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Watch the video above and review the timeline here. Edward Snowden released documents that showed the large scale surveillance waged by the U.S. government. Your task this week will be to examine the Snowden case and the place of surveillance in our American democracy. Answer the prompts below to guide you when writing your post. Share any other perspectives you have on the topic.
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82 Comments
Adriana Serna
2/21/2016 01:27:49 am
Snowden explained that the NSA and intelligence community in general is focused on getting intelligence wherever it can by any means possible. It was first focused on foreign intelligence and now it has grown to target the citizens of the United States. The NSA can target anyone, at anytime, anywhere and they can pick up those communications between citizens by the range of sensor networks. Snowden mentions wiretapping and even being able to wiretap the president if he was able to get a personal email. They can look up phone records like text messages, emails, calls made, they can listen in to conversations through cell phones, landlines, and Skype. It goes further by looking at bank account records, purchases made, and anything else they can get their hands on. They can even look at files you’ve sent out.
Matthew Mullen
2/24/2016 05:32:39 pm
I agree with you when you emphasize just how much he is sacrificing. I thought it was interesting when he was talking about his day to day life as an analyst and he said it was easy and luxurious because he worked in Hawaii. It is admirable to me how he views the motivation behind exposing the government.
Yunlin Xie
2/28/2016 01:53:27 am
I believe what he did was good for most people, but in American officials and governors' eyes, it might not be a good news for them. I agree that he sacrificed a lot. It really needed lots of courage to do this. 2/24/2016 10:02:07 pm
You defend your argument really well and clear to understand. It is interesting that after all this information came out into the news nothing really ever changed. Yes, Snowden left the United States, but that is really the only change that happened out of this entire case. Which is scary, because if the technology is out there to have our information so easily and our government uses it. What can other people do to have our information?
Ha Mac
2/28/2016 07:06:46 pm
Your answer is so easy to understand that I could look at it and understand almost all of the video. I agree that in most cases, the government should not have people’s information, but it the government find someone suspicious, it’s ok foe them to investigate that person. I also find what Snowden does is right
Mosima Sona
2/28/2016 07:34:08 pm
I agree that it took a lot of courage and balls to do what Snowden did. I think he did it for the greater good of the public and to do it at his own expense only shows that he did it for the good of everyone. The only reason government officials get mad is because the things they're doing are finally coming to light in a way that they can't explain away.
Caitlin Hoover
2/28/2016 10:48:02 pm
You make an excellent argument, and defend your point very well. I completely agree with you. As society is right now, it is pretty much the same thing as the Salem Witch Trials, only substituting "witch" for "terrorist". Even if there is no real proof, they can eff up anyone they don't like. Boyfriend cheated on you? Terrorist. Homeless guy on the corner? Terrorist. Teacher give you a lot of homework? Terrorist.
Elena Saldivar
2/24/2016 11:46:50 am
Snowden exposes in the term of surveillance by the government is that the government can hack emails, phone calls of all American citizens even if the person is innocent or being suspected of a crime. The people who work in intelligence an can surveillance anyone at any time. Well the main benefits of surveillance are that it can actually help detect threats by people who want to do harm to citizens. The abuses is that it actually gives the government the freedom to surveillance anyone in the world. Even if the person is not being investigated for being a terrorist or of a serious crime. From this idea of surveillance yes it dose play a role in our society being democratic. Mostly because American citizens don’t even know that they are being watch. Due to that the government use it for protection of our country to fight terrorism but it also affects everyday American citizens. With this surveillance information that is used should I let the government keep this information. For me it goes both ways of having the government have this information, yes there may be things that I want to private, but then I want to show that I exist. Now did Snowden in my opinion do the right thing in doing this documentary, yes. Because he trying to show American people what the government is actually and felt that the people have the right to know. With this amount of surveillance, no it is true democracy.
Matthew Mullen
2/24/2016 05:40:39 pm
It seems to me that if they were to crunch numbers on how much data they ingest that is potentially terrorist based. I feel that that number would be extremely low. With that being said, it would be interesting if the surveillance actually got minimized by the protest of citizens because I’m not sure how they would be able to fight terrorism. I mean, there has to be an alternative way to the surveillance of the entire public, but I’m not sure what that would be.
Kevin Manago
2/26/2016 05:30:42 pm
I agree with what you say about this surveillance playing a role in our democracy. But, I believe that what you're saying is more along the lines of ignorance is bliss. Because we don't know that we're under surveillance, that we're safe and fine. If we don't know what's going on, then whatever's going on that we don't know about is okay.
Andrew Luft
2/27/2016 06:18:57 pm
The way that I see it, the American people in large are aware and have speculative of the fact that the government has and has had the capability of watching their actions and interactions via electronic sources. I think what Snowden really did was expose us to the extent to which the government is capable of surveilling us and what they can really do with that information.
