OK, so now on to Snowden 2.0

[1-Old-Man]

This does not end with Mr. Snowden forever free in an airport or train depot somewhere. He's got to go somewhere and there are few options. Sooner or later he has to end either back home or in some country strong enough to withstand such pressure as our Government wishes to apply to get him back. Only two or three countries fit that description, and none of them will have anything to do with him. So its just a matter of time before he ends up back here.

Then what? Well, pretty obviously he gets arrested. But here the problems begin. This guy isn't in the Army, so he can't be tossed into a military hell-hole like Bradley Manning, he's got to go to some Federal holding facility. And then he has to go Court, not a Court-Martial, with Lawyers and Prosecutors and a Jury and Judge and all of that. This guy has gained enough notoriety not to go down a long dark hall to disappear into a (Kangaroo) Secret Court and of course he will have to be charged with something.

How much secrecy will the public allow for this trial? Will the Jurors be allowed to see all of the evidence? If there is a secret law will we be shown which part(s) of it he is charged with being in violation of? Is there any chance of public access to what will follow?

I think we are not too far from finding out just what kind of country we have built for ourselves.

[NYC_SKP]

1. We could probably make him disappear on a moment's notice. We may already have.

I have no idea what the next chapter will look like, but all indications are that nobody knows with certainty where he is right now and any reports to the contrary are not, IMHO, reliable.

[1-Old-Man]

2. I would think that "making him disappear" would be the worst possible thing we could do

I say that because if he simply disappears it will be assumed that the US took and disposed of him. If he is killed it will be assumed our Government did it; its somewhat reminiscent of the God Father, if lightening strikes him we will assume the US Government did it. And that would be the end of the US myths like 'Land of the Free", and 'liberty and justice for all', or the notion of a citizen having Rights. So I don't see that as how it is going to go. I'm pretty convinced this has to end in a US Court, but I sure could be wrong. In any event I still think this is going to lead to be a defining moment in seeing just what sort of Government we have.