Edward Snowden: heel or hero?

[Coito ergo sum]

I find it odd that he did not say === "Snowden is not in Russia." Or, some words to the effect that he's not present there. Instead he said "He did not cross the Russian border." Sounds like a purposeful word choice.

I bet he's being held by the Russian government, but is not considered to have crossed into Russia under immigration law.

Or, he took a continuing flight without ever leaving the transit area of the airport, thus never crossing the nominal "border".

Quite possible. Where would he go? Any good candidates? Hong Kong flight to China -- gets on a flight to where? Iran? I don't think he'd want to go there.

What about Belarus? No extradition treaty with the US and easy to get to from Russia... Macedonia? What about Serbia? They can't like us much. They tend to have good relations with Russia, and they probably wouldn't care if the US was pissed at them...

What countries would he want to go to that would be easier to get to by connecting in Russia...

With all this going on, though, it is pretty darn awesome that Obama repaired our image around the world.....

[Coito ergo sum]

I can see a legitimate government spying on other countries, but not on its own citizens. And if you're going to spy on other countries, at least don't complain when they do the same to you!

Spying isn't "legitimate" -- it was done throughout the cold war, but when your spy was captured he was prosecuted or killed. Like, Gary Powers flying a U2 over Russia - such a scandal back then -- arrested -- put on trial for espionage -- US had violated soviet air space by flying over it -- it was a big deal.

Now, folks are like "whaddya mean we need permission to fly drones over other countries? Drone warfare is the private domain of a President -- he can bomb anybody he wants from the air, can't he?"

[Tero]

So you wanted Bin Laden to get away?

[Coito ergo sum]

So you wanted Bin Laden to get away?

Errr... wut?

No, of course not.

[Coito ergo sum]

Putin says Snowden at Russian airport, signals no extradition

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/ ... VE20130625

[Robert_S]

Putin says Snowden at Russian airport, signals no extradition

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/ ... VE20130625

Putin says "The sooner he chooses his final destination, the better it would be for us and for himself."

Final?

[klr]

Is this gonna be like that Tom Hanks movie then?

[JimC]

Cuba would be a good move.

He could go and moon the guards at Gitmo...

[laklak]

Cuba would be a good move.

He could go and moon the guards at Gitmo...

Lol!

Yeah, till Raúl sells him to the CIA in return for the Havana McDonald's franchise.

[Audley Strange]

I heard this song once about a country which at the end said "home of the brave and land of the free" He should go there, that place sounds great, if you ignore the whole war hymn part.

[charlou]

Human beings are ridiculous.

[Ian]

I heard this song once about a country which at the end said "home of the brave and land of the free" He should go there, that place sounds great, if you ignore the whole war hymn part.

Wasn't that song based on the war where the British invaded the US, burnt down the capital, and lost anyway?

[Audley Strange]

I heard this song once about a country which at the end said "home of the brave and land of the free" He should go there, that place sounds great, if you ignore the whole war hymn part.

Wasn't that song based on the war where the British invaded the US, burnt down the capital, and lost anyway?

What can I say? They were all really really drunk.

[Coito ergo sum]

Cuba would be a good move.

He could go and moon the guards at Gitmo...

Yes, and we all know Cuba is a veritable Garden of Eden. He would get the best health care in the world, for free, and he would live in the socialist utopia that the benevolent Castros created.

[Coito ergo sum]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/25/politics/nsa-leak

Putin says Snowden is a free man at the airport in Moscow.

LOL -- Snowden, who doesn't have a valid passport anymore, is a free man at the airport. Where can he go? He could only board a plane if the Russian government said it was o.k.

So, there he is. Russia says, there he is, and he can go where he wants, but he can't go where he wants because he doesn't have travel documents. I bet they got his credit cards canceled, so he probably has limited funds, although he must have planned for that.

What's he do? What is Russia going to ask for? They obviously can hand him over whenever they like -- what's the hold-up?