Edward Snowden Gets Sam Adams Award 3361


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.


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3,361 thoughts on “Edward Snowden Gets Sam Adams Award

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  • Someone

    Even the BBC news are reporting about…“Police are requesting “on behalf of the Crown Prosecution Service” that magazine vendors refrain from selling today’s edition of Private Eye.”

    They couldn’t hide or cover up that one!.

  • Mary

    I have always thought that Avnery is a Zionist. He smudges the true facts.

    How Come Uri Avnery Knows So Little about Israel?
    Talking nonsense about apartheid
    by Jonathan Cook / October 28th, 2013
    http://dissidentvoice.org/2013/10/how-come-uri-avnery-knows-so-little-about-israel/

    ~~

    Two other pieces from the same website

    Peace Process is Doomed to Fail while Israel Stalls for Time
    Jonathan Cook / 10/29/2013
    http://dissidentvoice.org/2013/10/peace-process-is-doomed-to-fail-while-israel-stalls-for-time/

    Where Does the USA Unequivocally Stand on Israeli Annexation of Palestine?
    Jim Surfer / 10/28/2013
    http://dissidentvoice.org/2013/10/where-does-the-usa-unequivocally-stand-on-israeli-annexation-of-palestine/

    For ‘annexation’ in the title of the latter, read ‘occupation’.

  • Mary

    More on plod’s ludicrous actions today.

    Phone Hacking Trial: Police accused of trying to stop Private Eye sales
    Index on Censorship says it is ‘worrying’ that officers allegedly suggested a news vendor in Farringdon should remove copies of the satirical magazine from display and warned it could be in contempt of court over Rebekah Brooks’ Old Bailey trial
    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/10413148/Phone-Hacking-Trial-Police-accused-of-trying-to-stop-Private-Eye-sales.html

    ‘A news vendor said a policeman asked him to “consider” taking down issues of the satirical magazine he had on display at his kiosk near the Old Bailey, where Mrs Brooks is standing trial alongside fellow former News of the World editor Andy Coulson.

    The officer allegedly said the latest edition of Private Eye could be in contempt of court over its Halloween-themed cover, which features a picture of Mrs Brooks above the caption, “Horror witch costume withdrawn from shops”.

    The vendor refused to stop selling the magazine without seeing a court order demanding its removal, and the Attorney General, Dominic Grieve, later ruled that there was no need to launch contempt proceedings.’

    Reading the article reminded me of the late Ian Tomlinson, also a news vendor. RIP.

    Mr Justice Saunders, the judge in the phone hacking case, on Tuesday showed the jury the issue of Private Eye and told them to ignore the cover, which he said was “a joke in especially bad taste.’

  • Jives

    Villager,

    Spectacularly missing the point as usual little lap dog.

    You asked for more humour and i simply pointed out that you were already providing more than enough yourself as Habby’s little pet.

    Gosh your not half silly are you Villager?

    Heel boy! Heel! 🙂

  • Someone

    Dreoilin,

    I don’t bother responding to the Hasbara troll Habbabkuk and the other Hasbara minions on this blog, they are cancer cells attacking the body of truth, I see their names and don’t read their posts, best ignored!.

  • Villager

    MacMonkey: “Villager Idiot’…

    Village Elder for you actually. A global one at that. Not one-trick-donkeys like the MFM alliance.

    Have you done your homework for tonight, so you can ‘carry more flavours’ for the Radio GOB anchor-biddy?

  • Villager

    Jives: “You asked for more humour and i simply pointed out that you were already providing more than enough yourself as Habby’s little pet.”

    So, no jokes to tell Mr Jibes?

  • Dreoilin

    “Dreoilin,
    I don’t bother responding to the Hasbara troll Habbabkuk and the other Hasbara minions on this blog, they are cancer cells attacking the body of truth, I see their names and don’t read their posts, best ignored!.”

    You do whatever you wish, Someone. And allow me to do the same. I make my own decisions, thanks.

  • Someone

    Dreoilin,

    Where did I say you couldn’t!, I was speaking for myself, not you!, read my post again and don’t read into it what is not there, your a tad bit paranoid to say the least!.

  • Macky

    God and the Village Idiot

    One day God was hanging out at the Pearly Gates with St. Paul.

    “I need to find someone to help the Hasbara Troll Clown wreck Murray’s Blog,” he said after a while.

    Attentive to his boss’ needs, St. Paul started naming off a few qualified candidates.

    “Nah, I want that guy,” he said pointing to a Village Idiot on his tricycle peddling around in circles.

    “You’ve got to be kidding,” said St. Paul, “He’s dumber than a box of rocks.”

    “I don’t care,” said God, “This is the guy.”

    Perplexed, St. Paul asked: “What is the problem, Lord, art thou angry with the Trolls”

    “No,” said God, “I made a bet with the Devil that I could get a village idiot to wreck that Blog.

    “But won’t that work in the Devil’s favor, oh Lord?” Paul asked.

    “That’s right,” said God, “but they will never manage to wreck the Blog.”

