Edward Snowden is a controversial topic to discuss. Some consider him a patriot, while others deem him a traitor. To properly make that choice, one must know the complete backstory and all of the facts. Snowden leaked government secrets to the public. In my opinion, Snowden is not a traitor, I believe we have the right to know that the government is spying on us. On the 21st of June in 1983, Edward Joseph Snowden was born to Lonnie and Elizabeth Snowden. His father, Lonnie, was an officer in the US coastguard so he spent his early childhood in Elizabeth City, North Carolina until his family moved to Maryland. Snowden’s education began to wither during his mid-teens when he got ill and missed about four or five months of class. He did not graduate from high school, and at age 16, started taking classes at …show more content…
It was there that he uncovered how “all-consuming” the NSA was when it came to surveillance. All the protocols that were in place to limit the NSA’s power had failed. In 2012, he left for Hawaii, a whistleblower-in-waiting. Although, it was not until the summer of 2013 that everyone woke up to the ugly truth. Post 9/11, the American government had beefed up their security without compromise but what was being developed and executed in the name of counter-intelligence, was in violation of basic civil rights of her citizens (Sen). He wanted the public to know what was going on, so he released the information through the media. Once the news went live, Snowden was charged with theft of government property and violating the Espionage Act for his unauthorized release of top secret information. A documentary in 2014 called “Citizenfour” captures the event in real time as the story unfolds. It follows those involved and details the event. After the release, he fled to Russia where he was granted temporary asylum after he became stranded there when the US revoked his
Edward Snowden does not deserve to be incarcerated, he is a national patriot. The government has time and time again expressed their lack of releasing information to the American Public. For better or for worse, compartmentalizing critical information violates the citizens constitutional right to unequivocal and undivided freedom of essentially witnessing fundamental indications proposing government ¨under the table¨ operations. In my personal opinion Edward Snowden, put his career and whole conventional day-to-day life on the line to open up our eyes to the reality of existential government ordinances foreign and domestic. To potentially jeopardize your entire life and stable career, exhibits a certain magnitude of commitment to your country. In conclusion no matter which end of the
After September 11th, Americans looked to the government for protection and reassurance. However, they did not expect to find out thirteen years later that the government did this by using technology to spy on Americans, as well as other countries. George W. Bush began the policy shortly after the terrorist attack and Barack Obama continued it. There have been many confrontations over the years about the extent of the N.S.A.’s spying; however, the most recent whistle-blower, Edward Snowden, leaked information that caused much upset throughout America (EFF). It has also brought many people to question: is he a hero or a traitor?
Edward Snowden is considered by many to be a criminal, but there are others who firmly believe that Edward Snowden is a patriot, and rightfully so Edward Snowden is a hero to the American people and many abroad. The United States government has the responsibility to serve, protect and aid the American people, but sometimes the government and some of its classified documents every now and then get published and criticized. Edward Snowden had worked for multiple government agencies such as the CIA, NSA and prior to that an American contractor as a computer professional, and during his tenure at the NSA he had realized the grotesque and unprofessional ethics and violations of privacy against the American people, and so many innocent citizens
Edward Snowden. This is a name that will be in the history books for ages. He will be branded a traitor or a whistleblower depending on where you look. Many Americans feel that Edward Snowden is a traitor who sold the United States’ secrets aiming to harm the nation. Others believe that he was simply a citizen of the United States who exercised his right to expose the government for their unconstitutional actions. It is important to not only know the two sides to the argument of friend or foe, but to also know the facts as well. My goal in this paper is to present the facts without bias and to adequately portray the two sides of the argument.
Another issue in this case is the “theft” that Snowden partook in. Theft is the “act of stealing; the wrongful taking and carrying away of the personal goods or property of another; larceny” ("Theft | Define Theft at Dictionary.com." xx). This aspect of the case is important because Snowden’s actions reject the cultural norms of what is expected of individuals in respect to the term. These expectations within our culture is for individuals to not commit acts of theft.
Ever since the American public was made aware of the United States government’s surveillance policies, it has been a hotly debated issue across the nation. In 2013, it was revealed that the NSA had, for some time, been collecting data on American citizens, in terms of everything from their Internet history to their phone records. When the story broke, it was a huge talking point, not only across the country, but also throughout the world. The man who introduced Americans to this idea was Edward Snowden.
