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Was wondering if Obama would commute the sentence after reading this op-ed a few days ago. Obama's always been kind of hard to pin down as a president, and I've always wondered how much of the horrible things the country does are a result of him personally or if a lot of it is just political momentum that he can't really control. One thing that was always under his direct control was the punishment and potential to pardon whistleblowers, this move makes him a lot more respectable in my mind even if Snowden is still effectively in exile.
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Jan 17, 2017 22:32
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JeffersonClay posted:Yes, and this undercuts the argument that he had to flee because the US justice system could never be fair, just look at Chelsea Manning. Spending seven years in prison under conditions that most of the world considers torture, attempting suicide twice, then being released on a whim by an outgoing president doesn't really redeem the US justice system. Snowden was right to flee.
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Jan 17, 2017 23:06
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JeffersonClay posted:They kept her in solitary for 11 months, not 7 years. The way she was treated was hosed up but I don't think all prison time is torture. Yeah I worded that kind of weird. I meant she had been subjected to long periods of solitary confinement during her imprisonment which would be considered torture, not that the entire seven years constituted torture. Still, that's seven years of military prison where her jailers were actively loving with her over minor infractions like having expired toothpaste in her cell. One of the times she was committed to solitary was as punishment for a suicide attempt.
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Jan 17, 2017 23:17
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JeffersonClay posted:Yes, the military was absolutely terrible in their response to manning's transition and mental health needs. I don't think it follows that Snowden could never expect fairness from the justice system. I don't know if I'm projecting that dynamic onto Obama's decision here. Snowden has said numerous times that he would face the US courts if they were willing to consider the potential that information he released was in the public interest. The Espionage Act specifically forbids this, so if he comes back it's only going to be for the sake of having the book thrown at him. Whether that constitutes a fair trial is up to you, I suppose it depends on how much you inherently respect the US legal system.
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Jan 17, 2017 23:25
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hakimashou posted:Snowden is a literal spy/defector. How so?
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Jan 18, 2017 23:15
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