Yunlin Xie
2/28/2016 08:26:30 pm
I agree that this kind of surveillance will impact our democracy, mostly because citizens don’t even know that they are being watch. If we know the government use it for protection of our country to fight terrorists, I think it is totally fine. The most important is we need to know what are they doing or how they operate this surveillance system, and they should have our agreement before carrying out actions.
Maria Garcia
2/28/2016 10:24:09 pm
I agree about the fact that I want to show that I exist but not to the point where the government has every single bit of my private information. It is true that the surveillance does help catch threats in America but I don't believe innocent people should be surveillanced.
Matthew Mullen
2/24/2016 05:26:12 pm
According to Edward Snowden, surveillance was previously only used for foreign intelligence, but now it is used domestically. The N.S.A. targets the communications of everyone, by default and collects this data by filtering, analyzing, measuring and storing it. This is executed because it is considered the easiest, most valuable way to surveil the public. The potential uses and abuses of surveillance quite frightening. Any surveillance analyst can target anyone at any time they desire. Snowden himself said he had the ability to wiretap anyone at any time, even President Obama if he obtained a personal email. Surveillance impacts our democracy because it makes the U.S. not a democracy. We are not free under this kind of surveillance. Snowden stated that the N.S.A. can paint anyone into suspicion of a wrong doer, with increasing databases, can go back, if suspicious, and pick out any conversation you’ve ever had through devices and make charge you as guilty, ruining an innocent or many innocent people’s lives. The government absolutely should not have this power. The power they have to surveil the public in the first place is enacted by policies, not laws. This means that any person in power can change the policies, and even further increase the surveilling processes of the public if they so choose. I strongly believe Snowden did the right thing. What I think is important is how he views what he did and why he exposed the government. He thinks the public should have access to information of what is happing to them when a government system is acting outside of the democratic model of government. He believes this is a fundamentally dangerous thing to democracy. He says that he is a normal guy who is not against the country. He just feels that the public should decide whether these policies are right or wrong. He said that he would accept any risk so long as the public gets to know what is happening to them that they are not living in a free society. It seems to me that he just wants the people of America to know that they are not free so that we can act upon that information if we desire. Snowden is not a criminal in my mind. We definitely cannot have a democracy with the level of surveillance the U.S. government currently has over its citizens. I agree with Snowden when he says that if the U.S. government keeps doing what it’s doing that it will be tyrannical. We are not free if we don’t have the right to free speech, especially in the privacy of something as innocent as a phone conversation with a friend.
Charbel Mawad
2/24/2016 10:00:28 pm
Snowden decision to speak out shows how brave he was. This kind of surveillance shows how much power the central government has. they think they can do anything and get away with it so snowden exposed them. This is good considering many people would have kept their mouth shut.
Brandon L
2/25/2016 10:08:40 pm
Though it says we have the right to free speech it is interesting to think about that though in a technical aspect we do, we also don't in means that will portray us badly in the future.
Justine Calso
2/27/2016 09:23:19 pm
I remember when all this was in the media several years ago. I didn't understand it at the time. Some people were outraged, others were confused and didn't know what to believe. I do agree with you though, Snowden did the right thing by exposing the ways our government has been watching us. I think a lot of people felt betrayed and violated. Imagine what would happen if Trump were to become president, how would we all be surveilled then?
Ha Mac
2/28/2016 07:10:25 pm
Mosima Sona
2/28/2016 07:37:36 pm
Snowden may have been deemed a criminal but he by no means did anything that should be looked at badly. He wanted to keep the public informed on our government's actions, even though that should be their job, and he did it at his own expense. His willingness to sacrifice his own well being for others is only a testament to the amount of bravery he has.
Yunlin Xie
2/28/2016 08:36:22 pm
It is very sad that Snowden was considered as a criminal for American government. I still remember he was difficult to find a place to stay after this issue occurred. Because the country he betrayed was America, the most powerful country in the world. I remember some countries dared not to accept him because they do not want to offend the U.S.A. He did so much so much not only for America but also for other countries, but what did he finally get?
Caitlin Hoover
2/28/2016 10:56:50 pm
I agree. While I do not have much knowledge with this sort of thing outside of classes, I do remember something I saw on the show "The Good Wife". The protagonist was put on the watchlist herself because she was recorded in a random screening of her phone calls mentioning the names of two people already on the watchlist, one of which was Snowden. That's it, just mentioning their names in casual conversation, but that was enough. And the sad truth is that is enough in reality too
Landon Tang
2/28/2016 11:56:12 pm
Snowden will never be welcome again in any territory with strong United States influence. By providing the public with information about the governments wrongdoings and violations of private citizen's constitutional rights, he subjected himself to a life away from family, friends, everything that he knew. He is a prime example of what a citizen should be for the well being of the country but most importantly, the people who reside within.