4). Edward Snowden to many is considered a whistle blower which is a person who informs people of organization or people doing illicit acts. One of the many results that Edwards Snowden acts caused some country’s to lose trust in the United States and are cautious of the United States spying on them.
Edward Snowdeb is being called a traitor for bringing secret government programs of them spying on the American people and actively breaking the American people’s rights. Edward Snowden should be called an American hero because he brought to light government secret programs, acted courageously, and caused the government to realize they cant do whatever they want.
The person who revealed the NSA spying scandal was Edward Snowden. Snowden was born in North Carolina and is 31 years old. Also, he is a high school dropout, has a GED, and spent a few months in army training. He is a former NSA contractor, but left and leaked this data, and is now considered a “whistleblower”2. In June 2013, he told the world what he had found while working for the NSA. He revealed that they were looking at people’s data in foreign countries and around the U.S. Amid all this, Edward Snowden is currently on the FBI’s most wanted list for doing this and he is hiding in Russia at the moment. Snowden also revealed what
Critics of Edward Snowden label him a traitor and a coward. They condemn him for irreparably harming government security operations and setting of a worldwide chain of events that weakened the American position on the world stage. While America now has blight on its records due to the leaks, the topic that should be addressed is should the whistle-blower, the man who uncovered and exposed the questionable and wrong activities, be blamed or should those who allowed the illegal and immoral activities be held accountable for what they started. Edward Snowden had the justification and conviction to do the correct thing and present the incriminating evidence straight to the public. When one takes in consideration everything that Snowden has lost because of his decision, there was little gain for him to make the immoral activities public. Snowden’s crime is breaching the trust of his government contract to expose egregious monitoring by the government on the American public. In an interview conducted by the Washington Post, Snowden speaks out about his goal in releasing the files: “All I wanted was for the public to be able to have a say in how they are governed,”
Privacy has endured throughout human history as the pillar upon which our authentic nature rests. Yet, in an age darkened by the looming shadow of terrorism, another force threatens to dominate the skyline and obscure the light of liberty behind promises of safety and security: government surveillance. As an employee of the NSA, Edward Snowden broke his vow of secrecy to inform the public of our government’s furtive surveillance acts, but does this render him traitorous? To answer this, we must first ask ourselves, traitorous to whom? When the very institution established to protect our fundamental liberties intrudes on our privacy from behind a veil of secrecy, should such informed individuals resign from judicious autonomy and
The fact Snowden chose to leak only information he and his media connections felt would not be detrimental to the public or government, yet would provide enough information that the public as to start an open debate on “big brother” oversight and privacy laws, shows that Snowden was in good faith and conscious leaking information for good and not for personal gains.
“You can't have 100% security and then also have 100% privacy and zero inconvenience. Society had to make choices” said President Obama. It has become a given in society that it is on the government’s agenda to procure its nation’s safety in exchange of the privacy or freedom of the people. Edward Snowden, a paladin of social justice, has now come to light with outstanding facts as for what specifically it is that the National Security Agency (NSA) is able and willing to do for the country’s sake. Snowden, a 29-year-old NSA ex-employee, worked from Hawaii on his computer support for the recollection of data in bulk from the whole nation . Under the name of Verax, which means truth teller in Latin, he
Snowden, a popular name in cyber world. He is an American computer professional and formerly Central Intelligence Agency employee and contractor for US government. In 2013, without any authorization, he copied and disclosed classified information from the National Security Agency. Then after stories based on the material published, he came to an attention. Afterwards he was being called a hero, a whistleblower and a traitor. His disclosed information have driven arguments on mass surveillance and government confidentiality.
Edward Snowden is a United States citizen and former employee of the National Security Agency (NSA). Snowden leaked information about the NSA to the media in 2013 and is now in Russia where he was recently granted three years of asylum. The NSA uses cryptology and others forms of information gathering to enable various networks to make advantageous decisions for the Nation and our allies under all circumstances. The NSA operates undetected by civilians, and uses global monitoring so broadly defined that it has allowed for unscrupulous behavior that was witnessed by contracted employee, Edward Snowden. Snowden believed that as the public gained knowledge of the illegal intelligence gathering by the government of domestic citizens, and abroad, he would gain protection from the public. Snowden did receive protection from people including powerful lawyers, journalists, and privacy advocates. Analysis of the Edward Snowden case