Later...
Brendan O'Neill writes for Spiked:
"Worst of all, the cult of the whistleblower reveals the mainstreaming of conspiratorial thinking, of the belief that dark forces rule over a weak and emaciated public that is kept in blissful ignorance."This is not one of O'Neill's better articles. The NSA programs were implented via an order from a court (FISA) whose sessions are held in secret behind closed doors, for crying out loud! What O'Neill is doing is using the term "conspiratorial thinking" merely for it's connotative value as a tool of mockery (note the later introduction of Alex Jones for not-so-subtle comparison purposes, i.e. anyone who lauds Snowdon's actions is akin to Alex Jones).
The reason Snowdon's actions are important is not that what he has revealed is surprising - it isn't - it is because he is defying the will of the U.S. government. In that sense Snowdon has subverted the function of the"whistleblower".
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comment moderation is now in place, as of April 2012. Rules:
1) Be aware that your right to say what you want is circumscribed by my right of ownership here.
2) Make your comments relevant to the post to which they are attached.
3) Be careful what you presume: always be prepared to evince your point with logic and/or facts.
4) Do not transgress Blogger's rules regarding content, i.e. do not express hatred for other people on account of their ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation or nationality.
5) Remember that only the best are prepared to concede, and only the worst are prepared to smear.