See da box on their charter

That's a potential problem, but not one that Snowden can solve.

We're a government of laws, not of men. Snowden doesn't know better than everyone else in positions of responsibility what's best for the country when it comes to NSA activities.

If it really were the case that Snowden were exposing an out-of-control NSA that was something out of 1984, and his actions would have ended the practices, then Ya! Snowden! (But he still should have stuck around, or remained hidden, rather than running to Hong Kong and elsewhere.)

But, so far, it doesn't seem that way to me. The courts have (up until the last week or so at least) have not said that the activities are illegal. The Congress has not changed the laws in any meaningful way. The Administration and the independent review board have not said that the NSA has been overstepping its bounds.

(I suspect any changes to the NSA's oversight will be minor - far less than the changes to the CIA's activities as a result of the Church Commission.)

Consider the list here - http://en.wikipedia....of_whistleblowers I don't think Snowden fits there, myself. YMMV.

Bottom line: Congress needs to change the law if the country wants the NSA to do less.

We'll see how all this turns out.

Merry Christmas!

Cheers,
Scott.

Post #384,616 by drook 12/25/13 12:23:48 PM Reply	See da box on their charter If they're acting within their charter, they're not violating a rule. How do you blow the whistle when the charter is overly broad, and being interpreted as aggressively as possible? -- Drew
Post #384,618 by Another Scott 12/25/13 1:28:04 PM Reply	If they're within their charter, then it's not whistleblowin That's a potential problem, but not one that Snowden can solve. We're a government of laws, not of men. Snowden doesn't know better than everyone else in positions of responsibility what's best for the country when it comes to NSA activities. If it really were the case that Snowden were exposing an out-of-control NSA that was something out of 1984, and his actions would have ended the practices, then Ya! Snowden! (But he still should have stuck around, or remained hidden, rather than running to Hong Kong and elsewhere.) But, so far, it doesn't seem that way to me. The courts have (up until the last week or so at least) have not said that the activities are illegal. The Congress has not changed the laws in any meaningful way. The Administration and the independent review board have not said that the NSA has been overstepping its bounds. (I suspect any changes to the NSA's oversight will be minor - far less than the changes to the CIA's activities as a result of the Church Commission.) Consider the list here - http://en.wikipedia....of_whistleblowers I don't think Snowden fits there, myself. YMMV. Bottom line: Congress needs to change the law if the country wants the NSA to do less. We'll see how all this turns out. Merry Christmas! Cheers, Scott.
Post #384,622 by jake123 12/25/13 4:09:49 PM Reply	I very much doubt his ability to remain hidden in North America. There are cameras everywhere here. If they really wanted to find him, they would. I find it interesting that the US chose Russia as his location when they revoked his passport.
Post #384,625 by Ashton 12/25/13 5:02:19 PM Reply	Heh.. most astute, that last! (wheels-within-wheels churn..)

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