Snowden made the right call when he fled the U.S., by Daniel Ellsburg, Sunday OpEd, The Washington Post, July 7, 2013.
Many people compare Edward Snowden to me unfavorably for leaving the country and seeking asylum, rather than facing trial as I did. I don’t agree. The country I stayed in was a different America, a long time ago.
when I surrendered to arrest in Boston...[snip]...I was released on personal recognizance bond the same day.
[snip]
There is no chance that experience could be reproduced today
[snip]
I hope Snowden’s revelations will spark a movement to rescue our democracy, but he could not be part of that movement had he stayed here. There is zero chance that he would be allowed out on bail if he returned now and close to no chance that, had he not left the country, he would have been granted bail. Instead, he would be in a prison cell like Bradley Manning, incommunicado.
He would almost certainly be confined in total isolation, even longer than the more than eight months Manning suffered during his three years of imprisonment before his trial began recently. The United Nations Special Rapporteur for Torture described Manning’s conditions as “cruel, inhuman and degrading.” (That realistic prospect, by itself, is grounds for most countries granting Snowden asylum, if they could withstand bullying and bribery from the United States.)
Snowden believes that he has done nothing wrong. I agree wholeheartedly. More than 40 years after my unauthorized disclosure of the Pentagon Papers, such leaks remain the lifeblood of a free press and our republic. One lesson of the Pentagon Papers and Snowden’s leaks is simple: secrecy corrupts, just as power corrupts.
A very thoughtful friend of mine wrote this about Edward Snowden:
The more unfiltered video I watch of this young man, the more impressed I become. He is articulate, reasoned, and I think sincere. Since 9/11/01, we have been told be afraid, be very, very afraid and trust us, trust us to do the right thing in protecting you.
I'm thinking Edward Snowden has thrust into the bright light practices and incursions we may or may not agree to allow, but we need to be aware when & if we make such allowance.
Please take the time to watch Edward Snowden describe the reality & relate his intentions in his own words.
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Part 1 of The Guardian interview with Edward Snowden:
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Part 2 of The Guardian interview with Edward Snowden:
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Indeed, Edward Snowden is a hero to our democracy providing us evidence that there are people in our government who are destroying our right to privacy just as Daniel Ellsberg was a hero when he provided us evidence that there were people in our government lying us into an illegal war that needed to end.
I hope Edward Snowden blowing the whistle on wrongdoing in our government succeeds in saving the 4th Amendment just as Daniel Ellsberg's blowing the whistle on wrongdoing in our government was instrumental in ending the Viet Nam War.
Clearly, both Ellsberg and Snowden have had the best of intentions: providing the American public proof of secret government wrongdoing to restore our democracy and integrity as a nation. The only difference is that America has lost its way since Ellsberg and no longer provides our citizens a fair system of justice as the extremely harsh treatment of Thomas Andrews Drake, William Binney, John Kiriakou, and Private Bradley Manning illustrate.
Snowden, Ellsberg, Binney, Kiriakou, Manning, and Drake all served their country and spoke up when they saw wrongdoing and paid a price, yet the war criminals, torturers, and snoops are free to go.
Shame on US.
Please sign this:
WE PETITION THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO: Pardon Edward Snowden