Editing and commentary by Carolyn Bennett
Patriots are defined as people who
love their country and support its interests.
They ask “What can I do for my
country.”
Givers of authoritarian decrees, rogue governors (think
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Yemen) are neither patriots nor are their actions intended
to preserve (uphold) the law of the land or international law or to protect the people of this
or any country or people. |
M
|
imicking Joseph McCarthy and his ilk of federal Washington’s
dark past ─ even more depraved as this government is armed with highly sophisticated
technological toys and an unchecked unscrupulousness in using them, an authoritarian
control of news media as instruments of fear mongering, and a widespread incestuous collusion with private
industrial “partners” ─ the Obama government has time and again crushed attempts
to inform or make available to the public the government’s acts of “gross
corruption, wrongdoing, and illegality.”
America’s fourth president James Madison: If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy.
The nonpartisan Government Accountability Project, a leading
whistleblower protection and advocacy group, last week released a statement concerning
the false charge of espionage the Obama government and other flapping tongues
in Washington have laid against the American and former Civil Servant, Edward
Snowden. This is some of the Project’s statement.
 |
| Chased by Rogue Government |
Rogue government
Merriam-Webster defines “Rogue”
(the adjective) as “aberrant, dangerous or uncontrollable; corrupt dishonest; of
or being a nation whose leaders defy international law or norms of international
behavior.
|
“
|
The Obama administration’s charge of espionage against
Edward Snowden is not a surprise,” the Government Accountability Project wrote
in its statement, [because] “This administration has continually sought to
intimidate federal employees – particularly intelligence community workers –
and suppress any attempt they might make to speak out against gross corruption,
wrongdoing, and illegality.”
Neither spy nor traitor
“Edward Snowden is a whistleblower,”
the Project said.
“He disclosed information about a secret program that he
reasonably believed to be illegal, and his actions alone brought about the
long-overdue national debate about the proper balance between privacy and civil
liberties on the one hand and national security on the other.
“Charging
Snowden with espionage is yet another effort to retaliate against those who
criticize the overreach of U.S. intelligence agencies under this administration.
The charges send a clear message to
potential whistleblowers: this is the treatment (you) can expect should (you) speak
out about violations of the Constitution of the United States of America.
“It is particularly noteworthy,” the statement continues, “that
─
Snowden spoke truthfully to the
public about NSA (National Security Agency) surveillance after Director of
National Intelligence James Clapper (had) intentionally
lied in his testimony before the Senate of the United States about these
same activities.
Clapper, however, has not even been
admonished for his purposeful, deliberate deception of both the Senate and the people
of the United States.
America’s fourth president James Madison: Liberty may be
endangered by the abuse of liberty, but also by the abuse of power.
Truth without safe harbor
Contrary to U.S. lawmakers’ TV-made claims to the contrary,
the Government Accountability Project says, “The channels internal to
intelligence agencies for whistleblowers are neither effective nor confidential.
“Their gross inadequacy is best illustrated by what befell (Government
Accountability Project) clients and NSA whistleblowers Tom Drake, William
Binney and J. Kirk Wiebe ─ all of whom suffered retaliation after they reported
internally serious misconduct at the NSA.
“Like these three men, Snowden will face serious consequences
for exposing the wrongdoing and crimes of others.
“At the same time, those who stretched their interpretation
of laws to invade the private lives of Americans ─ while lying to the U.S. Congress
and the public about their actions ─ will simply continue working.”
America’s fourth president James Madison: The advancement
and diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty. Of all the enemies of public liberty, war is perhaps the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other.
Sources and notes
“GAP Statement on the Espionage Charge Filed against Edward
Snowden” (The Whistleblogger 2013 by Government Accountability Project), June
22, 2013, http://www.whistleblower.org/blog/44-2013/2804-gap-statement-on-the-espionage-charge-filed-against-edward-snowden
GAP released a statement on Snowden and the NSA surveillance.
Media calls regarding this statement can be directed toward GAP President Louis
Clark at 202.441.0333 or louisc@whistleblower.org, or GAP Communications
Director Dylan Blaylock at 202.236.3733 or dylanb@whistleblower.org. Dylan
Blaylock is Communications Director for the Government Accountability Project,
the nation’s leading whistleblower protection and advocacy organization.
National Security and Human Rights Counsel Kathleen
McClellan discussed this issue yesterday on The Pacifica Evening News (The
Pacifica Evening News Weekdays, for June 24, 2013 - 6:00 p.m., http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/92807)
Kathleen McClellan
has worked with whistleblowers from the National Security Agency (NSA), CIA,
Department of Defense, and Department of Homeland Security in a variety of
forums, including Offices of Inspectors General, the Merit System Protection
Board (MSPB), and federal court. Recently, she assisted National Security and Human
Rights Director Jesselyn Radack in representing former NSA official Thomas
Drake on whistleblower matters and successfully litigated a removal case before
the MSPB.
She is National Security and Human Rights Counsel for the Government
Accountability Project and supports national security and intelligence
community whistleblowers, with a particular focus on issues of torture,
surveillance, excessive secrecy, and political discrimination. She has appeared
on a variety of U.S. and international news programs.
Before joining the Government Accountability Project, McClellan
worked with the American Civil Liberties Union’s legislative office on a broad
range of civil rights and civil liberties issues, including open government,
PATRIOT Act reform, employment discrimination, and surveillance. She took her
academic credentials at the University of Wisconsin Law School (J.D.) and St.
Mary’s College of Maryland (Bachelor of Arts); contact: kathleenm@whistleblower.org
http://www.whistleblower.org/about/gap-staff/101-kathleen-mcclellan-
Government
Accountability Project
Based in Washington, D.C., the Government Accountability
Project is a nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, a public interest
group that was founded in 1977; and has become “the nation’s leading
whistleblower protection and advocacy organization.” In addition to focusing on
whistleblower support in its stated program areas, the Project leads campaigns
to enact whistleblower protection laws both domestically and internationally; conducts
an accredited legal clinic for law students and offers a year-round internship
program.
The mission of the Government Accountability Project, according to its website, is to promote accountability of corporations and government “by protecting whistleblowers, advancing occupational free speech, and empowering citizen activists.” http://www.whistleblower.org/about
The mission of the Government Accountability Project, according to its website, is to promote accountability of corporations and government “by protecting whistleblowers, advancing occupational free speech, and empowering citizen activists.” http://www.whistleblower.org/about
http://www.whistleblower.org/index.php
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Bennett's books are available in New York State independent bookstores: Lift Bridge Bookshop: www.liftbridgebooks.com [Brockport, NY]; Sundance Books: http://www.sundancebooks.com/main.html [Geneseo, NY]; Mood Makers Books: www.moodmakersbooks.com [City of Rochester, NY]; Dog Ears Bookstore and Literary Arts Center: www.enlightenthedog.org/ [Buffalo, NY]; Burlingham Books – ‘Your Local Chapter’: http://burlinghambooks.com/ [Perry, NY 14530]; The Bookworm: http://www.eabookworm.com/ [East Aurora, NY] • See also: World Pulse: Global Issues through the eyes of Women: http://www.worldpulse.com/ http://www.worldpulse.com/pulsewire http://www.facebook.com/#!/bennetts2ndstudy
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