
How Edward J. Snowden Orchestrated a Blockbuster Story - shill
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/11/us/how-edward-j-snowden-orchestrated-a-blockbuster-story.html?pagewanted=all
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nsns
Between the lines it seems the NYT is somewhat jealous Snowden did not come to
it with his materials (when the news broke they quoted "a British newspaper"
instead of mentioning The Guardian by name!).

But they do make a good point: the scope and reach of the post 9/11
intelligence apparatus does not only mean it tends to overreach, it also means
it employs too many people, some of them potential whistle-blowers.

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cm127
I don't get it. If it he can do this, why can't someone else do the same
thing? Why can't people register _that_ part of the story?

Anyone who has ever seen the show 24 can see that for every amazing tool we
have to spy on Americans, there is some double-spy working within the agency
using the very same tool against the government's own interest. This is
exactly what is happening.

We built something we can't control. That's the story.

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ramchip
Proof by fictional evidence? ;)

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dredmorbius
There are plenty of real-world examples of moles and double-agents as well.
Fiction can often be a useful tool to distill the essence of an argument
and/or present it in a recognizable or popular dress.

Something Eric Arthur Blair demonstrated ably in his famous novel _1948_.
Excuse me, George Orwell, _1984_.

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chm
>Mr. Snowden has now turned over archives of “thousands” of documents,
according to Mr. Greenwald, and “dozens” are newsworthy.

And now we all have to wait until _The Guardian_ is finished analyzing
everything, covering its ass while making sure to take in a maximum amount of
profits.

That's an issue I haven't heard people complain about yet. Why not make
everything public? The information is getting combed... _again_!

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ISL
Snowden can make it public at any time too, I suspect. If things aren't going
at his pace, he can probably speed it up. It's in his interest, as well as The
Guardian/WP's, to make the largest possible impact. This is his only shot.

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soup10
I don't get what else there is to disclose. Snowden confirms that the NSA's
has "horrifying capabilities" when it comes to collecting data. It sounds like
with enough reason to and time they can bug any network and computer anywhere.
Which considering they are the most powerful intelligence agency, seems likely
to be true and getting more true.

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ash
> … Mr. Snowden later sent him a homemade video with step-by-step instructions
> for installing [encryption software], which Mr. Greenwald watched but never
> completed… In late April or early May, he and Mr. Snowden began to talk over
> an encrypted chat program.

What "encrypted chat program" they could possibly use?

~~~
mpyne
Kopete with OTR? :)

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auctiontheory
The Rubik's Cube was a nice touch. I remember when I was inseparable from
mine. (Averaged 50 seconds. Not world-class, I know, but not terrible for a
12-year-old.)