Charbel Mawad
2/24/2016 09:53:17 pm
Edward Snowden tells that all media, including phone messages, any conversations with friends, things online and especially the internet are all under surveillance. Even if you’re not doing anything wrong we are being watched. Even if we never do anything wrong, if they raise suspicion they can go back to the surveillance record and paint people to be something that they are not. Snowden mentions that, "if they want to get you, they'll get you in time." The surveillance of the government completely expels the freedom of speech and privacy from the individual. The outcome of America is therefore controlled by the all powerful government, mending policy vs. law as a practice where policy can be broken. Such leads to the abuse of power by the government over the people, predicted to turn our current society into tyranny. The government should not be available to this information. Storing this information for massive periods of time should not be allowed. Snowden stated that, "any analyst at any time can target anyone." Essentially, the NSA could anonymously wire tap anyone if they wanted to and use these tips to their advantage without direct consent. Such exposure by the government is considered abuse of power over individuals, yet to analysts, such as Snowden, it’s a normal state of business that people don't take as serious as it is. Yes, I believe Snowden did the right thing by exploiting the abuse of the government. He believes that the content sensors should be the people’s decision rather than the governments. He resembles the importance of the people in relativity to the all powerful government and its secrecy. We absolutely cannot have true democracy with the current level of centralized surveillance. Because the people are being continuously spied on and may be pinned for crimes they have no direct link to, the government is clearly overtaking the American people. Because the US government has become a world power agency, they could essentially pay off triads, get international intelligence involved, pass on secrets internationally, and make things disappear. People are always watched and preserved in order to maintain more control of national and global society. It reminds me of George Orwell’s book 1984, where entire citizens who challenged the government were disintegrated into thin air. I believe this type of governmental power is completely taking over our society until the people will no longer have a voice.
Adriana Serna
2/25/2016 09:49:15 am
I find it interesting that you made a similar connection to the George Orwell's novel. The books genre is known as utopian and dystopian fiction, political fiction, and social science fiction. In this day-and-age the theme of 1984 can be seen as non-fiction. That is a truly frightening thought when we can call a fictional book about dystopia a reality today. America is now this dystopia who is ruling over its people with all the power its giving itself. They are breaking laws and making laws to spy on its own citizens like we are all enemies. And they will use that power to silence whoever they feel will hurt them. The question is how far will this book become reality before people realize the true nature of where we are headed? This is a past that is repeating itself.
Justine Calso
2/27/2016 09:27:04 pm
I also like how you made the connection to Orwell's novel. Big brother seems to be growing bigger and bigger. T.V. shows like NCIS track everyday citizens by the push of some buttons, it's like stalking on steroids. I remember the government made Snowden sound like a huge traitor to this country, they still do make him sound that way today. I'm glad he decided to be brave and pull the curtain back on our government.
Melissa Nevarez
2/25/2016 12:16:28 pm
It honestly is really scary knowing all our social media posts and whatever we say or text on the phone is being recorded. Even if we are speaking to someone else or do something we are constantly being watched and recorded. That's technically the government not allowing us to have our privacy and freedom at all. I believe things like that should change because it isn't right.
Eskarletl Ruiz
2/25/2016 11:10:34 pm
Knowing all this information is kind of unsettling ,but it has to be heard. Not a lot of people know about this, and it's really scary. No one is truly safe. We don't have to be suspected to get pulled in for questioning, and if we ever do, it could possibly ruin our lives. We are always being watched, no matter what. It makes me feel like the government views us all as possible rebels/criminals. They don't trust us, so they monitor us without proper consent.
Elena Saldivar
2/26/2016 01:16:14 pm
Yes it dose seem that the government has been taking more and more control of our society by them implementing things like surveillance. Interesting you compared it to1984 which reminded me of a book called a brave new world were also the government and science controlled all peoples lives.
Kevin Manago
2/26/2016 05:34:38 pm
I think it's a weird idea to think that the U.S. would pay off triads or basically mercenaries for whatever they wanted to do. It's just something I can't wrap my head around. We were all taught to perceive the government as something good and basically holy. But, as we all delve deeper in the recesses of the government, we find that isn't so true. Paying mercenary services like the triad to do something for us is something that really ticks me off because they can basically do whatever they want. They can do what they want to do and get away with it safely, and without getting their hands dirty.
