 |
| The Faces of Assassins |
In a rare opportunity to communicate with the world at large, Edward Snowden used a live chat session and an interview with the New Yorker magazine this week to defend himself against unsubstantiated accusations of being a spy.
Republican Mike Rogers and Democrat Dianne Feinstein came very close to defamation of character, insinuating Snowden was a spy for the Russians without providing a shred of proof.
Responding to allegations from members of the Senate and House intelligence committees that Snowden had help from the Russians and that's why he ended up in Moscow, the former US spy contractor was quoted as saying: "This Russian spy push is absurd." Snowden went on to state he "clearly and unambiguously acted alone, with no help from anyone, much less a government".
Mike Rogers, a congressional cheerleader for the robust use of the NSA's spying and former FBI agent, stated he was currently investigating to determine if Snowden had help from Russia in stealing and divulging the United States' most guarded secrets.
Generally, government officials refrain from commenting on ongoing investigations to avoid making statements that can't be backed up with irrefutable facts and evidence. In this case, Congressmen Rogers and Senator Feinstein blatanly engaged in reckless speculation bordering on outright libel and slander.
Libel and slander is defined as thus: Collectively known as defamation, libel and slander are civil wrongs that harm a reputation; decrease respect, regard, or confidence; or induce disparaging, hostile, or disagreeable opinions or feelings against an individual or entity. By that definition, Mr. Snowden should be able to recover damages for the unmitigated smear campaign being waged against him.
The only thing worse than what government officials are doing to destroy the life of a whistleblower who exposed government wrongdoing, is the fact that the nation's Forth Estate failed to demand results from the governments so-called investigation or hold the culprits publicly accountable for not providing them.
The Bottom line: Until the United States government can find a way to assassinate Edward Snowden's ass, his character will have to do.
The Podcast:
Comments
Post a Comment