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Paging Mr. Edward Snowden
 The guy made famous by telling secrets -- about U.S. surveillance programs -- has managed to keep his own whereabouts hush-hush. Somehow, he has made himself lost for nearly 12 days in a mile-long transit corridor dotted with six VIP lounges, a 66-room capsule hotel, assorted coffee shops, a Burger King and about 20 duty-free shops. Unless he's across the runway in private Terminal A, in the watchful company of Russian officials.Everybody wants to find him. Journalists want to interview him. The United States wants to prosecute him. And now Anna Chapman wants to marry him. Come out, come out - wherever you are! Last week, journalists staked out a chain called Shokoladnitsa, hoping they would find Snowden drinking a $7 cappuccino. Nyet. The capsule hotel rents tiny rooms for about $15 an hour, Smart answer. Russians are a little bemused at all that fuss over surveillance. Many believe that the authorities can read their mail at will, listen in on their calls and sprinkle bugs around as they please. "Wiretapping is so common, so this is not news," said a 48-year-old account manager who stopped to chat on a city street. What doesn't seem normal to many is why Snowden decided to go to Ecuador, his original destination, through Russia. Maybe it's on the great circle route? Once he arrived here, with his U.S. passport revoked, Ecuador has grown less enthusiastic. Russia says he can go anywhere he likes -- he just needs a destination and authorized travel documents. So why doesn't he go? Or show his face? Catch 22. Travel papers require a passport. Eddie doesn't have one. So he can't go, but he can't stay. And a 45-year-old tour agency manager, found it strange that an American carrying U.S. secrets would travel by way of Russia, where security agencies are very much in control. "I don't understand what he was thinking," she said. "Is he a little boy with no idea about the consequences?" Is it THAT obvious? Olga, deputy director of a pharmaceutical company, said the Snowden affair sounded like a fairy tale. "How long will he have to stay in the transit zone? What is he eating there, and where does he sleep? Has anyone seen him at all? Strange." Yes, strange indeed, Olga. Who is paying for his groceries? Who is running the Keep Eddie Free charity? Posted by: Bobby 2013-07-05 |
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