Technically what this wayward administration is doing is legal under the Patriot Act, but our government never target ordinary Americans before. So what he did could get him a death penalty or life in prison. The reason why this has exploded into a big controversy is because this administration is using it for vast majority of the country and not using it in a targeted situation. There is no reason for them targeting me or you when everyone knows who the enemy is. Also this really got a lot of the media to open their eyes although they are still glazed over in a hypnotic trance. This guy did in my Libertarian side views expose an evil thing, but at the same time gave the enemy plenty of useful information. Regardless it got the public talking about it and considering their views on spying.

PS; To put all this in prospective. Five months after 911 all the terrorists were granted Visa's albeit posthumously.

Yeah, Bubba, wouldn't it be nice if all the criminals and terrorists wore uniforms or walked around with placards identifying them as such. They don't. Like you, I'm also not a criminal or terrorist. I know that. But do you? Do you have a right to find out for sure if your family works in buildings or rides mass transit that makes them vulnerable to terrorist attacks? In a country where everyone is supposed to be legal under the law, I don't have a problem with everyone being suspects ... rather than no one. Sadly, after 9/11 our world changed. We need to accept it. To keep my grandson safe, I'm willing to live with less liberty. I don't like it but it is what it is. We're not living in the 18th century any more ... not even the 20th century. Having said that, I don't oppose vigilance either.

Jimbo, the government security agencies lost track of the Boston Marathon kooks because some idiot clerical person misspelled their names. Sh*t happens sometimes in spite of everyone's best efforts.

FirstBubba I think there is a danger in taking a quote out of the it's context in history. Good old TJ thought nothing of sending the common man to fight against England because he was tired of paying taxes. He thought it was OK to subject his illegitimate children to a life of slavery. Women were little more than chattel. All these high ideals may not have meant what they mean today. One of my favorites was "If we loose this war an Iron Curtain will fall over Europe" Paul Joseph Goebbels Reich Marshall of Propaganda.
America has always been a nation of checks and balances. If it is necessary for the common good to monitor the populace so be it. Presently it is a Democracy and if the majority feels it is the right thing to do. Then it's the right thing to do.

The IRS, the Justice Dept, and the EPA have all been caught ignoring the, equal treatment under the law, theory. When the government treats illegal immigrants better than citizens we have a problem. This last election saw government depts. deliberately discourage Constitution supporting groups while progressive groups were encouraged. The government is out of control, as gun owners have noticed. The government is lying to us about things "for our own good."

Carl, "America feels that there is a problem"?
Ninety percent of the "Dumb-Dumb" voters in this country don't know what is going on. They all can explain in great detail what was on Showtime, HBO or Cinemax.

Businesses and many online services routinely track us every day. Since I am forced for convenience sake to ignore it I really do not have an issue with the government accessing certain info. At work they read our emails and track everything we do anyway. I'd prefer a reduction in private sector businesses spying on us and keeping data for no useful purpose. The fact that the government can see it, bothers me as well, but there is little that can realistically be done about it at this point. The average politician is too stupid to write a coherent gun control bill they will never get a cyber privacy bill right. I'm just ticked Obama is not being held to the level of accountability a Republican would be.

As far as America knowing there is a problem. America has no idea of what a phone tap is. This is just the W.C. Fields quote about never wise up a sucker. But Gary riddle me this. Would you flee to Red China for asylum. As far as truth it's which talking head do you believe. Walter Cronkite only became the most trusted man in America after he cried with the JFK spot. Back then everybody toed the party line.
Rocky I like the qoute "true history can only be written in the blood of your enemies".

Snowden is no hero in my book. More like the opposite!

Diann Feinstein is calling it Treason, and some say Patriot! what say you??
I say Treason.

Snowden's legal problem is that he accepted a security clearance that makes it a crime to disclose unauthorized national secrets. He has so far not revealed any illegality, just a few details regarding antiterror programs that were already known to exist.
But he has invited the Justice Department to investigate and seek to extradite him so that his example does not prompt others to leak secrets based on their own moral authority.

I think 99 just about summed it up. Snowdens problem arises from the contract he signed. Dcast phone tapping is nothing new. I worked in Midtown in the 70's. The inside guys would routinely tap into the more interesting lines and hook them up to the the PA system to alleviate boredom. Usually g@y b0rdellos. So unauthorized listening is nothing new. Today you don't have to run a wire you just condition the switch remotely.
PS the FBI had a field office less than one city block away. I spliced a Tie cable to their basement and they took it from there. They also had apristinen Telephone truck in their garage. So there is nothing new under the sun.

I recommend all of you to read this 3 part series "The Collectivist Mind Game" by Oleg Atbashian.
He is the developer of the website "The People's Cube"(I recommend) it's a political satire/humor website designed around Soviet Union agitprop. He is from Ukraine and worked for Communist Russia as a agitprop artist. You can look into his background further if you wish, but listen to what he says, pay attention to what it is he is trying to tell us. He uses satire and humor to spread the word so to make it more palatable to Americans because we never lived under an authoritarian or communist government.

thepeoplescube.com/peoples-blog/collectivist-mind-games-demonizing-the-non-compliant-t10610.html

Dcast;One more thing I'm in America because my maternal Grandfather beat up one of Hitler's entourage after a big parade in Munich in 1937. They even made a movie about it [Hitler not my Grand Dad] For this he spent 18 months in a concentration camp. What got him out was he was a decorated WWI vet and he drove a Beer Wagon in his later years. So he was well known. He could also see the writing on the wall. So he sent his daughter [my Mom] to America. So I know all about 1-800-Turn In Your Buddy.

"All this guy Snowden did was reveal what the government can do. What he was doing was not listening to your conversation rather keeping track of traffic." We'll see what else comes out. The Guardian already came out and said there is more to come. I agree he is no great hero but he has got the discussion going and brought to the forefront to be discussed among the public. This wasn't an option before they took it upon themselves to do what they want.

What I want to trade?

1) Surveillance of private citizens for surveillance of known problems
2) A slap on the hand for rapists, child molesters, pedophiles, etc... for due justice. My opinion of due justice is death, it's time to make examples instead of complacency.
3) Instead of investigating private people's information maybe they should look into the company. There is no need to snoop on your wife or son without a problem within the company or technology. No?
4) Instead of targeting a bunch of bluehairs how about those who bow down several times a day towards Mecca.
5) How about profiling the previously mentioned?
6) How about gathering intelligence on the cartels?
7) How about doing their job in bring down the National Debt?
8) How about cleaning their own house before going about someone else's business?

We could go on but I have the feeling it's in vain. All of this is needless, unless you have something in the works. This smells ill-intent. Yes I got that it has gone on forever, but there were/are limits to this.

99explorer is correct. He has a security clearance that makes it a crime to reveal confidential information. I have a security clearance and have also signed confidentiality agreemnets in the past. I take these kinds of things very seriously because of the consequences. Snowden knew that what he was doing was wrong that's why he went on the lam!