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Edward Snowden's New Job: Tech Support
Nerval's Lobster writes "Government whistleblower Edward Snowden, exiled in Russia after releasing top-secret documents about the National Security Agency's surveillance activities to the press, has a new job: tech support. Snowden's lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, told the Associated Press that his client starts work Nov. 1 for a "major" Russian Website, which he declined to name. In June, Snowden—a former CIA employee who worked as a contractor for the NSA—began feeding an enormous pile of classified charts and documents about federal surveillance programs to The Guardian and other newspapers. Many of those documents suggested that the NSA, ordinarily tasked with intercepting communications from terrorists and foreign governments, collects massive amounts of information on ordinary Americans, which in turn ignited a firestorm of controversy. The Snowden revelations have continued into this week, with The Washington Post reporting that the NSA has aggressively targeted Google and Yahoo servers. Snowden's documents suggest that the agency has figured out how to tap the links connecting the two tech giants' datacenters to the broader Web. Google told the Post that it was "troubled" by the report. A Yahoo spokesperson insisted that the company had "strict controls in place to protect the security of our datacenters" and that "we have not given access to our data centers to the NSA or to any other government agency.""
"IT support. Have you tried turning the NSA tapping device off and on again?"
Ezekiel 23:20
Don't give him root.
Some people die at 25 and aren't buried until 75. -Benjamin Franklin
So he hasn't even been arrested yet, and his punishement has already started?
He should've just let them shoot him.
since the u.s. claims global jurisdiction over its citizens regardless of where they travel to or reside, and he is still one, now he's gonna have to file taxes.... that means if they don't know it yet, by april 15th, the feds will know his address... and if he doesn't file, he can then be arrested on tax evasion.. even if what he's done already ends up being legal whistleblowing.
Whatever Snowden did to bottle up his stolen cache of documents, it has apparently kept the entire US security apparatus at bay.
Now, THAT'S a project that would look good on an IT resume, anywhere.
"We receive as friendly that which agrees with, we resist with dislike that which opposes us" - Faraday
He's just the messenger. Whether it gets safer or not is up to us now.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
After having lived in Russia for some 6 month cumulatively, I have this to say: Edward Snowden is going to love it.
A few reasons:
- Incredibly beautiful women
- Incredibly cool clubs and bars
- Awesome Moscow Ballet / Classical Music / Cultural Events / Arts / Museums
- McDonalds has a whole wheat bun, need I say more?
All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain... time... to... die...
But answer this: if he WERE a double agent, SO WHAT? Does that make the data he got wrong? No. Does it make what the documents say a good thing for the NSA to do? No.
So *even if* you're right and Snowden is a double agent, that has no bearing WHATSOEVER about the crimes the revelations have documented.
You don't get it. It is not about the data. At this moment the global attention is aimed at the NSA, and it says: "NSA = bad" and "Snowden = good". Some people just want to turn that around, and make it "Snowden = bad", and make people forget about the NSA.
It's really that simple.
Knowing that there is a ticking bomb under your feet don't automatically disable it, you are not safer than before. But let you take measures to try to be safe in the future, before it explodes in your face. For making the world better you must know where it is broken.
I can feel his pain.
Then it's your pain, not his.
That is so incredibly devious! It take s real fiend to spread rumors and lies this malicious.
NSA Operative: Our public profile is way too high, and this Snowden jerk is winning in the popularity polls. We need to discredit him, quick!
NSA Public Relations Rat: Well, we need to get people to despise Snowden and focus on him and his new antics so we can fade back into the background.
NSA Operative: OK, so who is the most despised group on earth? Terrorists? Traitors?
NSA PRR: No. No. We've been trying that for months, and we just can't get any traction with the press or public. Worse, both those arguments lead back to us and our data.
NSA Operative: How about members of Congress, or the White House?
NSA PRR: You mean get him elected? No good, do you know what a seat in Congress is going for these days? Even our black budget can't afford any more than we already have, and don't even get me started on what a White House position costs now.
NSA Operative: Hmm... pedophile rapist?
NSA PRR: Maybe you're onto something... He is in Russia after-all... Wait! I've got it. The most universally reviled, disgusting, hated group in the world!
NSA Operative: What? What!?
NSA PRR: We'll tell everyone he's....... Tech Support.
NSA Operative: You vicious bastard. Even I couldn't have some up with something so foul. I love you for it.
"Unheard of means only it's undreamed of yet,
Impossible means not yet done." ~~ Julia Ecklar
According to initial tweet on Russian he'll be supporting one of non-government internet portals - more like system administrator, not customer support.
Sorry you love the Federal Government so much, but Snowden is a patriot standing up for the ideals on which the USA was founded. Deal with it.
What I took away from the Yahoo comment was how it was worded vs the Snowden revelation. "We have not given access to our data centers to the NSA or to any other government agency." However, the Snowden leak said that the cables to the data centers were tapped. The NSA wouldn't need access to the physical servers if they could just grab a copy of all data heading into and out of the data center. Now, this could have been done without Yahoo knowing or it could have been done with their help (but without giving access to the data center to allow for plausible deniability should the story get out).
My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
I'm surprised he was hired in the first place. He might be talented and an asset to any organization but he's also proven himself to be a liability. He will likely never be hired anywhere anybody has something to hide ever again.
And yet he was given a job.
You know the saying, if you are doing nothing wrong, you have nothing to hide? Well, that applies to jobs he works at. If they have nothing to hide, then they have nothing to fear.
If the NSA had nothing to hide, why do they fear what Snowden leaked? Remember, they first said he didn't have access to anything and didn't have anything important. Are they still saying that? No, they went to tell the other countries that will force economic sanctions on any country helping him. Which is a lie, because they haven't done shit to Russia.
If i was a honest company, Snowden is the sort of person I'd probably like working there.
Be seeing you...