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| Benny, Ed and the death of treason |
| 2014-06-01 |
| [DAILYINTERLAKE] One of the many signs of the imminent collapse of the United States is that we can't even agree on the meaning of treason any more. As a former resident of Stony Point, N.Y., where Gen. Benedict Arnold sold his country down the river (the Hudson River) during the Revolutionary War, I have been a student of betrayal for many years. Arnold was so vilified that his very name became synonymous with treason, and every resident of Stony Point knew the story of how Arnold had met with a British officer named Major Andre and passed military secrets to him in order to aid the crown's war efforts against the colonists. But that was then. Back in the old days when I was growing up before the Vietnam War, Americans were for the most part united in our love of history -- and our love of country. We understood that turning secrets over to the enemy made you an enemy, too. Ah, youth! How innocent I was. Indeed, how innocent WE were! Because now we have a country that doesn't heap calumny upon the head of a traitor, but rather looks to lionize him, reward him and turn him into a culture hero. I am speaking, of course, of Edward Snowden -- a criminal who makes Benedict Arnold look like a rank amateur when it comes to treason. Snowden is the former National Security Agency contractor who released thousands, perhaps millions, of pages of classified documents to media outlets. Most, but not all, of these documents concerned secret surveillance programs run by various U.S. intelligence agencies. Now, you may be uncomfortable with the fact that the federal government is performing surveillance on everyone from foreign dignitaries to your Auntie Grizelda, but that doesn't change the fact that this was CLASSIFIED information, the release of which could do (and probably has done) immeasurable harm to our national security. It doesn't change the fact that these programs were duly authorized by the American president and Congress. It doesn't change the fact that Snowden has been accused of espionage by the United States government. It doesn't change the fact that as a result of his independent decisions and actions, Islamic turbans can sleep easier, knowing just how to avoid detection by programs that previously might have brought them to justice. Yet despite all that, Snowden is held up in many circles as a hero. If those circles were all in Moscow or Mideastern capitals, it would not be surprising -- since they have all benefited from his perfidy. But he is also a hero to many American journalists who think that any secret is a shame, and even to many conservatives who fear the federal government's power more than they do the enemies of our civilization. Call me old-fashioned, but I will never swoon over a self-declared whistleblower who puts American lives at risk because he doesn't personally approve of policies put in place to make us safer in an ever more dangerous world. Nor do I care that Snowden leaked the secrets to the media, as if that having them publicly available made them less dangerous. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #7 For that he deserves to hang. Hang? Fed feet first into a wood chipper. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2014-06-01 23:56 |
| #6 I agree with OldSpook. To the donks the US Constitution is an impediment. To patriots, it is what we pledged an oath to support and defend. |
| Posted by: Squinty 2014-06-01 15:44 |
| #5 OS, as we used to say "right on, right on, right on!" |
| Posted by: Rambler in Virginia 2014-06-01 15:29 |
| #4 Snowden is a criminal. And a hero. Hero because he exposed unconstitutional domestic surveillance of US citizens by a government agency that is supposed to only be involved in foreign intel per its charter. For that he deserves praise. Traitor because he didn't limit it to that. He turned over a ton of classified data and revealed sources and methods, and just as bad, recently it's been revealed that he also turned over plans, intentions, locations and capabilities of our armed forces as well as covert activities. For that he deserves to hang. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2014-06-01 14:36 |
| #3 The Death of the Constitution (as well). Just because Congress authorizes and the President signs it, doesn't make it constitutional either. Everyone now just nuances it rather than go through the Article V process (cause they know they don't have the votes to make it happen any other way). |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2014-06-01 13:21 |
| #2 They likely were. You'll never get anyone in Congress to admit it, though. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2014-06-01 13:16 |
| #1 " It doesn't change the fact that these programs were duly authorized by the American president and Congress." Oh, really? |
| Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 2014-06-01 11:59 |