• ristoril_zip@lemmy.zip
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    9 months ago

    I think what Snowden did was fundamentally good.

    My only problem is that he could have chosen to violate the bad law in the way King and others have violated bad laws in an effort to shed light on their badness: break the bad law in the open where everyone can see, then get arrested, then put the bad law and the system behind it on trial.

    By running away, he’s given the people who are doing bad things a line of attack against him. It’s bullshit, and doesn’t change the fact that widespread warrantless surveillance is wrong. But some people will take the attacks against Snowden seriously. If he had turned himself in and gone to trial, that line of attack would be gone.

    • Steve@communick.news
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      9 months ago

      If being arrested and going to trial was his big concern, he would have taken that over running. We’re talking about the NSA and CIA here. He was afraid of being suicided in jail before ever getting to a trial.

      Honestly I’m a little surprised he’s still alive. Russia wasn’t his plan, but it may have been the best place for him to end up.

      • The Doctor@beehaw.org
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        9 months ago

        There was a betting pool back home on how long he was going to stay alive. First time I’ve seen everyone in a pool lose.