceful purposes??? if you think so then you really are as naive as we all think here ...truth is... it IS a big bad world out there, and the leaders and military of the so called free world are NOT the only bullies on the playground vying the supremacy of the sandbox...stop deluding yourself on that thought and once in awhile be glad you live in one of the FEW countries that allows you keep your life and the life of your family for your constant publicly speaking out against the "police state" that is suppressing you...you truly have no idea how lucky you are in that respect..I have actually traveled to countries and have friends that either live or have lived in such countries where people simply disappeared for publicly saying they did not love their leaders... and they would never dream of saying the things you say about your leaders... some are afraid to even think such thoughts...just in case someone can read their minds

I hear what you are saying and it's true. I know that the USA is moving towards the same sort of system where simply speaking badly about them will get you killed or imprisoned and I don't want that for this country.

Certianly other countries are building and have already built super computers to compete with each other but it's a race to the bottom of a stinking rat hole of hell. It's like most nations now are trying to find the most effective way to destroy the planet without being seen as blatent ass holes or something. I think that all countries who are doing this sort of thing need to be exposed because it poses a HUGE safety threat to everyone.

I am glad I live in the USA but it's changing rapidly. If you think that I believe that the USA is the ONLY country with issues, your wrong. Keeping the countries in check by exposing the abuse of power is important to maintaining freedom and encouraging it in other nations that don't have freedom. Im simply suggesting a renaissance of knowledge and transparancy with common sense as the focal point of learning.

Just because the Russians and Chinese and North Koreans and MILITANT Muslims are building those things, it doesn't make it morally justified. I understand the concept of needing to adjust strategicly against other countries by using similar or same methods of survailance but it doesn't make it any more OK to do it. I suppose the question is this: How healthy is it that only the governments of the world have the ability to pretty much know and see our every day lives while the citizens of every country can and do go to prison for such offenses being considered hackers? For this type of total information awareness system to work without offense, EVERYONE should be able to have the same ability to spy too...but then that's just utter chaos. There needs to be a better way to unobtrusively monitor things without readily targeting all people as though we were all guilty.

[keyman]

not that i am condoning this ambro... but do you not think the Russians and the Chinese the North Koreans and MILITANT Muslim leaders are not doing the same damn thing... the new super computer that China just built...ie the biggest and best supercomputer on the playground...it just happens to be built by their MILITARY ...now is that going to be used solely for peaceful purposes??? if you think so then you really are as naive as we all think here ...truth is... it IS a big bad world out there, and the leaders and military of the so called free world are NOT the only bullies on the playground vying the supremacy of the sandbox...stop deluding yourself on that thought and once in awhile be glad you live in one of the FEW countries that allows you keep your life and the life of your family for your constant publicly speaking out against the "police state" that is suppressing you...you truly have no idea how lucky you are in that respect..I have actually traveled to countries and have friends that either live or have lived in such countries where people simply disappeared for publicly saying they did not love their leaders... and they would never dream of saying the things you say about your leaders... some are afraid to even think such thoughts...just in case someone can read their minds

Excellent points, too bad I can only like your post once :D

[dcs18]

Edward Snowden leaves Hong Kong on Moscow flight

[Olexijl]

Actually, i would NOT leave Hong Kong territory. Personally my opinion. Iceland is out of option, they could give up to the pressure from U.S.

Looking forward into things.

Ecuador? Assange is unhappy, but this would be perhaps a good decision.

[SnakeMasteR]

Snowden has ticket to Cuba, may go to Venezuela: Russian reports

Former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden is booked on a flight from Moscow
to Cuba on Monday, Russian news agencies Interfax and Itar-Tass cited sources at Russian airline
Aeroflot as saying on Sunday.

Itar-Tass cited its source as saying Snowden would fly from Havana to the Venezuelan capital, Caracas.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said it was looking into the situation and confirmed Snowden may be
planning to travel through Moscow as a transit passenger en route to another destination.

