Ray McGovern and the Sam Adams party have presented the Sam Adams award to Edward Snowden. I am delighted. This from Ray’s account of the event:
In brief remarks from his visitors, Snowden was reassured — first and foremost — that he need no longer be worried that nothing significant would happen as a result of his decision to risk his future by revealing documentary proof that the U.S. government was playing fast and loose with the Constitutional rights of Americans.
Even amid the government shutdown, Establishment Washington and the normally docile “mainstream media” have not been able to deflect attention from the intrusive eavesdropping that makes a mockery of the Fourth Amendment. Even Congress is showing signs of awaking from its torpor.
In the somnolent Senate, a few hardy souls have gone so far as to express displeasure at having been lied to by Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and NSA Director Keith Alexander — Clapper having formally apologized for telling the Senate Intelligence Committee eavesdropping-related things that were, in his words, “clearly erroneous” and Alexander having told now-discredited whoppers about the effectiveness of NSA’s intrusive and unconstitutional methods in combating terrorism.
Coleen Rowley, the first winner of the Sam Adams Award (2002), cited some little-known history to remind Snowden that he is in good company as a whistleblower — and not only because of previous Sam Adams honorees. She noted that in 1773, Benjamin Franklin leaked confidential information by releasing letters written by then-Lt. Governor of Massachusetts Thomas Hutchinson to Thomas Whatley, an assistant to the British Prime Minister.
The letters suggested that it was impossible for the colonists to enjoy the same rights as subjects living in England and that “an abridgement of what are called English liberties” might be necessary. The content of the letters was so damaging to the British government that Benjamin Franklin was dismissed as colonial Postmaster General and had to endure an hour-long censure from British Solicitor General Alexander Wedderburn.
There has been a determined attempt by government to justify the need to intercept everybody’s communications, all the time. We have, yet again, had MI5 claim there are many thousand violent Islamic terrorists running around the UK, (yet somehow not managing to kill anybody). The cry of “paedophiles” is raised, as always. I can imagine them suggesting the entire population be shot dead, and justifying it as making sure they get the paedophiles. The tabloids would go with that.
There still had not been a single credible claim by the mainstream media that any named individual has died, despite that contingency being trotted out all the time as the reason Snowden and Manning should not have revealed state crimes and abuse of power. I am hopeful that, with the internet still largely free to the dissemination of information, out next massive whistleblower is only weeks away.
@ Ben Franklin
Since you may be something of a literary gent and taking into account what appears to be your preferred vehicle of discourse on this blog : it was once said by someone that it was telling of the difference between Europeans and Americans that while the former had jokes, the latter had wisecracks. Would you agree or disagree with the several elements of the above?
Habbu-Clown Troll: “Thanks for that puff for Hunter Thompson. But I am not altogether convinced of his apparent merits”
It’s a double feature comedy act tonight ! How lucky are we !!
So ditto for the Clown-Troll;
“You trying to sound intellectual is even funnier than Villager trying to pass himself off as a serious debater !”
@ All
re my previous post, I recommend that we add Nevermind to the shortlist of ranters (Fedup and Macky) we should resolutely ignore and not respond to until they have cleaned up their act.
“quite the opposite, actually” I’ve always found ignorance coupled with mendacity to be a perfect storm of stupid.
Have you congratulated Snowden?
“Since you may be something of a literary gent and taking into account what appears to be your preferred vehicle of discourse on this blog : it was once said by someone that it was telling of the difference between Europeans and Americans that while the former had jokes, the latter had wisecracks. Would you agree or disagree with the several elements of the above?”
I’m putting that graf through Google translate now………….
Man you have mislaid your funny bone, go fucking find it before it is lost for good, be eaten by s a dog, or a willy coyote.
Macky has a sense of humour. techniC/villageC is so fucking out of her depth, trying to sound oh so Malaprop
The late Rabbi Ovadia Yosef had a very curious sense of humour. When told of a fake Modern Abridged Version of the Talmud that purportedly promises 72 Thai ladyboys to every jew who can steal the goyims pension funds on the london Stock Exchange, he is reputed to have said “Robert Maxwell came to me in a dream and complained the ladyboys have no apertures, its really Hell!”
OK, this is the best Google could come up with….http://www.gizoogle.net/textilizer.php
Since you may be suttin’ of a literary gent n’ takin tha fuck into account what tha fuck appears ta be yo’ preferred hoopty of discourse on dis Snoop Bloggy-Blogg : dat shiznit was once holla’d by one of mah thugs dat dat shiznit was spittin some lyrics ta of tha difference between Europeans n’ Gangstas dat while tha forma had jokes, tha latter had wisecracks. Would you smoke or disagree wit tha nuff muthafuckin elementz of tha above?
Now that is fucking funny (pissing myself rolling on the floor funny), I am off to cry me a bucket, boy to be on the shit list of habbakooky and his many disguises and flowerpots.
The audacity of an unwanted guest setting itself up as the fucking leader in charge of the “clearing and cleaning up” old habits and shit, just like as in Palestine.
“I don’t know either, thought you would know,”
I thought you wanted to tell a knock-knock joke, but my humour fails me.
I, too am impatient for more disclosures, fedup. In a way I think the drip of info has allowed us to absorb more. It’s working.
But I won’t be happy until everything is disclosed. I think the new venture by GG will make some more portals.
High flying night manouvres by our high altitude cowboys who kill from great hight, keep training boys.
