A young and "bright" boy, 29, formerly of the NSA and CIA,
has exposed just how broad and deep a sweep domestic
surveillance has become since 911 and the success of the Patriot
Acts, both versions. According to various press reports, his
reasoning and concern for the public's privacy privileges
(read: rights) seemed spot on--until you get a load of where he
escaped to...Hong Kong, a huge CHINESE metropolis. (-!?)
So this disenchanted U.S. citizen, presumably well-informed,
well-studied, well-read, picks China, still a firm bastion
of mind and action control of the populace. Tianenmen Square
may be their most striking recent example of repression and bad
behavior, but there are other, smaller ones since then ( such as
sending the U.S. bug-infested lumber and lead-infested cat
food, etc.). Internet control is a stellar instance of this; I just hope
Chinese intellectual activists haven't thrown out all their old fax
machines, a technology which greatly aided in ending the Cold War.
To top it off, he grandiloquently pronounces that he selected
Hong Kong as a semi-autonomous entity interested in a free press
tolerant of dissent. We'll see...I think this wunderkind didn't really
research all the ramifications to himself and/or others. He
couldn't WAIT to take "credit" before reaching his final safe haven.
(Just another American proving true maturity mostly eludes us
until after 30.)
But maybe Snowden can successfully escape further to Iceland,
his real relocation destination, which he shrewdly revealed to the
press...
That is, if Iceland actually allows this little claim-to-famer into
their space.
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As Charlie Rose (CBS) pointed out this
ReplyDeletemorning, Snowden is not of the inspired ilk
of other dissidents, notably, Dr. M. L. King and his predecessor, Mohandas K. Gandhi, whose
non-violent, passive-aggressive tactics Dr. K
had studied and internalized, spearheading the successful Civil Rights Movement. These two didn't turn tail and run, didn't broadcast future moves in a stupid, attention-getting manner, etc.
I guess they don't make 'em like they used to, with special, sterling "change the world" characters.
Taking the calendar into consideration, the ascendancy of a Gandhi/King type of figure woukd seem to be long overdue. Maybe he (or she) is out there somewhere.
ReplyDeleteThat said, there are a lot of folks doing their best to make a dent. That stated, I understand what you mean in regard to Ed Snowden. His self-imposed exile in Hong Kong didn't seem well-advised. Youthful indescretion, maybe?
--A lot?? Percentage-wise, not so many.
DeleteAs Sir Edmund Burke said in the 1700s,
"All that is required for evil to exist in the world is for enough good men to do nothing." Now, I don't see enough good humans out here making the necessary difference--and neither do you, if you're being honest and observant.
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ReplyDeleteI've been reading more about Snowden's background, and it is generally troubling: He supposedly dropped out of high school and community college; apparently he was a lower-grade tech and/or sub contractor for NSA/CIA. So how does someone at a lower level get access to higher-level classified files? I'm not sure this "genius" is that smart, or educated enough to understand what he must have hacked into. What about judgement? How to quantify/qualify THAT?
ReplyDeleteHe is an American under 30, an age group not known for maturity here at home, as contrasted to other nations, where being 21 means one is fully adult. It ought to mean that here, but I say it doesn't, with only relatively fewer exceptions. Being celebrity-obsessed as the young are here is only one bit of evidence I can offer; most in the U.S. go to college to nail a high salary and title, not a broader education, which university education around the planet DID mean for hundreds of years. --Ugh!