In 2012, Snowden then started to work for Booz Allen Hamilton. When he started working for him, he starts to observe and discovered information that was very disturbing. He found out that the government was spying on people through a number of programs such as PRISM. There he began to collect documents from a file or dossier containing information on the NSA’s surveillance practices. After realizing that one team had a problem with their work he stopped his mission, and tried to get the document. Instead, he downloaded all the files he could get on his drive while everyone was busy and distracted by finding a solution to their problem. His colleagues in the next room were distracted because they successfully disrupted Iran’s nuclear reactors …show more content…
The drive fell on the floor and he was almost caught, but Patrick Haynes step over it since was aware of what Edward was doing. After that happened, they started to communicate via sign language before he leaves so that he could avoid their conversation being recorded. The scene was captioned as follows - Snowden: "I might not see you again." Haynes: "You 'gonna leave me here...with Captain America? Thanks a lot." Snowden: "NASA may come after you." Haynes: "I don't know what you're talking about. [walks away.]" I should note that my profession is that of an American Sign Language interpreter. From my observation, they are signing pretty much correctly, if not artfully. The only difference is that what the movie translates as "I don't know what you're talking about" would probably be more accurately stated as, "I don't understand your comment." And there really isn't a sign used for "gonna'." Hayes just says, "you're leaving me here with him? Captain America!". After doing this he hides the drive in one of the squares of the Rubik’s cube. He then made his way out of the organization. At the gate, he tosses …show more content…
After doing that, he walked out of the organization with pride. In the end Edward’s documents were published by The Guardian. These documents got sent to news outlets all around the world. The reports on the NSA scandal become global news. He was eventually forced to leave the country and say goodbye to his girlfriend Lindsay. Snowden is now seen as either a traitor or a hero by many. As a result of what snowden did, some persons see his actions as being unethical because of the fact that he may have violated a secrecy agreement but it can also show that the law was unjust and unconstitutional. In addition, the Attorney General of the United States, Eric Holder, also did not find Edward’s rationale to be very convincing. He stated, “He broke the law. He caused harm to our national security and I think that he has to be held accountable for his actions.” Snowden’s actions also had an effect on the media. The editorial board of The New York Times stated that, “He may have committed a crime…but he has done his country a great service.” Within that same newspaper Ed Morrissey argued that he was not a hero but instead he is a criminal because he chose to break the law by leaking private information about the behavours of these organization publically rather than reporting it to legal networks. Snowden chose to break the According to Morrissey, Snowden unethical behavior should result in him being
Edward Snowden is a whistleblower from the 21st century. Snowden was a man who had outstanding IT skills and eventually landed a job at the NSA. He gained access to numerous files that showed the crimes the NSA was committing against its own people and against other countries as well. They were spying on people’s privacy and claimed that it was for the national security that would benefit all people. Snowden said that he could not let this
Edward Snowden took advantage of his access the government’s vast electronic surveillance operations. Snowden had access to more sensitive information than Manning but, in his dealings so far with the Washington Post and The Guardian, he has made a key point of not releasing all the documents he had which is saving him from harsher punishment. ("What Bradley Manning Leaked.”) Many of the documents that Edward Snowden had exposed were related to our military capabilities, operations, tactics, techniques and procedures. Even a confidential Pentagon report written by military intelligence officials claims that Edward Snowden's leaks had put U.S. soldiers at serious risk and encouraged terrorists to change their strategies. ("Snowden Leaks Could Cost Military Billions: Pentagon.") However, in the middle of 2014, the NSA's director, U.S. Navy Admiral Michael S. Rogers, said that while some terrorist groups had changed their communications to avoid surveillance techniques revealed by Snowden, the damage done was not significant enough to claim it as an immediate threat or danger. Still, in February 2015, “the NSA director said that Snowden's disclosures created "blind spots" in the NSA's surveillance by revealing U.S. strategies to monitor terrorism”.( "What NSA Director Mike Rogers Doesn't
“The Most Wanted Man in the World”, by James Bamford speaks of an interview with a whistle-blower named Edward Snowden and what the process was for him to be considered the “most wanted man in the world”. James Bamford wanted to speak with Edward for some time in order to get an insight on what actually happen with him getting his hands on illegal files that he should have not obtained. During the interview with Edward, Bamford noticed small details about Edward and what type of person he was. Edward Snowden is a strong believer in the Constitution as he believes the government is listening in on people’s conversations without anyone’s consent or knowledge. In Edward Snowden words he states,” And if we’re analyzing all traffic flows, that
