The information he exposed needed to be shared, and I am happy he came forward with it. I am not happy he took that information and went to hostile foreign governments with it.
Suggesting Snowden lied about his status and abilities/powers does not mean I do not think some or all of the things he said about government data collection is true. I am simply stating that he may be overstating what he was capable of. I question him as well as the government that condemns him. It is obvious that the government collects data. Does that mean I agree with it because I believe Snowden shared classified information with foreign governments? No.
If he was so ready to sacrifice himself for the better of democracy and liberty (as he claims), why run off to communists countries where there is very little freedom, democracy, or liberty? I think he would have made a much better stand in a court room further exposing the government rather than going off to China and Russia as a criminal.
The information he exposed needed to be shared, and I am happy he came forward with it. I am not happy he took that information and went to hostile foreign governments with it.
I do not have proof that he brought intel to Russia, there is also no proof that he turned over all intel he stole to the reporters. He obviously ran to Russia to evade capture. You assume he only stole information that was relevant to government monitoring on its own citizens, are you sure about this? I do not know, but I sure do question it.
Obviously several here believe him to be an American hero. While I believe he brought to light important information and topics, I do not believe he is some kind of protector of liberty. I would like to believe he did this for the right reasons, and in the process kept important classified information out of the hands of enemies (information that doesn't pertain to US data collection on its own citizen). However, I am not certain. But I must be a tyrannical government sympathizer for having an opinion that questions Snowden.
This.No, I think your opinion is respectable. It's certainly possible that Snowden could have taken and given away intel that could have truly threatened national security, but I have yet to see any indication that he did. Innocent until proven guilty.