Is Anybody Surprised?
Looks like those rumors of Eddie-boi’s return from the land of borscht and vodka were a bit premature.
Snowden says U.S. not offering fair trial if he returns
Yeah, right. My guess is Snowden’s first mention of a possible return was a “trial baloon”, and he got word (or correctly read the tea leaves) that he’d almost certainly end up doing time.
So now he appears to be backpedaling. If you’re surprised, put up your hand.
Yeah, me neither.
Still, and with apologies to the late Sir Winston:
“Come back home, Master Edward.
We are waiting. So is your needle.”
Category: Shitbags
“I’ve been working exhaustively with the government now since I left to try to find terms of a trial.”
It’s not a frickin’ business deal. It’s not a negotiation. You committed a crime. You don’t get to dictate how the “terms”.
Hey Ed, here’s the deal: you plead guilty and you’ll only have to do 75 years. Make us go through the whole trial and secure a conviction, it’ll be life. With no parole. How’s that for terms?
Those are fine terms in my humble opinion….
Okay, Snowie, let’s talk. What kind of rope do you prefer? Natural hemp braid? Synthetic kern-mantle? It’s your noose, you pick!
Those are good terms.
This ain’t Burger King, Eddie. You don’t get to have it your way. Asshat.
He is not being offered a fair trial? A fair trial is one in which procedures are followed. He doesn’t want a fair trial. He wants a guaranteed trial outcome that he likes. The only way I know of obtaining that is by sidestepping a trial altogether and reaching a deal with prosecutors, with the judge’s stamp of approval. So, I have no idea what he means.
So he can’t find gainful employment on talk shows in Russia?
Who knew? Did anyone besides me see that coming?
Did he think there was no consequence for what he did?
Is he really that stupid?
(Those are rhetorical questions. No need to answer.)
Yeah, he can stay there and wallow in it.
After running him for decades, Kim Philby was discovered and fled to the Soviet Union. I think this might be similar. Read what the Soviets said about Philby. It was, more or less, “he betrayed his country, why the hell should WE trust him?” Philby also preferred young men and that deeply offended the Russians. They liked his information but they hated him.
Sullivan (the mole): “Problem?”
Sgt. Degnam: “Yeah, I got a big fuckin’ problem. I run rat fucks like you. I don’t like ’em.”
-“The Departed” AKA “The Depahted”
Traditionally there are four reasons for treason collectively known as MICE.
Money
Ideology
Compromise or Coercion
Ego or Extortion
For this particular dirtbag, I am going with ego and ideology. There is no obvious money and the Russians did not compromise him. He did it because he could – “you cannot see me, I am smarter than you” and because he was offended that the NSA was spying on people. By the way, I am pretty offended by that too but I am still on the right side of the law.
If the Russians did have a connection before he did his core dump, I wonder what their controller thought of Mr. Snowden? I suspect that it would be similar to Mr. Philby. The controller didn’t have to like Snowden just get information from him. If they didn’t have contact with him before he arrived at Sheremetyvo, they probably held their nose while he answered questions.
I don’t know. I know a few guys from that area, so that is just my guess.
If he would have just deserted he would have been good.
Now, he will need to convert to Islam and tell 0 that he understands the plight of the mooslummers… He’ll be in like Flint then !!!
Come back now. Suck it up for two years. Work on the book. Get sentenced. Get Obummer to pardon you on the way out.
While I agree that he totally broke the law and needs to pay for it. Doesn’t anyone feel at least concerned that had he not come forward with this information, a lot of your privacy and social liberties were being infringed upon without you even knowing about it? Doesn’t that scare anyone else? Being a silly canuck, I’m kind of on the outside looking in, but I know some of the info that he leaked identified some of the underhanded stuff the Canadians were up to too. Maybe I’m looking at it differently, because it wasn’t one of “us” who came forward.
I don’t know, seems like a catch-22… While everyone wants to know when their government is up to no good, they also don’t want anyone to say so when it is.
I might be inclined to agree if this tool had taken his concerns to Congress, or to the US press. That’s what a legitimate whistleblower IMO would have done.
He didn’t. He went to Hong Kong (now part of the PRC) first, then Russia. Both of those nations are known US adversaries.
I can connect dots just as easily as anyone else. And when I do, in this case the picture produced is damned ugly.
Oh don’t get me wrong, how he went about it wasn’t even close to acceptable, you don’t skip all the steps and jump right to send it all to The Guardian. There also was no indication that he attempted to disclose this in a proper manner. I was more posting about the information that came from the disclosure. However unfortunately this info became available, wasn’t it a good thing overall that it did? I would have preferred that it came out in a better way, but who is to say it would have? Both the Canadian and U.S. governments have been known to hide and bury info that could make it look bad to the public. I’m not looking to make excuses for this guy, but even a cursory google search would come up with thousands and thousands of examples where the government hid info from the public.