The law, as fearful and absolute as it may be, is not always just. It is actually quite admirable that he knowingly broke a serious law that not many dare to commit to do what he truly felt was the right thing to do. According to Edward Snowden himself, “There were people throughout the NSA that I worked with that I had private conversations with—and I’ve had conversations since in other federal agencies—who had the same concerns I did, but they were afraid to take action because they knew what would happen.” (Nation) To many Americans, this make Snowden a hero. It is extremely courageous to sacrifice and risk everything you have to fight for and protect the rights of your fellow Americans by standing up against the federal government knowing full well of the consequences of his action. He did not betray the country, but instead, he fought to preserve the true form of liberty and freedom at its core in which our country have adopted and built itself
The reason Edward Snowden has left his amazing life behind is not because he was forced to but it was because he felt a sense of duty to, and he did not want to be part of the government, specifically the NSA for what they were doing. Edward Snowden believed what the NSA did was wrong and he did not want to be part of an organization as this. In this interview of Edward Snowden, he was asked multiple question and one of the most important
After reading the article, "Why Edward Snowden is a Hero," by John Cassidy, it brings a new
Edward Snowden was a man who worked for the NSA and exposed all of the information that the NSA was accessing from U.S. citizens and those people around the world. Through his actions Snowden did break the law, “He has been charged with theft of government property, unauthorized communication of national defense information and willful communication of classified communications intelligence” (BBC News). Even though Snowden knew he would be charged for his actions, he still wanted to do the right thing and expose to the people what the NSA was doing. Snowden was looking at the information that was being collected and realized it was not necessary to keep Americans safe. Instead, collecting this information was abruptly digging into their lives and going against their rights as human beings. When this information was exposed, the citizens wanted the government and the NSA to ultimately change what exactly they were accessing and how they were accessing it. This event that Snowden
Edward Snowden “is the world’s most famous spy, whistleblower, and fugitive, responsible for the biggest intelligence breach in recent US History” (MacAskill 2013). Snowden leaked documents to journalist that exposed the partners of the United States, it’s spy agencies, and domestic surveillance of citizens out of the country. He leaked the information because he believed the public people should be the voice on whether or not the policies were moral or immoral. Just like Henry Thoreau, Snowden believed that the people should do what they believe is right for themselves and not follow the orders of the government if they believe the laws and policies are unjust.
Edward Snowden is an infrastructure analysis for the NSA. Snowden disclosed classified information to the general public and confidential government mass surveillance programs to the press. He was announced as the NSA’s public whistleblower. His views for these actions are based upon the underlining truths of both Burke and Mill’s theories. He believed that giving the minorities a voice in what their superiors are doing is the right thing to do. As Snowden stated in his interview “The public is owed an explanation of the motivations behind the people who make these disclosures that are outside of the democratic power.” (Kevin M. Gallagher) It is with his great power that they had to make a decision. Knowing he did not like the fact that the public does not know what he is capable of doing, does he tell everyone openly and possibly put himself at risk? Or does he keep everything still to himself and not worry about the following consequences or what could happen to him.
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,”
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.
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.
Furthermore, Edward Snowden had done more than disclose the governments illegals acts, but also inform the world about programs and secret government agendas about how much freedom and privacy is being taken away in the name of security. Samuel Adams also once said, “The truth is, all might be free if they valued freedom, and defended it as they ought.” In this sense, Edward Snowden had valued freedom more so over anything against it, and had acted as he did fighting and defending his individual freedom. Edward Snowden had also fought for the truth, and not only exposed the government, but also to the American people what was happening to their rights and freedoms. The many stories and historical freedom fighters had even put their lives on the line for truth and liberty, and Edward Snowden had also done the same and succeeding in continuing the fight for freedom. Many who also who perceive Edward Snowden as a hero inspire them to do the same as he had, and exposing the government of their false truths and secrecy.
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
The ethical issues involving Edward Snowden’s case encompass key issues of morality. Snowden’s actions are to be interpreted as right or wrong based on the circumstances and personal reasoning. The preceding interpretation is this case in every ethical quandary. Once these issues are assimilated to the affected parties we begin to understand the larger picture of morality and ethical reasoning in Snowden’s case.