So unless you have been living in a cave somewhere in the Antarctic for the past few weeks, you know all about the US/NSA phone records grabs, Interwebz monitoring etc. You have read a few dozen articles about Project: Prism (Actually kind of a cool code name) and how the Patriot Act signed under old W and continued under Obama has essentially allowed the Feds free reign over pretty much everything we do, see or say. You also know about the (until recently unnamed) "hero" who blew the whistle on Old Big Brother 2013. (I prefer the original book myself) And you also know that said Unnamed Hero is no longer unnamed, but has come forward to allow the world to know who he is. All I gotta ask here is simply "Why?"
I question the motives of someone who originally did something anonymously (Huh spelled that right first time) supposedly because he felt it was his duty to reveal what was going on who suddenly decides to go public with his identity. Put quite simply, he had no reason to suddenly put his life in danger. No one was denying the information he revealed. No one was disputing it. Hells the US/NSA isn't even denying it, they are simply trying to put the best spin on it possible. So, why come forward. You did you duty for King and Country and alerted the nation to the dangers. You exposed and embarrassed very powerful groups who really don't like being exposed. In short, You won! So why not keep quiet about your identity and move on with your life?
By revealing his identity, Snowden has essentially painted a very very large target on himself. Think about it, even if you believe what he did was righteous, he broke so many federal laws doing it that they may have to invent a new term to describe just how illegal what he did was. He made the President, Congress, the NSA and the CIA look like idiots. In other words, he royally pissed off a bunch of people who one really shouldn't piss off.
So why come forward? As I pointed out above, it serves no real purpose. The only real reason I can think of is money. Snowden is now famous. Everyone is talking about him. I am betting that he is already receiving book deals, interview offers etc from pretty much all over the world. He went from an unknown number cruncher who never finished High School to one of the most talked about people in the country. He already has offers of Asylum from several different nations and offers of support from many Americans here at home.
I could be wrong. I am by my very nature a Cynic. I pretty much assume the worst about humanity because all of my experiences around the world have proven me to be right most times. Blowing a very loud whistle on Big Brother was a very brave thing to do. Coming out and admitting you did it is either the result of greed or stupidity. Time will tell which one it is, but I am leaning towards greed.
End of Rant
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