Maria Garcia
2/28/2016 10:28:44 pm
The fact that every American is pretty much guilty until proven innocent is sad. It is true what Snowden says about how the government can make us look guilty even if we're not by going through our history. Through all the information that they received by spying on us. 2/24/2016 09:55:05 pm
The various forms of surveillance are through wire tapping, internet, conversations with anyone, and personal email. The uses for surveillance are so that the government can monitor activity of everyone, they do this because they want to watch out for terrorist attacks and stay one step ahead of terrorist. Abuses of surveillance are invasion of privacy and tracking people. I believe the government should and should not have this information. They should because they are protecting us from terrorist, they shouldn't because it invades privacy. For example, I mean you are getting this person's records, private photos, messages and internet history. They can track anything and you don't even realize when it's happening. Some people aren't causing any harm to the word, but then there are some who are. It seems unfair to track the 10 year old girl who just watches YouTube videos, when she is doing nothing wrong. Snowden even says, even if you are doing nothing wrong you can basically fall under suspension by someone and they can turn everything you ever said into a lay and make you seem like a wrong doer. I believe Snowden did the right thing, but when he says "I could be rendered by the CIA, or have someone come after me…. and it's a fear I'll have for the rest of my life" it saddens me because he just wants people to know this is happening and citizens do have the right know. I think it is possible to have a true democracy, but then again we can't because of situations like this. Citizens should be able to elect officials and know that they have our best interest, and that we can live comfortably day to day. Unfortunately, our government feels they have our best interest and they don't care if we get angry about surveillance. We never gave consent to surveillance, but I guess it's a price to pay for "freedom." It just scares me that while I'm typing this on my laptop, the government could be watching me through my camera or that the text i'm sending my friends are getting read. I mean I'm doing nothing wrong, but even like Snowden said, you could be doing nothing wrong and they could make it seem like you are.
Charbel Mawad
2/24/2016 10:04:34 pm
The government is totally taking away our rights by doing what they are doing. Also, how is it possible that they have access to our information and we can't even have access to our information when it is our information. It is ridiculous. We should be able to take a stand and vote on whether or not the government has that right. I don't think they should. I usually don't vote but if we could vote on that, I would be the first one to vote. 2/24/2016 10:08:15 pm
I know, in order for myself to get all my own records it takes a lengthy process but the government wants everything. They even asked Apple to create a master key that can hack into any iphone. Imagine that, if that happens then we will all go back to flip phones.
Melissa Nevarez
2/25/2016 12:19:59 pm
I agree with what you mentioned at the very end. I do believe and know for a fact that even if we are typing this right now on our computers we are being watched and recorded. We are honestly doing nothing wrong, but like always the government will make it seem like we are doing something wrong. We have absolutely no privacy. They took away our freedom and freedom of speech just by watching and recording us saying or doing whatever we do.
Melissa Nevarez
2/25/2016 12:13:12 pm
Edward Snowden exposes surveillance by stating that we are all under surveillance by the government and agencies. For example, phone calls, text messages, social media posts and messages, and much more. The government can even hack into our emails. If you delete any messages or pictures off of your social media or cell phone it technically means it isn't deleted because the government can see it anytime they want. Regardless we are all being watched. Each and every single one of us is being watched. It doesn't matter if you're doing nothing wrong, you're always being watched and recorded. The potential uses and abuses of surveillance is that whatever bad thing you do the government is watching you, so if it's something that horrible the "CIA will come get you". This level of surveillance impacts our democracy because we have absolutely no freedom nor freedom of speech. We are constantly always being spied on, there is no privacy. The government shouldn't have all our information all the time. Many of us are innocent and do nothing wrong. Therefore, we should have and deserve our own privacy. I believe Snowden did the right thing by exposing the government about surveillance because we all have the right to know. Now this is a huge warning for all of us, so we could be more careful of what we say or do from now on. In my opinion, Snowden sacrificed a lot in order to do what's right for all of the people. He knew he wasn't allowed to expose them and that he would get in big trouble and possibly even tract down, but he did what he felt was the right thing to do.
Brandon L
2/25/2016 10:10:50 pm
I agree that it is a big warning for us, both in being careful of what we say or do from now on but also in politics especially seeing as policies are what impact surveillance.
Chrissy Bishop
2/25/2016 05:21:06 pm
The different forms of surveillance that Snowden exposed ranges everywhere from people’s personal information. Hacking into things like personal emails and text messages. If you have a electronic anything it can be found and information will be found. Nothing is safe anymore. They can use this information they collected from you against you or for you. The government has the choice to decide whether you are a threat to the country or others around you. Some calls you make even if it be a wrong phone number they can use that against you while twisting every word you say to make it sound like you are a threat. This type of surveillance impacts is in every way. I believe all information in our phones or laptops or anything else should be ours and ours only. I don’t believe in going through people’s information because that is there’s. Hell I don’t even peel into my partners phone not only because it’s ride but she would kill me. I don’t think the government should have this information at all. There is nothing that can protect us from the things we say. Sometimes we say bad stuff out of anger and perhaps that can be taken as a threat to anyone. Snowden did the right thing in my books. Letting the people know what’s really going on and how we should protect ourselves and our information. I believe we all have the right to our own privacy not only behind closed doors but also in our day to day lives.