(Writing by Steve Gutterman; Editing by Alison Williams)

Source

[dMog]

the biggest thing i see wrong here...the USA id getting the lowest bidder to contract out another lower paid group to handle what some consider very sensitive info..what did they think was going to happen when they pay someone crap wages to company that hire another company that hire a poor half educated yokels that have in the past jumped at the opportunity for fame and or $$$...s for ambro thinking his government will take over by force... get real buddy there are far more armed citizens in the usa than military personnel...and sadly too many of them are looking for an excuse to go after those in authority..can you imagine if "those"yahoos ever got into power..and yes i am talking about alex jones for one...He is one of the idiots that woulf have the brown and black shirted followers marching for him and all that comes with it...and guys like ambro would willingly put on that shirt.

[dMog]

OK ambro i suggest you visit, not move to China or Russia or iran or some other country you say is doing the same thing and stand on your soap box there and tell their citizens they are being used... see how long you actually live as a free man...problem with you is you ONLY chirp and make most of your stuff up about the government in the country in which you live and as i said you have no clue to how the world works and why or why you have that freedom of speech and who fought and gave their lives for that little thing you take for granted..wake up you are not living in fantasy world where your leaders are trying to take away your freedoms and is the mastermind in planning and the perpetrating things like 911 the boston bombing and all the other single lone gunman incidents you have called government false flag ops

[Ambrocious]

A double attack on me, oh joy.

[dMog]

well ..you do make yourself an extremely easy target with your being a choirboy for alex jones and the lies he brings to the table

i could have added the second rant as an edit to make it one big "attack" but i figured two "attacks" would be much more dramatic

[DKT27]

the biggest thing i see wrong here...the USA id getting the lowest bidder to contract out another lower paid group to handle what some consider very sensitive info..what did they think was going to happen when they pay someone crap wages to company that hire another company that hire a poor half educated yokels that have in the past jumped at the opportunity for fame and or $$$...s for ambro thinking his government will take over by force... get real buddy there are far more armed citizens in the usa than military personnel...and sadly too many of them are looking for an excuse to go after those in authority..can you imagine if "those"yahoos ever got into power..and yes i am talking about alex jones for one...He is one of the idiots that woulf have the brown and black shirted followers marching for him and all that comes with it...and guys like ambro would willingly put on that shirt.

OK ambro i suggest you visit, not move to China or Russia or iran or some other country you say is doing the same thing and stand on your soap box there and tell their citizens they are being used... see how long you actually live as a free man...problem with you is you ONLY chirp and make most of your stuff up about the government in the country in which you live and as i said you have no clue to how the world works and why or why you have that freedom of speech and who fought and gave their lives for that little thing you take for granted..wake up you are not living in fantasy world where your leaders are trying to take away your freedoms and is the mastermind in planning and the perpetrating things like 911 the boston bombing and all the other single lone gunman incidents you have called government false flag ops

Do explain me how, where or when Alex Jones came to this topic of discussion. Incase I missed it, I see no signs of anyone else mentioning him.

Either way, please stick to the main topic.

I for one do not think Julian Assange or Edward Snowden deserve to be charged with espionage. Doesn't American (note: USA) govt. have other things to deal with. It puts its resources in fighting piracy, tracking users (which, I tell you, isn't cheap to do), ruining their privacy, etc. whereas they should be fighting poverty at ground level, terrorism in the reality (not virtual world and make excuses of terror for tracking everyone), lack of sufficient jobs, immense corruption, misuse of power by both govt. and private sectors?

Isn't it ironical and tyrant that the U.S. accuses China of hacking and tracking people, that without sufficient proof, whereas it itself is tracking almost everyone in the world through big time services from last 5 years? Isn't it ironical that how the U.S. proposed (asked / forced) the browser companies to come up with Do Not Track whereas it itself is tracking everyone from years? Isn't it ironical and tyrant of how a person speaking against or exposing, lets say, communist dictatorship of their country, is given a prize and recognition by the U.S, but when your own person reveals the truth about your misdoings, he is given title of a criminal, a political spy, a traitor? This hypocrisy needs to stop. U.S. should concentrate of far more bigger issues than running after two guys (considered heroes outside the America) that all they have done is just revealed the truth.