Pin a nice little medal on his chest while the noose slips over his head.
I worked in the NSA world for 25 years. I am telling you that NSA does NOT do what the general public has been led to believe. It just does not happen. We have it constantly emphasized that we do not collect on US persons.
Snowden is CLUELESS as to how NSA does business. He took the job there with the express intent of proving his thesis, that NSA collects against Americans. He may be smart, but I’m sure all of us have met smart people who when it came to common sense were dumber than a rock with lips.
I find it deeply insulting that my fellow countrymen are so willing to believe that I and my colleagues are listening to every word Americans say. It NO happen.
That’s all I’m gonna say about that.
I’d reply but you already know what I’m going to say… 😉
Encrypted message follows:
*i*s*e*e*w*h*a*t*y*o*u*d*i*d*t*h*e*r*e*
Ya know what? I believe you.
But I have another comment too. All of this blather that telephone metadata is harmless is a gigantic steaming pile of poached horse dung boiled in skunk. I have these two words, “traffic analysis”. It stinketh and none may abide by its smell. A little abuse here goes a really long way.
I want him and Assange to both be swinging from a rope, side by side.
Alternately, I’d not bat an eyelid if our folks sent someone out to find them and ensured that a tragic, fatal accident befell each of them.
Either one works for me.
Hey… me too ! 😉
I can’t remember the movie but this quote from it fits
He’ll be fairly tried, and then fairly hanged.
Wasn’t that from “True Grit?”
I think you’re right.
Or the “Silverado” variation: “You’re going to get a fair trial, followed by a first-class hanging”.
Actually, I am glad that I am surprised. I was thinking this turd would get some sort of a pass on this stuff and be allowed to plead out to probation…if that doesn’t appear to be happening I’m happy that rat bastard has to learn to love borscht and potato vodka.
Since we already know what he did a trial is a moot point. Pay an ex-KGB guy a few thousand to just whack him and be done with the little shit. Or, offer a few thousand more to any of the Russian mobs and have them torture him to death.
Chechen facelift!
My guess is that Edward is no longer a useful idiot for the Soviets and they are not treating him with the love and admiration that he feels he needs. I think Hondo is absolutely right, he doesn’t like it on the steppes no more so he floated a trial balloon to see if he could get a slap on the wrist.
So enjoy Russia you traitor mother fucker. Be careful on the streets of Moscow. They have no issues with shooting those that become liabilities to the current regime.
Guess he is not feeling very comfortable in light of the recent Nemtsov fatal mugging.
How about this: Snowden comes back with a Presidential pardon awaiting his return.
What’s the catch? He has to let a certain fake CPO and failed lawyer fly the ‘plane that’ll take him back to CONUS.
Evil, innit?
Both Snowden and Assange by releasing the stolen files in dribs and drabs are showing that all that they really want is the fame and maybe some fortune.
Scumballs, both of them.
Government’s position should be: “come back now or expect a tap on your shoulder in the next 3 months. Maybe 6. Whatever it takes. Bottom line, you’re coming back alive now or in a bodybag later. Your call.”
He better hurry and make up his mind. After Obama leaves office, the ticker-tape parade celebrating his triumphant return probably won’t happen.
I have to say I am surprised at the comments regarding snowden.
Let me start by saying that I believe the blog author and the majority of the readers here are most certainly patriots and love our country.
Which is why I would ask that you reconsider your positions regarding Snowden.
If you look at what has been disclosed by Snowden it is painfully clear that the nsa and related fed agencies are violating the 4th amendment and numerous federal laws gathering data on us citizens. This has nothing to do with protecting us from terrorists and would make a nazi, a commie or any totalitarian regime very happy. In short the behavior of the nsa is the opposite of what a free country should be doing.
And the feds have charged him under the espionage act from WW1 which makes his defense as a whistle-blower inadmissible, meaning he can’t even mount a legal defense.
So while you may argue against his approach or his leaving the country, the reality is that whistle-blowers are usually f%cked over by the feds.
So I am glad he revealed how far our govt has deviated from our constitutional principals, and sad that 18 months later nothing has changed, but only gotten worse.
The same a$$holes that are recording every phone call and every email you write are now trying to ban m855 223 and give tax refunds to illegal immigrants. It’s insanity made sane, paid for by you the tax-paying patriot.
The feds are not about protecting you, their goal is to enslave you.
If you believe in the constitution, liberty and the principles of this country, then you need to realize the real problems are the power-mad lunatics running our government.