Let's sentence Edward Snowden to....Russia!

[Ian]

And what experience is that?

Could it be that you haven't heard much about the rest of the story in the news because the US is desperate to downplay just how badly it has been damaged?

[pErvinalia]

I see a lot of things from my couch in Australia..

[Svartalf]

It's all a ruse. He's working for the KGB now..

and he'll be back with soviet intel as a makeup present.

[Clinton Huxley]

And I'm comparing stealing valuables and spray painting walls to...

Hmm.... maybe in order to fully appreciate the analogy you have to multiply everything by a few orders of magnitude...

In your analogy, what business is the homeowner in? What does he actually do for a living? You conveniently left out that part.

Homeowner? Maybe a mafia don or something.....or Big Brothers Even Bigger Brother.

[JimC]

Ian, it is quite understandable in your situation and job that you would be seriously pissed at a guy doing what Snowden did. And perhaps there was some real and serious damage to your intelligence apparatus, as you hint...

However, you discount by far too much the value of this farrago of deception and intrigue being exposed to scrutiny. That has real value to the world community, and folk in the US as well...

[mistermack]

That's HIS point. That's not my point. I like to look at context. And the context of this, I kid you not, is like saying I killed your whole family and got away with it but I did tell a reporter friend of mine that I was pretty sure your Dad was making some shady business deals... and then people went on saying I did a good thing. If you think I'm exaggerating, just keep an eye on the news for a good while.

America has been killing whole families for years. You seem to be able to completely remove unpleasant facts from your mind and get on with your job. Most Germans managed the same trick in the last war. They sort of knew, but preferred not to think about it.
Obviously, that will help you in what you do, but it doesn't help your cause, when you try to argue about right and wrong.

[Ian]

JimC - I don't discount it as much as you think. Plenty of it warrants scrutiny.

But consider it possible that the public only learned of that stuff so he could get away with all the rest. He needed an insurance policy. And consider that the controversial stuff you've heard about and the value that stuff might've had may be outweighed a thousand fold by all the other stuff, most of which would probably not seem controversial at all.

[Ian]

Mistermack - I fine you one Godwin for an ignorant opinion coupled with a Nazi reference.

[mistermack]

Mistermack - I fine you one Godwin for an ignorant opinion coupled with a Nazi reference.

I like Godwins. The Nazis are alive and well, and with us still.

You are commendably loyal to the party, and those who did George Bush's killing were just following orders. Nothing much has changed.

Except Obama. He has managed to put some sort of a brake on it. But that's not going to last.
But that doesn't mean that all the shit should remain secret. Put it out there in the open, and even you might learn something.
Eventually.

[Ian]

Perhaps, if exposed to new information, you may prove capable of learning some things. But I doubt it.

[mistermack]

The more information people have, the better are their decisions.

That's why governments like to keep secrets. Keep the plebs in the dark, believing what WE want them to believe. It's for their own good, you know.

[Ian]

I refer you to my previous post.

[mistermack]

I refer you to my previous post.

Well, it's not much, but if it's all you've got, then I don't blame you for using it twice.

[Ian]

That's all you get. When people post a rational thought, they get more from me.

[mistermack]

That's all you get. When people post a rational thought, they get more from me.

You show a remarkable ability to switch off the thinking process, when unwholesome facts are about.
That's one way of dealing with it. Another way is to face facts head on, and make the argument that the end justifies the means.
Which may or may not be true. I'm sure that Stalin thought it was true. To start with, anyway.
But the end DOES justify the means in some cases. And in others, it doesn't.