[dcs18]

Fugitive Edward Snowden asks Ecuador for asylum

[dMog]

i am not saying what snowdon did was wrong i am however saying that what alex jones is charlatan that takes advantage of people like ambro...and where did alex jones enter the equation...every post ambro makes either has a live link to that his full of stretched truths and out right lies.... even if ambro simply says "hi" in a post, he has a link to alex jones info wars site built into his signature

[galaxyquestor]

stop deluding yourself on that thought and ... be glad you live in one of the FEW countries that allows you keep your life and the life of your family for your constant publicly speaking out against the "police state" that is suppressing you...you truly have no idea how lucky you are in that respect..

... lived in such countries where people simply disappeared for publicly saying they did not love their leaders... and they would never dream of saying the things you say about your leaders

I have been all around the world as well, often in defense of the Constitution - THAT is what I swore to protect. With respect, when it is only a matter of the DEGREE of the internal espionage, (by an agency whose charter specifically prohibits it from doing so, and which our 4th Amendment succinctly forbids), then we are simply parsing the degree of unacceptable monitoring of all internal and external communications in any form. People who believe they are still 'free' because they can still criticize their leaders and government, while they are being recorded for doing so for any future purpose, are very close to strangling themselves with gratitude. I love my country - but despise what it is becoming, and many things it has done. As to investigators and whistleblowers, there is a - very - long list of U.S. citizens who have shot themselves in the head - twice, had strange accidents, been found hanged in their mother's shed after stating publicly that if anything happens it was NOT suicide... developed incredibly quick cancers, have been beaten to death, or who have 'disappeared.' No one should mistake a long leash for freedom: it is still just a leash, and that is how it begins. We do NOT need to be recorded - as this post is, and where it came from, en mass, for any reason. Fascism never makes you safer - it just seems like it in the beginning stages, when it is presented as 'protecting the homeland' (fatherland, whatever). The noose on that leash, once you are wearing it (to my disgust at many fellow citizens) voluntarily, is - to put it briefly - offering you enough rope to be hung from - later. God bless Snowden wherever he is - no one can do any more than give up everything to wake up his fellow citizens. It is what the founders risked ("our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor"). Right now, he is just trying to stay alive, for defending a shred of the Constitution - from the INSIDE of the same organization attempting to undermine it. He's done nothing but embarrass a group of control-freaks huddling in a secret facility paid for by us to spy illegally on us all. He will be branded a traitor and called a hero. History will decide. I prefer liberty over safety, if given the choice. Every time, all the time, under any threat or action. If we give up rights for safety from anything, then we have already given up what we were afraid of losing. If you love comfort, safety and false security so much that you are willing to believe that your government would never use that against you, then many people have suffered and died for nothing but our flat-screen televisions, cars, and genetically modified food. I am not grateful. I am - very - angry.

[galaxyquestor]

I forgot to add, in response to the comment

"what did they think was going to happen when they pay someone crap wages to company that hire another company that hire a poor half educated yokels that have in the past jumped at the opportunity for fame and or $$$...s?"

He was being paid in excess of $200,000.00 dollars a year, and living in a big house in Hawaii, traveling all over the world, and was NOT a stupid, uneducated flunky. He had worked directly for the CIA, and like many computer coder's, just 'knew how to do it.' The CIA does not hire idiots. He served the CIA in two separate posts, excelling at coding, before being hired by an Intelligence contractor. He joined the Service for Special Ops training, and horribly broke both legs during a training accident. Medical discharge. This is NOT a weakling, an idiot, a flunky or a stooge. As he himself said, "You have to ask yourself what it would take for a person to give up all of that privilege, all that money?" I don't need to ask myself: he found some things that wreaked to high heaven with anti-constitutional conduct so severe that, after struggling with both his conscience and his comfort, he chose to yell "Hey, wake the hell up, you idiots!" and leave his family, his comfort, a great job, a pretty girlfriend, and a Hawaiian home for a life of poverty, constant fear of being killed, the wrath of "patriots" who call him traitor, destruction of his chances of ever working or having a real life again. Whatever he saw, and has evidence of, must have been bad - really bad - for us. It won't hurt the U.S. military or our safety - that is obvious B.S., but it might lead to a good, necessary cleaning of the slime that resides in the shadows of a corporate, government, intelligence and military industrial complex whose only concern seems to be power and next quarter's profit... Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower warned us. It shouldn't have had to come to this.