Nancy Park
2/27/2016 10:48:22 pm
Hey Chrissy, you made a valid point! Our privacy is so extreme that we wouldnt even dare look into our loved one's personal information, so it makes sense that the government shouldn't invade ours. Also, it also is unfair that they could take a direct quote that was said out of personal opinion and make it into a criminal statement. The government is responsible for keeping the republic safe from real threats and not making average citizens into potential suspects.
Chelsea Payaqui
2/25/2016 08:43:45 pm
The NSA was intended to monitor for acts of terrorism in the country. Snowden talks about how the intelligence system has abused its power, spying on innocent victims. They can easily tap into phone calls, cell phone data, emails, any internet searches, any form of communication essentially. They have bought their way into companies, and if you read the terms of agreement on some things, it plainly states that the company is allowed to store your information. They try to play off their abuse in power by saying it was a technical glitch, but we know it’s not. The NSA is able to analyze and store what they’ve found for years, and what’s dangerous about storing harmless data on innocent citizens is that it can be used against us. Like Snowden says, all it takes is one small incident that gives “suspicion” and then the NSA is able to pull up the data to paint us as the enemy. I do not believe the government should have this data stored because it gives them the power to point fingers on anyone. We cannot be a true democracy because instead of working in favor of the people, they are working against the people and it isn’t realized until we are personally targeted. I think Snowden did the right thing by exposing the truth to the people. He sacrificed himself to share this knowledge he has learned by being in intelligence. He is one more person that contributed to giving the people the truth they rightfully deserve.
Ha Mac
2/25/2016 08:55:47 pm
On June 6, 2013, Edward Snowden had an interview about American government surveillance. He said that American government use surveillance in order to seek for intelligence. In the past, they mainly looked for intelligence that is oversea, but it has been happening domestically more and more. They can get any information of anyone that they suspect terrorism. He also says that he can wiretap anyone from people’s account, federal judge or even the president. All he need is just a personal email. In my opinion, we cannot have a true democracy if our personal information is easily to be revealed. Snowden also said that “Even if you’re not doing anything wrong, you’ve being watched and recorded. You don’t have to have done anything wrong.” This truth is shocking to me. It is not a comfortable feeling when you know that you are being watched at anytime and anywhere. They know what you did, what you are doing and maybe they will continue to do the same in the future. However, it would hard for us to believe and be aware of what is happening behind us because there are rarely any signs that show that we are being watched. I know that the advantage of American’s surveillance system is that the government could find out terrorism plans and come up with a solution to them before they do harm to society. Also, surveillance helps American government to detect people who committed to crime, too. However, the level of surveillance now is too high. The government should only care about people who are suspicious, not normal people who have not done anything wrong.
Elena Saldivar
2/26/2016 01:24:20 pm
It is sad to know that not many people know that they are being watch by the government. Even if they are not doing anything wrong they are still being watch. But I also agree that we could not b able to catch criminals who really want to do harm.
Justine Calso
2/25/2016 09:44:20 pm
Snowden exposed that Verizon had to handover tons of phone call data to the FBI and NSA. He also exposed that they gather information from wherever they can, analyze and store the information for long periods of time. They collect our forms of communications and wiretaps could be done on anyone, including the president. The pros of our government keeping an eye on us is that it protects us from threats and keeps us safe, but at the same time, they’re abusing the power because they’re monitoring everyone even if there is no threat. This impacts our democracy because we’re giving the government our silent consent to monitor us and it threatens our democracy. We the people are the ones who should be most powerful, not the government. We were the ones who were supposed to have a bigger say in everything, but those in Washington D.C. totally skipped over us and made their own rules. They’ve done things in secrecy and up until now, we the people knew nothing about it. The government should have this information to a certain extent. I don’t think they should have the power to wiretap us at any given moment, this should only be done if the reason is legitimate or if a threat is possible. It seems fine if they have us on file from street cameras. They’re monitoring our whereabouts, but it’s not really an invasion of privacy that way because we’re already out in public. I do believe he did do the right thing because he showed Americans, and the whole world, what our governments are capable of. I think before Snowden leaked all this information, no one really knew what the government was doing. Now we have a better idea of just how big and powerful Big Brother actually is.
Adriana Serna
2/25/2016 11:15:57 pm
Although the goal of surveilling the people is to protect us from threats and keep us safe, I feel the government surveillance is not actually keeping anyone safe but putting us in more danger by practically taking away the people's speech and actually catching the terrorist has not worked as they make it seem. For example, the San Bernardino shooting should not have happened if the government surveillance was working. Surveillance did not catch the enemies and it is spying on people that have really done nothing wrong.
