Snowden's Leaks and Support for Ron Paul
During the height of the War on Terror and the Bush Doctrine, US congress and senate had an overwhelming consensus on passing the Patriot Act: legislation that gives the government authority to spy on their citizens and regulate financial transactions. With this kind of precedent, I don't think anyone should even be surprised with the information leaked by Edward Snowden.
A few weeks ago, I remember debating about my dad about whether Snowden was a hero or a traitor. My father, being the staunch neoconservative republican that he is, has always been a supporter of a police state and of US interventionist foreign policy. That being said, he defends the position that what Snowden did is a threat to not just the US but international security as a whole.
Also, it's obvious that he finds my undying support for Ron Paul as a joke. I remember making a bet with him during the 2012 primaries (see Ron Paul Wins Nevada). It's just nice to point out the stark difference between two generations. It's obvious that a great deal of Ron Paul's supporters all over the world are very young (see also Why is Ron Paul Attracting Young Voters?).
And the funny thing about this whole debate: Snowden is a Ron Paul supporter (source). Libertarians and even non-libertarian supporters of Ron Paul tend to have a consistent consensus against an Orwellian police state. And now, the NSA is probably watching all Ron Paul supporters closely, especially contractors and employees that work for their government.
One idea is that even if you put a CCTV inside every household to prevent domestic abuse, not only did you deprive people of their privacy and liberty, this won't even necessarily put a stop to domestic abuse. The same principle applies to surveillance in communication devices and internet activity. Even if you had a full authoritarian police state, 100% safety and security will never be achieved and, in fact, history suggests safety and security will only diminish when policies are authoritarian in nature.
You give up justice the moment you allow the government to be above the law. That's plain and simple. When you think of security and safety, maybe the US should look into their foreign policy. Just think about the weapons they're sending to Syria right now or the foreign aid they give to dictators (see also History, Dictators, and Blowback).
People like Snowden make me proud to be a Ron Paul supporter. In a statement about Snowden, Ron Paul says:
A few weeks ago, I remember debating about my dad about whether Snowden was a hero or a traitor. My father, being the staunch neoconservative republican that he is, has always been a supporter of a police state and of US interventionist foreign policy. That being said, he defends the position that what Snowden did is a threat to not just the US but international security as a whole.
Also, it's obvious that he finds my undying support for Ron Paul as a joke. I remember making a bet with him during the 2012 primaries (see Ron Paul Wins Nevada). It's just nice to point out the stark difference between two generations. It's obvious that a great deal of Ron Paul's supporters all over the world are very young (see also Why is Ron Paul Attracting Young Voters?).
And the funny thing about this whole debate: Snowden is a Ron Paul supporter (source). Libertarians and even non-libertarian supporters of Ron Paul tend to have a consistent consensus against an Orwellian police state. And now, the NSA is probably watching all Ron Paul supporters closely, especially contractors and employees that work for their government.
One idea is that even if you put a CCTV inside every household to prevent domestic abuse, not only did you deprive people of their privacy and liberty, this won't even necessarily put a stop to domestic abuse. The same principle applies to surveillance in communication devices and internet activity. Even if you had a full authoritarian police state, 100% safety and security will never be achieved and, in fact, history suggests safety and security will only diminish when policies are authoritarian in nature.
You give up justice the moment you allow the government to be above the law. That's plain and simple. When you think of security and safety, maybe the US should look into their foreign policy. Just think about the weapons they're sending to Syria right now or the foreign aid they give to dictators (see also History, Dictators, and Blowback).
People like Snowden make me proud to be a Ron Paul supporter. In a statement about Snowden, Ron Paul says:
"My understanding is that espionage means giving secret or classified information to the enemy. Since Snowden shared information with the American people, his indictment for espionage could reveal (or confirm) that the US Government views you and me as the enemy."
“The government does not need to know more about what we are doing. We need to know more about what the government is doing. We should be thankful for individuals like Edward Snowden and Glenn Greenwald who see injustice being carried out by their own government and speak out, despite the risk. They have done a great service to the American people by exposing the truth about what our government is doing in secret.”And now, the US government has pressured countries into rejecting Snowden's request for asylum. I'm monitoring hashtag #Snowden for updates. Feel free to follow me on Twitter (@harryinitiative) for updates and other random things.
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