By: Alex Kane, 01/02/2014

The New York Times editorial board has come out strongly for clemency or a plea deal for Edward Snowden, the National Security Agency private contractor-turned-whistleblower.  

In an editorial, the New York Times pointed out that Snowden’s actions have shed unprecedented light on the actions of the National Security Agency (NSA), a branch of government once jokingly referred to as “No Such Agency” because of its penchant for secrecy.  But now that Snowden blew the whistle on their efforts at mass surveillance, Americans--and the world--know much more about the NSA.  Snowden revealed that the NSA is collecting the metadata from millions of Americans’ phone calls and e-mails, among other revelations.

For more on this story visit www.alternet.org

By: Dr. David Kravets, 10/29/2013

Lawmakers proposed legislation today that would effectively end the NSA’s bulk phone metadata collection program. The legislation has support from Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate, and from groups like the American Civil Liberties Union and National Rifle Association. But the USA FREEDOM Act’s passage into law remains uncertain. “It is time for serious and meaningful reforms so we can restore confidence in our intelligence community,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy, a Democrat from Vermont and one of the bill’s chief sponsors.

Today’s proposal is a radical revamp of the Patriot Act, legislation passed in the immediate aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. In 2006, lawmakers amended the act to allow the bulk collection program under the disguise of Section 215 of the Patriot Act — which allows the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to authorize broad warrants for most any type of “tangible” records, including those held by banks, doctors and phone companies.

Commondreams.org, By: John Atcheson, 08/28/2013       

Most of the debate around Manning and Snowden focuses on what they did and whether they are heroes, traitors, or something in between. And that’s exactly the way our leaders want it. Because that keeps the debate off the fact that our government is spying on us; that the fourth amendment is in shreds; that the degree of government intervention in our lives is not warranted by the nature of the threat we face; and the breakdown in the media coverage of the Patriot Act in particular, and national security in general, made these leaks essential if we are to have a functioning democracy.

For more on this story visit www.commondreams.org

By: RT.com, 07/15/2013

A Swedish sociology professor has nominated Edward Snowden for the Nobel Peace Prize. He says the NSA whistleblower could help “save the prize from the disrepute incurred by the hasty and ill-conceived decision” to give the 2009 award to Barack Obama.

In his letter addressed to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Stefan Svallfors praised Snowden for his “heroic effort at great personal cost.” He stated that by revealing the existence and the scale of the US surveillance programs, Snowden showed “individuals can stand up for fundamental rights and freedoms.” 

For more on this story visit www.rt.com

IDG News Service, By: Grant Ross, 07/02/2013

A large coalition of civil rights and privacy groups and potentially thousands of websites will stage protests on the Fourth of July to protest surveillance programs at the U.S. National Security Agency. As part of the Restore the Fourth campaign, many website members of the 30,000-member Internet Defense League plan to display a protest of NSA surveillance and the text of the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Websites participating include Reddit, where Restore the Fourth originated, WordPress, 4chan, Mozilla, Fark, and Cheezburger.com. Organizers of Restore the Fourth are also planning live protests in dozens of U.S. cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Boston, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Houston and Atlanta. "How long do we expect rational people to accept using terrorism to justify and excuse endless executive and state power?" actor John Cusack said during a press conference announcing the protests. "Why are so many in our government, our press, our intellectual class afraid of an informed public?"