Edward Snowden, Expecting a Child, Will Seek Russian Citizenship

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Source: New York Times

MOSCOW — Edward J. Snowden has said that he never quite feels at home in Moscow. He looks away from traffic while crossing the street to avoid the cameras that Russian drivers often affix to their windshields, he wrote in a memoir published last year. And when going outside, he noted, he changes his appearance, down to the rhythm and pace of his walk.

But on Monday he said he was applying for Russian citizenship.

Mr. Snowden, the former intelligence contractor whose disclosures of mass U.S. surveillance turned him into one of the highest-profile fugitives on the planet, said that he and his American wife were taking the step because they were expecting their first child. He described the move as a practical measure to give his family greater freedom crossing borders.

“After years of separation from our parents, my wife and I have no desire to be separated from our son,” Mr. Snowden wrote on Twitter. “That’s why, in this era of pandemics and closed borders, we’re applying for dual US-Russian citizenship.”



Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/edward-snowden-expecting-a-child-will-seek-russian-citizenship/ar-BB1aCkQ7?li=BBnb7Kz

[Thomas Hurt]

1. Trump should abscond to Russia, then Trump and Snowden....

can do a reality tv show together in Russia....maybe call it...."It's so Unfair!"

[George II]

23. Do it on RT, Dr. Atlas can be the MC.

[smb]

46. Trump Should Pardon Snowden -- Snowden Could Return To The US; Trump Could Move Into His Place nt

[DonCoquixote]

2. eddie go there, stay there

and possibly join the long list of Americans who went to russia and found themselves on the outs. as even Emma Goldman once did

[OhZone]

3. Let the traitor stay there -

I still suspect he helped Russia hack us and helped tRump.

[Voltaire2]

4. he didn't commit treason.

but whatever.

[OhZone]

5. Yeah, regular old plain whistle blowers don't go running to our enemies.

[Voltaire2]

8. regular plain old whistleblowers end up in prison serving huge sentences.

Last edited Mon Nov 2, 2020, 05:11 PM - Edit history (1)

Reality Winner, for example: 63 months.

[greenjar_01]

18. Reality Winner was not sentenced to 63 years in prison...cut the clown shit

She was sentenced to five years and three months. That's SIXTY THREE MONTHS.

Notably, it was Snowden's allies at the Intercept, specifically Glenn Greenwald, who turned her into the authorities, if through ahem ahem deliberate negligence.

[Voltaire2]

24. my mistake 63 months

thanks.

[JonLP24]

32. Greenwald actually had no interest in that story

Because he doesn't believe Russia interfered in the elections.

[Sapient Donkey]

44. I'm not a fan of Snowden (his personality rubs me the wrong way)

But one thing I've noticed that is lacking these conversations about him, is that it's rarely discussed what people think he should have done, or what they would have done in his situation.

Was he right to expose the programs, but should have done differently? If so, what would have been the best route, and are there any examples of that working in the past?

Were the programs he exposed fine and should not have been exposed? I think when those questions are addressed early whenever the topic of snowden comes up, then the conversations tends to be more productive than they usual. Not to mention perhaps it leads to conversations about improving protections and pathways for whistleblowers to prevent Snowden situations.

[Lulu KC]

49. +1 n/t

[jrthin]

10. Bingo. There is no way Russian (Putin) would have allowed

Snowden comfort unless it was to Russia's benefit. Putin is not know for his magnanimity.

[lagomorph777]

14. +1

[JT45242]

6. treason, espionage, disclosure -- the name of the charge doesn't matter

He signed forms that said every document that he divulged would be a SEPARATE FELONY with up to $10,000 and 10 years in prison. Everyone with his clearance signs those and swears to uphold the oath.

He did not go through a whistleblower or other chain of command. He knew what he was doing was wrong.

If he thought he was in the right, he would have stayed and faced the charges.

Whatever you call it -- he should have been facing a trial for about 150,000 years in prison and $1,500,000,000 in fines. Instead he ran to be protected by Putin, our biggest threat.

Snowden is no hero. Vindman is a hero. Everyone who went through the system and was then attacked by Trump was a hero.

Sorry, Snowden is not. He just isn't.

[Voltaire2]

7. Sentence first--verdict afterwards.

The specific charge most certainly does matter.

If we've learned anything over the last four years, respect for legal processes is critical to a functioning democracy.

[Cha]

12. Exactly.. well said. Snowden is no hero.

[roamer65]

19. +1000000

[marie999]

27. Strange thing is, a civilian who wants to work for the NSA has to take a polygraph.

But if you are military and work in the NSA headquarters you don't take a polygraph even with a top secret codeword clearance. At least that was the way it was in the 60s and 70s.

[jmowreader]

29. In the 1980s, military people who were assigned to NSA were polygraphed

When we closed down my unit in Germany several of us were sent to NSA. (I went to Fort Drum, where "Let It Snow" is the fucking division anthem) Everyone who went to NSA had to schedule and pass a polygraph test.

[marie999]

34. I guess there were too many stoners in the 60s and 70s.

[jmowreader]

43. Also fewer spies

The big one was James Hall III, who was recruited while working at the same unit I was in (but at a different time). He was working for the Soviets, and then he decided to sell himself to the East Germans. He got busted after he inadvertently sold the Stasi some of the same information he had previously sold the GRU, and they turned him in.

I don't remember this kid's name, but he worked in the 11th ACR S-2 shop. He apparently got pissed at his unit and decided to retaliate by selling the Stasi a copy of the 11th ACR war plan. He copied it to a laptop then crossed the border and found the first Stasi office he could to sell it for whatever he could get. They made a copy, then called his unit and told them to come get him. IIRC he got twenty years.