[dMog]

i too am upset that with what the nsa did and has done on the past.... my beef is is with one person who is forever spouting off about what a hero alex jones is,,,,,

[DKT27]

i am not saying what snowdon did was wrong i am however saying that what alex jones is charlatan that takes advantage of people like ambro...and where did alex jones enter the equation...every post ambro makes either has a live link to that his full of stretched truths and out right lies.... even if ambro simply says "hi" in a post, he has a link to alex jones info wars site built into his signature

i too am upset that with what the nsa did and has done on the past.... my beef is is with one person who is forever spouting off about what a hero alex jones is,,,,,

Of course.

But I still fail to see anyone mentioning Alex Jones on this topic, or his beliefs / sayings. Even Ambro is talking himself here, something that you have always wanted, but somehow Alex Jones is dragged into the topic. As for Ambro's signature, it means nothing to the thread, not sure why it should be counted as such.

Discussing Alex Jones or Infowars in this thread, when it's not mentioned already, is more like derailing the topic from it's actual subject, downplaying it's importance, cause of course, Alex Jones is more important.

[dMog]

below is copied from a previous post..and i did say why i went on a rant about info wars a few posts up

not that two wrongs make a right...china has been hacking the rest of the world since they got their first computer ... china has hacked canadian military sites so many times and been caught red handed doing it that the canadian government made an official public request for them to stop doing so(public embarrassment i guess as a last resort) and i did not see anyone here sounding the alarms about China's behavior in the way they went after the nsa or raise a so much as an eyebrow...especially you know who... so is the USA and the rest of the world just supposed to lay down and spread wide for the other countries because we are not or should not be playing badly....or simply not allowed to do this stuff..only other countries that could or will eventually be an enemy state...there are no easy answers here...especially when it comes national security of nation..the best thing to do is to have free trade with all countries...not too many people/countries want to find ways go to war with a country that they are making a lot of money with...and yes that too is a simplistic statement with no easy answers

[keyman]

below is copied from a previous post..and i did say why i went on a rant about info wars a few posts up

not that two wrongs make a right...china has been hacking the rest of the world since they got their first computer ... china has hacked canadian military sites so many times and been caught red handed doing it that the canadian government made an official public request for them to stop doing so(public embarrassment i guess as a last resort) and i did not see anyone here sounding the alarms about China's behavior in the way they went after the nsa or raise a so much as an eyebrow...especially you know who... so is the USA and the rest of the world just supposed to lay down and spread wide for the other countries because we are not or should not be playing badly....or simply not allowed to do this stuff..only other countries that could or will eventually be an enemy state...there are no easy answers here...especially when it comes national security of nation..the best thing to do is to have free trade with all countries...not too many people/countries want to find ways go to war with a country that they are making a lot of money with...and yes that too is a simplistic statement with no easy answers

+ 1

[DKT27]

below is copied from a previous post..and i did say why i went on a rant about info wars a few posts up

not that two wrongs make a right...china has been hacking the rest of the world since they got their first computer ... china has hacked canadian military sites so many times and been caught red handed doing it that the canadian government made an official public request for them to stop doing so(public embarrassment i guess as a last resort) and i did not see anyone here sounding the alarms about China's behavior in the way they went after the nsa or raise a so much as an eyebrow...especially you know who... so is the USA and the rest of the world just supposed to lay down and spread wide for the other countries because we are not or should not be playing badly....or simply not allowed to do this stuff..only other countries that could or will eventually be an enemy state...there are no easy answers here...especially when it comes national security of nation..the best thing to do is to have free trade with all countries...not too many people/countries want to find ways go to war with a country that they are making a lot of money with...and yes that too is a simplistic statement with no easy answers

While your points about the subject makes sense, your rants about info wars (on this topic) still doesn't. On this thread, I don't see Ambro referring to Infowars nor I see him talking about it. So why drag it in the middle when it's uncalled for or isn't required?

[dMog]

habit??

[DKT27]

habit??

Not a good one then. We are all a community, we should be helpful and mild in our approach.

As for your views about certain things being posted elsewhere, I think it's pretty clear, even you know how things work, if you have any problems with the content being posted, you either report the content, or you PM the staff or even the Admins if you feel so. We are always open to look into matters.

[dMog]

and i also thought that admins were NOT to publicly admonish members too..nuff said... i got you point 5 posts back