Noel Alejandre
2/28/2016 11:30:24 am
I dont think Verizon should of handed any information to the government or any other company because they loose business. Right now apple does not want to unlock a certain persons phone for the government because it will give them a bad reputation and they can loose sales. I think they have the right to protect their customers and by doing this, they are not participating with the governments policy about keeping surveillance through this system. The rest of the companies need to do what apple is doing and keep their customers information private.
Landon Tang
2/28/2016 11:59:24 pm
I'm sure the government had more plans then just what Snowden revealed to us. By revealing their actions and future plans, Snowden probably delayed or prevented future actions by the government to gather and retain intelligence on their own citizens. With his landmark decision to whistleblow, he possibly set the precedent for future whistleblowers to either come forward or keep the information they know secret.
Andrew Luft
2/25/2016 09:52:47 pm
Edward Snowden exposed the C.I.A.’s ability to watch not only foreign “threats,” but also the information people in the United States, referred to as domestic, via accessing phone records, text messages, internet use, and so on and so forth. The use of such technology is not surprising, however the frequency at which it is used and who can be targeted is. He said that the fastest, most effective way to surveil for threats is to screen the entire population and then filter through that as needed. So basically any conversation anyone has had using an electronic device has been stored and can be pretty freely accessed and used to paint a contextual picture to serve the government if they want to. This brings to mind the quote, “with great power comes great responsibility.” The fact of the matter is that this information and technology is in existence and in our country and many other countries’ possession. The issue then becomes how should it be used and what regulations should be put on the use of this massive collection of data, which I believe was Snowden’s intention of drawing light to. So in other words, it’s not about whether our government should or should not have this information, but what we as a people can do make sure it is used for the right purposes. Without Snowden acting in the way he did perhaps we would still not be aware of the extent to which this issue has gone. I believe it is possible to have a true democracy with all of this surveillance if, and only if, that information is freely accessible to everyone; however that presents moral and ethical obstacles and problems in and of it. The point is that this information is out there, now what will we do with it?
Nadia Villanueva
2/28/2016 08:53:50 pm
I like how you related that quote with the reality that we are living right now; the power of having the control over technology should be on good hands. And I totally agree that the problem is not about whether the government have the information or not but how is used.
josue monroy
2/25/2016 10:13:08 pm
Snowden talks about the NSA (national security intelligence) and its focus of getting information, however they can by any means necessary. They can even wiretap the United States president as he said.
Brandon Lingerfelt
2/25/2016 10:18:01 pm
Some of the forms of surveillance Snowden exposed were wiretapping with the possibility that it could be done to anyone from the average worker to the president, via personal email. The abuse of surveillance that the United States is currently undergoing lets them scrutinize any person good or bad. And to use the system created to make anyone a bad person even if it were under suspicion you could be portrayed badly. I feel that this level of surveillance impacts our democracy greatly because, if the government truly doesn't like somebody's ideas they can basically get rid of that person with no means other than fraudulence. I don't believe true democracy could be obtained with that level of surveillance, the government would lead to more corruption and anyone that the government feels is over critical of their regime will delete those people. It's hard to say whether he did the right thing because I feel in his position he might have not accomplished enough to really see the effects take place in this lifetime. It does feel like the right thing to do; when it comes to revealing obscure and harmful events that the government has done. As well has been trying to hide. Thinking personally he did sacrifice a lot for what he did. Which someone to do that makes a stronger impressions that I agree with that the government shouldn't have all this information. Limited information is a given since they are the government but abusive, and limitless information I feel the government shouldn't have unless it is a dictatorship.
Nancy Park
2/27/2016 10:53:13 pm
It really is portrayed badly when the government compromises the rights of the people. There is a reason the bill of rights exists and the fact that the government tries to find loopholes to limit the democracy of our nation is wrong. I also agree that corruption occurs and it destroys the means of a true democracy with surveillance of that level. Prisoners are watched every day of their lives and us, as people under surveillance, keeps us imprisoned as well.
Arienna Jones
2/25/2016 10:30:19 pm
Snowden revealed the ability of the government to tap into anyone’s phone, email, or other forms of communication, infringing on privacy and calling it “surveillance”. Although this technology has much potential for surveillance, the danger arises when innocent people’s privacy is infringed upon. That is when it turns to the abuse of that technology. I believe that the government has the right, to some degree, to monitor what happens with the citizens of the United States, as long as it pertains to their security and success. As soon as that motive changes, and people’s private information is used for something else, it is corrupted. Snowden says “eventually there will be a time when policies will change, because the only thing that restricts the activities of the surveillance are policies.” What he is saying is that if this breach of privacy is allowed to continue, eventually, it will affect the laws by which we live, changing our democracy forever. I believe that Snowden did the right thing – I don’t know what reforms or changes have arisen because of his courage to speak out, but I am positive that something must have changed. Perhaps there may have been a better way to do it, but overall, I think that what he did took bravery and should inspire Americans across the nation to start standing up for their own rights, especially where they might be infringed.