  • Clark

    I had an interesting experience today. I went into a Labour Exchange Job Centre jobcentreplus! dole office, to get an idea of employment opportunities in the area I was visiting. I stood, looking about, trying to orientate myself. There were a lot of things like chipboard lecterns with screens built into them, each one displaying a printed notice that they had been taken out of service and replaced by something with a buzz-word name that I can’t remember. What I couldn’t see were any boards advertising jobs.

    A woman with a badge and a clipboard approached me and asked if she could help. I asked where I could view the situations vacant. She answered my question with another; “Can you use a computer?”

    Through a series of questions and (often rather evasive) answers I discovered that the only way I could browse available jobs was at a computer, and before they’d let me use one of those I needed to write down my name and National Insurance number. All paper job adverts had been removed, I was told, because “we’ve entered the Digital Age” because “that’s what employers want”. The woman kept calling me “sir” but her demeanour seemed scornful to me.

    My quiet, polite questions were apparently disapproved of, as three G4S private security guards had taken up positions around me, eyeing me aggressively and standing with their legs apart and arms folded like nightclub bouncers. A man in a suit with a name badge was glaring at me. The atmosphere of threat was palpable.

    I can hardly believe that this is the same country as I grew up in.

  • Jives

    Villager.

    Sure i got a joke for you…

    How many trolls does it take to invade a blog?

    ******

    I’ll provide the answer after you have a go Villager..

  • Villager

    I must confess Macky that does make me laugh, only to see that your sense of humour is even lesser than my estimation. In tandem with your level of education. Get over your inferiority complex and your anger at not being sent to a proper school where you could have learnt how to spell “clark” and generally be more productive so you didn’t have to hang out with folks like PisserBy and Fuckedup. Genuinely feel for you you poor sod.

  • Villager

    Thats quite telling Clark, sorry to hear.

    Now as a controlled experiment can we send Passerby/Fedup too to the exact same centre…

  • fedup

    villageCunt is itching to be fucking getting into a scarp of anysorts, the fucking useless fucking cunt that it is. All day long it has been bitching and moaning and spamming, to the approval of the hasbawanker the kooky who is pleasured by its spamming.

    This is the best of the zioufckwits specimen getting thrown at us, and by the looks of it the “master race” really has not got much of a chance has it?

  • Macky

    Clark: “eyeing me aggressively and standing with their legs apart and arms folded like nightclub bouncers”

    Reminds me of the gangs of UK Border Security goons that stand between cars at the passport control kiosks after arriving from France at Dover, trying their best hard look to intimidate, but really looking spectacularly ridiculous.

    Perhaps you shouldn’t have reminded a certain person that you are unemployed, as he likes to mock & taunt those in your situation, but maybe it’s only if he thinks that they are “foreign”

  • Sofia Kibo Noh

    How can you tell which tricycle belongs to my Little Bro?

    It is the one with the kickstand.

  • fedup

    My quiet, polite questions were apparently disapproved of, as three G4S private security guards had taken up positions around me, eyeing me aggressively and standing with their legs apart and arms folded like nightclub bouncers. A man in a suit with a name badge was glaring at me. The atmosphere of threat was palpable.

    I can hardly believe that this is the same country as I grew up in.

    Hi, Clark it seems you have been acquainted with the private Jobcentre plus too!

    The funny part about the security guards standing with their arms folded is; you can clock the wankers before they have managed to get moving. I know everyone has a job to do, but no need to fuck around with people now, is there?

    This is the “new normal”, and the fact that even for looking at job adverts now the national insurance numbers, dob, name and address are asked for, belies the fact that there are no fucking jobs to be had. Now you see why we are all Palestinians now?

  • fedup

    How can you tell which tricycle belongs to my Little Bro?

    It is the one with the kickstand

    Hi Sofia Kibo Noh, that is funny, thanks for the laugh.

  • Villager

    Q: “How many trolls does it take to invade a blog?”

    A: Zero. You can’t, or need not, ‘invade’ a bunch of obsessives, self-haters, inferiority-complex-ridden blinkered losers, most of whom eat, breathe and drink the I/P conflict 24/7.

    There are, fortunately, a handful or two or three of good, normal, intelligent, articulate, balanced posters who lead by a host of high-integrity will ensure that this place thrives. They do not wish to be conspicuous by trivial c&p’s, barking or rabidly abusive.

    Note, the Fuckedup mother-fucker is back from the pub to invade. Is he going to invade the job centre where Clark was?

  • fedup

    Note, the Fuckedup mother-fucker is back from the pub to invade. Is he going to invade the job centre where Clark was?
    Villager

    29 Oct, 2013 – 11:27 pm

    figlio di puttana I never sired you, and limp was you daddy who could not get it up, hence your fixation with the eunuchs. Forgot the time you had shit yourself and needed the mod and dreo to pull you out of the world of shit, have you?

  • Villager

    Answer my question: “Is he going to invade the job centre where Clark was?”

    Its a noble sociological experiment.

    Anyhow i imagine your mother will be happy to have you at home.

  • Jives

    Villager,

    Ooooh touched a nerve there sweetie didnt i?

    The oh-so-mature Villager spits the dummy out the pram with a rage and strop filled reply.

    Did Habby tell you to reply like that lapdog?

    Lolz at ickle Villager.

    Woof!

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