[The Polack MSgt]

37. Because of some issues in my past, I had to be polygraphed

For a TS/SCI/SBI, but that wasn't normal. Also, most servicemembers getting high level clearances are lifers, not newbies.

Which means they've already had a lower level clearance for years and their civilian years were already looked at and adjudicated, so there is less need to clear up ambiguities/conflicts than with a new hire.

Unless of course a relative comes to visit the service member after robbing their place of employment and fleeing across state lines to "Visit" you.

That's a sure way to sit in a room wired to a polygraph for a while.

Also, Snowden needs to rot in prison, although I expect him to contract polonium poisoning eventually

[marie999]

40. In the 60s linguists had top secret codeword clearances

after graduating from The Defense Language Institute. My husband and I received our clearances about 14 months after enlisting just before going to NSA headquarters in Ft. Meade MD. We were in the Army Security Agency which worked solely for the NSA. 50 years later, our army records are still flagged. We still can not tell people where we were stationed overseas and what our jobs were. Back then the NSA was super secret. About 95% of linguists left after their first enlistment.

[The Polack MSgt]

48. I was an electronics tech, I repaired the gear analysts and linguists used

I know the newbs at Huachuca, Monterey & Corey TTC had to get a clearance before they could complete training which meant there was always enough folks for mowing and painting around the base.

Lot's of folks on casual status until their investigations were done

But I was a SSgt when I got tapped to work for NSA (AF ESC), and that makes a difference.

I'm just a normie with a SECRET now. Reinvestigations are too expensive to just continue the higher clearance unless it was required.

It is not thank goodness

Nice to chew the fat with ya Marie

[marie999]

51. After basic training we never pulled extra duty.

Starting in Monterey we did not need a clearance so we started school right away. School was 6 hours a day 5 days a week for 47 weeks. After we graduated we received our clearance. After that it was training at NSA headquarters for 3 months so we did not start working at our MOS until we had been in the service for 18 months. Then overseas where we worked on rotating 8 hour shifts of 6 days on and 2 days off for 18 months. Then back to NSA headquarters for 12 months.

[smb]

47. A Polygraph? Do They Cross-Check Against Tea Leaves And Goat Entrails?

Polygraphs are junk science. For instance, you could hook a sociopath like Cheato up to a polygraph and it wouldn't detect a single one of his constant steam of lies.

[JonLP24]

30. Does anyone remember what it was like?

Bush-Cheney cracked down on whistleblowers. He tried to take it to the official channels and he saw what happened to others.

[ucrdem]

36. Oh baloney. He pulled his stunt on Obama-Biden, not Bushler-Cheney.

He's a winger and so is his family. And the Russia-China business (don't forget he forked over inconvenient intel to Xi when he was over here negotiating with Barack in Palm Springs) stinks. He's a stooge.

[HermitageHermit]

31. Snowden knew that warrants were out on him

And that's why he fled. He didn't want to serve 150,000 years and didn't have $1.5 Billion.

But the Russians weren't expecting him I don't think, otherwise they wouldn't have confined him to the airport terminal for months.


If he committed collusion with Putin, it would seem it was after the fact.

[OhZone]

15. Let me put it to youse like this -

Even if he thought he was doing the right thing at the time -

You KNOW Putin's for admission was almost definitely something really bad for us.

I still suspect he helped Russia hack us, since he went to Russia just a couple of years before 2016.

[iluvtennis]

16. + 1. nt

[irisblue]

9. Ok. Good luck.

[cstanleytech]

11. Not surprised. nt

[Happy Hoosier]

13. So the Dude worried about privacy....

Wants citizenship in which the concept is more or less irrelevant.

Traitor.

[greenjar_01]

17. Oh, well

[AZ8theist]

20. Poor baby...

"Thoughts and Prayers"!!!

[marble falls]

21. Like we didn't see this one coming.

[Cryptoad]

22. Good Place for the Traitor,,,,,,,

[ancianita]

25. The U.S. doesn't allow dual citizenship with Russia and vice versa.

Maybe the baby can qualify, but it's doubtful about the parents.

The U.S. does allow dual citizenship with Australia, the United Kingdom, Dominica, Cyprus, Malta, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, Denmark.

Far more countries allow their citizens to seek dual citizenship with the U.S.
But Russia's not on either of those lists.

[Steelrolled]

26. That was my first thought

His child might have US citizenship and can travel back to the US - maybe his dad's car is still parked on the street somewhere. Mailbox will be full of credit card applications.

[Nasruddin]

28. A first

I've heard of cryptic pregnancy but is this the first cryptographic pregnancy?

[JonLP24]

33. Aside from Snowden we need to repeal the espionage act

It is a tool that is used against national security whistleblowers.

[paleotn]

35. Under no circumstances.

[Sapient Donkey]

45. If repealed, would you like to see it replaced with something else?

Something that is more narrowly defined and built with protections for whistle blowers, or do you think the entire concept should be done away with? Looking at the cases of people in prosecuted for violating it, there are various spies who sold or gave information to foreign powers. I'm going to guess the majority of people do not want to make it so those acts do not go unpunished. How do those acts fit into a possible repeal?

[ucrdem]

38. Odd that Eddie pops up in the news the day before Biden flattens his brother stooge Trump

or maybe not so odd . . .

[paleotn]

39. Well, isn't that precious....

Enjoy the "gas station" with shitty weather, Ed. You deserve it. Well, you actually deserve far worse. In time, Edward, in time.

[FakeNoose]

41. Oooh ... Pocahontas said it best

Buh Bye stooge

[orangecrush]

42. Stay there and never come back

And hope Putin doesn't start to see you as a liability.,

you traitorous pos.

[betsuni]

50. Well, that's ironic.