Eskarletl Ruiz
2/25/2016 11:03:19 pm
I agree he was very brave. Most people would not risk putting themselves in that situation because they would be targeted by the government and probably put on some super secret list. He did the right thing by sharing his information with the world. We have a right to know what is really going on.
Andrew Luft
2/27/2016 06:24:35 pm
The fact that the government is capable of accessing virtually every piece of communicative information that American citizens have partaken in doesn’t necessarily mean that the government is going to use that information. Snowden said that this collective of information to sort through is simply the fastest, most effective way to find the suspicious acts of terrorism or what have you that the government is watching out for. I like how you brought up the idea that what we need to be mindful of is how this could affect us in the future.
Lorena G
2/25/2016 10:51:14 pm
In my opinion I think Snowden did the right thing in making this short film so that people like myself that don't have any idea what type of things the government is capable of doing. He is reaching out to everyone to spread this information that everyone must know about. He is a brave guy for doing this!
Nadia Villanueva
2/28/2016 08:24:17 pm
I agree with you that what he did was to spread the information to everybody even though he knew he was putting his life in risk. An I think the same, that the government should not have our personal information because the surveillance it has gone to far. What they’re doing is to instill fear and that is not democracy at all.
Nimsy V
2/28/2016 09:13:23 pm
Hey Lorena, you made some great points on your post. I do have to agree with you that Snowden and the many other whistleblower's are really brave people, exposing these types of information to the public is something courageous. It is interesting to think about what you mentioned the story that Mrs. Crain shared with us, like have to be careful what we search online and we we talk to other people about because like what Snowden mentioned any hint of suspicion they can accuse you of thing that maybe weren't even your slightest intention.
Nancy Park
2/25/2016 10:59:43 pm
There are so many secrets that the government keeps from their citizens, but thanks to whistleblowers such as Snowden, we learn about these secrets. Some of the tactics of "surveillance" that Snowden revealed were wire tapping, phone calls, and even our text messages that we send. Even private conversations that we believe no one else will know about are being invaded. Social networks, or any type of internet based information is all being collected.
Lawrence Erispe
2/29/2016 12:00:15 am
Though i agree the government should not have private information on other people in the world especially its own citizens, but it somewhat keeps us safe. Without it the government would not be able to prevent terrorist attacks or other things from happening within the country.
Eskarletl Ruiz
2/25/2016 11:00:04 pm
Snowden exposed that the S.W.A. is super invasive. They are allowed to listen in on our phone calls, they can read our emails. The government can even pick people off the street and detain them for questioning regardless of evidence incriminating them. We don't even need to be guilty of anything, if we're suspected or not, they can still view everything. Some uses are that this can be used to discover some undercover crime going on in the US. But I believe that it is more abusive than useful. People do not feel safe anymore. We were promised something, and then the government goes around and does the opposite, because it is beneficial to them. It is a huge invasion of privacy and we barely hear about cases where the government found out a super secret criminal plan because of listening in to a phone call. It impacts our democracy because we were under the impression that we have these rights to ourselves and we are being robbed of that democratic right every time the government listens in to even one phone call. The government should not be allowed to have this information, but alas they do and there's nothing we can really do. I believe Snowden did the right thing because we should know that our government is being unfaithful to us. With this information we have the power to change this, with enough supporters. No, we cannot have a true democracy with this level of centralized surveillance going on in the US.
Chrissy Bishop
2/28/2016 06:45:55 pm
I totally agree with you when you speak about nothing being private anymore. It sucks that it seems that every single thing we do is being watched. Nine times out of ten being watched on some fronts will not make us feel safe but intruted on. Where does the safety began and the privacy stop?
Kaysie Nassman
2/25/2016 11:04:53 pm
The forms of surveillance that Snowden exposes basically all communication. All meta data, like who we call, internet, phone calls( who, when, location at the time), texts and things of that nature. The potential uses and abuses of the surveillance is being able to get intelligence where ever it can, by any means possible, by targeting the privacy of the people and the communication of EVERYONE. This system collects, filters, analyzes, measures, and stores them over periods of time because its the "easiest way”. NSA believe they are self certified, and that they are serving the national interest by making sure foreign issues do not effect the homeland, but in reality this has been abused even with our own allies. Not to mention this surveillance can apply to anyone, and can be wire tapped at anytime. Invasion of privacy, and the fourth amendment. This level of surveillance impacts our democracy by taking the power away from its people and installs fear in them. It was brave of Snowden to come forward on this subject, but it just goes to show the extent of this issue when he says “I could be rendered by the CIA, I could people come after me or any of their third parties come after me.” For example, the Obama Administration is one of the first administrations in the history of the United States to have prosecuted the MOST whistle blowers… uhhhh hello?? WE CANT HAVE A DEMOCRACY WITHOUT PRIVACY. I think that they should not have this because its unconstitutional. It actually makes us more unsafe because it makes it more difficult to collect terrorist data when they are so busy watching their own people. It has also been proven that this surveillance hasn't actually stopped a terrorist attacks and unfortunately the more we accept it, the worse it will get. I think that Snowden did do the right thing, granted putting himself in a scary and risky position. He exposed something unconstitutional that the public has a right to know. He believes that these things need to determined by the public not the government. Without him we wouldn't be able to have this debate and discussion.
