The Blaze/AP reports NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden has thousands of documents that constitute “basically the instruction manual for how the NSA is built.” The documents, according to the report, would allow readers to duplicate or evade NSA surveillance.
But, the otherwise loose-lipped Snowden doesn’t want the information to go public. Is this a mistake?
There are three very important issues at stake in this matter. The first is national security.
For better or worse, the NSA does exactly as its name implies. Its extensive spying capabilities obviously provide some level of security for the American public. And, it’s largely able to do so because of its secrecy, as no logical enemy would intentionally allow it to intercept communications.
A second issue is privacy. Privacy has been put on the backburner for most of this century as politicians exploit the 9/11 boogeyman to scare a naïve public. Americans now seem to value privacy less than ever before and its founders are certainly rolling over in their graves. The NSA scandal is another flagrant abuse in this regard and is seen by many as “crossing the line.”
The third, and perhaps most important, factor is the continuous federal abuses that have occurred this century. The Bush Administration was lambasted for its warrantless wiretaps and overall Constitutional neglect – and rightfully so. As Obama took office, many expected a reprieve from the Orwellian Bush agenda. Yet, Obama has not only continued the Bush-era abuses, but expanded them exponentially.
The President’s unconstitutional war in Libya, the ATF’s Fast and Furious, the IRS’ convenient targeting of conservative groups and scores of other scandals point to an Administration that believes it is above the very laws it is obligated to enforce. However, those pale in comparison to the NSA’s illegal spying operations, which threaten the Constitutional rights of literally every living American.
This all brings the question up of how the federal government can be brought under control. Voting the bad apples out doesn’t do the trick since most just vote for the media darling and fall for the “don’t throw away your vote” conventional wisdom as it pertains to third-party candidates. However, a release of this magnitude (and possibly others) could significantly weaken the NSA’s ability to illegally spy on Americans, or at least force it to become more transparent.
As Ben Franklin once stated, “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Nearly 260 years later, Snowden has a chance to help Americans earn some liberty back by humbling a rogue intelligence agency that gladly violates our most sacred freedoms.
What do you think? Should Snowden release the NSA’s “blueprint” in an effort to rein in the agency’s unlawful behavior or would the national security risk outweigh its transgressions?
