Even if you are playing tic-tac-toe at a chess tournament, you still have to think a move ahead. Saying "Very naive to think that the Russian and Chinese governments didn't get a full copy" makes your initial point moot. If the adversaries you are supposedly worried about already have everything, what's the point of keeping it from the American people?
GP didn't claim that Snowden worked for both countries. Snowden certainly did offer details of compromised Chinese networks to SCMP, which is now a propaganda rag for the PRC, in a failed attempt to gain asylum in Hong Kong. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1266821/us-hacks-chi...
Snowden gave the full set of documents to Greenwald, Poitras, and The Intercept. Greenwald's opsec in particular is highly questionable, and I would be shocked if Russia and China didn't get a full copy from him. China had no need to barter with Snowden.
He left his cozy upper middle-class life, partner, and put his life on the line to expose illegal mass surveillance. That's gazillion times more risk and sacrifice to do the right thing, than you'll ever accomplish.
The problem is that much of it wasn't illegal. Some was, but some was just spy agencies doing spy agency things. The laws draw some pretty fine distinctions that are at odds with what you expect.
Perhaps it's worth it to have exposed the genuinely illegal things and have scrutiny on the legal but unpleasant ones. But I don't think that's obviously the case. Spy agencies are by definition going to do stuff you wouldn't approve of if you weren't paying close attention to what protections are in place.
Zigurd|1 month ago
jibal|1 month ago
I won't engage further with someone acting in bad faith.
dfreel|1 month ago
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anticodon|1 month ago
Do you know, for example, that China willingly sells huge amounts of drones to Ukraine?
lern_too_spel|1 month ago
Snowden gave the full set of documents to Greenwald, Poitras, and The Intercept. Greenwald's opsec in particular is highly questionable, and I would be shocked if Russia and China didn't get a full copy from him. China had no need to barter with Snowden.
jfengel|1 month ago
Russia is in no position to reject China for selling to both sides. They may not be allies but each is the enemy of their enemies.
maqp|1 month ago
Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.
>Snowden is some sort of hero?
He left his cozy upper middle-class life, partner, and put his life on the line to expose illegal mass surveillance. That's gazillion times more risk and sacrifice to do the right thing, than you'll ever accomplish.
jfengel|1 month ago
Perhaps it's worth it to have exposed the genuinely illegal things and have scrutiny on the legal but unpleasant ones. But I don't think that's obviously the case. Spy agencies are by definition going to do stuff you wouldn't approve of if you weren't paying close attention to what protections are in place.
nebezb|1 month ago
Does one need to be gullible to believe this? Or will you substantiate your extraordinary claim?