Al Hilli BBC coverage is currently running, could be fiction merging with factions, sprinkelt with some facts. ALL VERY MYSTERIOUS, multiple sightings and suspicions.
Ok, so I think the joke about the piece of string is funny. And the one about the nun. I think Bill Hicks, Cold Comfort Farm, Dylan Moran, Chris Rock, Jerome K Jerome, Thurber, Mencken, Twain, Gerald Durrell, Wodehouse, Lucky Jim (Amis), Round The Horne, Just a Minute, the IT Crowd, Damon Runyan, Dorothy Parker, Martha Gelhorn and Father Ted are funny. Among others. Sometimes always, sometimes more often than not. But funny. And I think this is funny (but Woody Allen so often is).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCxCRI2Qv6U
Otherwise, I appreciated a post by Brendan, a while back, talking about the ‘vaguely humiliating’ feeling of being watched all the time. I think people haven’t looked into the psychological effects, really, of potential constant surveillance. Nothing anyone in the past hasn’t had to handle (in German ruled France they had the population pretty much sewn up). But they had had warnings and we had been living in the la la land legacy of the seventies; thanks, seventies.
Seems like our option now (and possibly a more enjoyable one) is open defiance and yes what?tery.
Funny; I don’t see Brendan very often, so I am curious. You must visit this blog often, but i don’t remember your making a comment. Have I missed them, or is this a rarity for you, and why?
” He told the BBC’s Panorama: “The car was a BMW 4×4, X5, grey metallic, in good condition, clean, it looked pretty new. It was a right-hand drive, English. I didn’t get much of a look at him but the driver was slightly bald and he had dark skin, no glasses.” The claims were last night corroborated by Surrey Police. Despite a public appeal earlier this year, the car has not yet been traced.
Meanwhile in an emotional testimony, Mr Hilli’s brother, Zaid, has accused French police of a “cover-up”. The 54-year-old who remains the only arrest in connection with the case, said he believes that the cyclist, Mr Mollier was the intended target of the attack.
“Sylvain Mollier was involved in family disputes and was an outsider to [his] rich family,” he told the BBC. “There is something more to it locally … most crime has local roots.”
Nevermind; Hmm. How do you reckon the Wealthy French would import a British assassin? Aren’t there enough French?
Was that for me? No, he posted it here a few days ago, and I hadn’t really checked him as a commenter before – and his comment got lost, in the maelstrom, which are two of the ‘problems’ here, I think (to which I’m aware I contribute). It stuck, though – and I can find it again.
Has Brendan got a blog?
Wasn’t France the only buyer to join US on Syria? Hmmm…
http://www.lemonde.fr/technologies/article/2013/10/21/france-in-the-nsa-s-crosshair-phone-networks-under-surveillance_3499741_651865.html
“Amongst the thousands of documents extracted from the NSA by its ex-employee there is a graph which describes the extent of telephone monitoring and tapping (DNR – Dial Number Recognition) carried out in France. It can be seen that over a period of thirty days – from 10 December 2012 to 8 January 2013, 70,3 million recordings of French citizens’ telephone data were made by the NSA. This agency has several methods of data collection. According to the elements obtained by Le Monde, when a telephone number is used in France, it activates a signal which automatically triggers the recording of the call. Apparently this surveillance system also picks up SMS messages and their content using key words. Finally, the NSA apparently stores the history of the connections of each target – or the meta-data.”
Bother, I share the shame of the sock-puppeteers. ‘Funny’ is of course Technicolour, who is often far too serious, especially about being serious. I just wanted to use the soubriquet once, because the post was way way way off topic otherwise.
“Has Brendan got a blog?’ I don’t know. This comment was from May/’13.
http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2013/05/no-politics-is-local/#comment-406509
Shame on you, Tech. You got me dancing with the devil.
Gosh, so sorry – didn’t realise!
wonder if anyone else finds anything/anyone funny…
Fedup: “Your mate Jon used to encourage you villageC/techniC but that is another story.”
You noticed that too; it was more protect than encourage though; Jon did the same for Sly Suhayel.
Technicolour: “There’s ESOl, who is Anon”
but not before be was “For the return of Habba and Free Speech”, inbetween being Anon with Shades, a bit after he was Anon 3, but not much later than when he was Anon 2, was was preceded by Anon 1, being the alter ego of the Habbu-Clown Troll, so basically all one man sitting in a darken untidy room, tapping away in his desperately in need of a wash Star of David boxer shorts.
Technicolour: “it’s much easier than having to actually argue, or substantiate a point.”
There’s no disagreeing with that area of your expertise !
Tell us the joke about the nun, TC…
“Jon did the same for Sly Suhayel.”
You are kidding. You’re really going with that? You. Macky. Can you just confirm this, please?
A growing disaster in our global back yard.
http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-japan-nuclear-20131020,0,1961323.story
“To make ends meet, Matsumoto and others have taken to using their trawlers for tasks such as rubble collection and radiation monitoring. The rubble pickup is paid for by the Japanese government. Some fishermen have also been hired to help at the nuclear plant by its owner, Tokyo Electric Power Co., or Tepco.
“We can’t fish as much, so we’ve been doing many public works projects,” Matsumoto said.”
Pshaw, vegetarianism is only one answer. Blast, poor, poor Japan.
“Tell us the joke about the nun, TC…”
I know that one.
Two nuns in a bath, one says to the other “where’s the soap?” and the other one says “yes, I know it does”.
How can we help? Why are the UN not running a fund?