Morgan Brum
2/25/2016 11:14:40 pm
Edward Snowden is a hacker that currently lives in Hong Kong that came from the US. He was able to have parts of the NSA and review some of their secrets. He had access to every single and as a member all of their locations and their plants to what they were up to. Snowden describes enhance interview that most Americans are willing to give up some personal sacrifice of freedom in order to live and feel more protected. I feel like I fall under the category of the majority because I do not personally have anything to hide so I do not feel threatened if the NSA wants to read over my emails or text messages. It might be a little embarrassing however I understand that there are ways to communicate to terrorists such as Isis and the NSA is trying to stop that This level of surveillance impacts our democracy in the way that we give up our freedom of privacy and let people that we don't even know C into our lives without permission. I don't think that we could have a complete democracy with such a high level of surveillance control however I feel like we do need to give up and sacrifice a little bit in order for the greater good and for the safety of the majority. with constant threats from Asus we need to crack down in any way shape or form in order to event catastrophes from occurring so although this isn't a justification to the NSA, this is an understanding why they do what they do. However I believe it was perfectly right for Snowden to do what he did and i support him in every way.
Lawrence Erispe
2/28/2016 11:46:24 pm
I also agree with you on your point that if you are not hiding anything, you should not be scared that the government is essentially spying on you. But, the common argument to that is the government can make you seem like you are against the government by using your emails, social media, phone calls, text messages, and etc against you.
Nimsy V
2/25/2016 11:24:08 pm
In this video Edward Snowden exposes the different forms of surveillance. Snowden describes that the NSA and the intelligence community are mainly focusing on getting intelligence where ever it may be possible. Initially they had a narrow focus on foreign intelligence but now Snowden says that there is an increase happening domestically. He mentions that there is wiretapping involved and listening in on conversations that are being stored and used against them by scrutinizing their decisions they have ever made.The abuses that surveillance potentially has is the obvious which is hacking into peoples privacy, which makes us feel and think that essentially we don't have any, and another thing that Snowden mentions is that they make any connections to what they hear and what they are looking for suspicious reasons which falls to their convenience. To some extent I feel that the government should be able to have this type of information, this may possibly prevent another terrorist attack but then again terrorist the terrorist have always found a way around the system. I do think that Snowden did the right thing because he did not become a whistleblower to harm the United States, but to give the people that type of information so that we may be aware of what the government
Lorena G
2/29/2016 12:06:41 am
Hiiiii Nimsy , I never thought of it in a sense of tracking terrorist and government not finding about the situation before terrorist get to do whatever it is they are planning on doing. I wonder if its hard to keep track of all these people or if they have working robots looking 24/7. Haven't you thought of that ?
Lawrence Erispe
2/25/2016 11:36:07 pm
Maria Garcia
2/25/2016 11:39:36 pm
Snowden exposed that the US government spies on its citizens through all sorts of forms of communication. They are able to view our emails, who we call, what we do online, and pretty much any other way it's possible to communicate. The government is abusing it's power over its citizens by violating our privacy. I understand that they use this to find possible terrorists but to spy on citizens that have not done anything wrong what so ever should not be aloud. Especially since they collect our information and file it awaym The government pretty much just likes being nosy. I do not believe we can have a complete democracy with this form of surveillance going on. It impacts our democracy because it separates us from the government. They are doing these things without us know when really we should know all the things they're doing when it involves us. Which things like this definitely do! It also cause lack of trust. If we can't trust the things the government are doing then why do we want them running our country? I believe what Snowden did was the right things. He spoke up on what they were doing. He was willing to risk becoming a target himself by our government to inform us about the surveillance. He believed that us citizens deserve to know what's going on within the government. That I completely agree with!
Nimsy V
2/28/2016 08:47:38 pm
Maria, you did a great job explaining what you think in your post. I have to agree with you that with all the "secretive surveillance" we essentially don't have any trust or for that matter privacy. If it weren't for Snowden and many other brave whistleblower's we would not know what is actually going on and how things are being controlled and manipulated for their benefit. And it in fact affects our democracy and the way that we our daily lives.
Lorena G
2/29/2016 12:25:04 am
Being "protected" by the government by watching us over the media doesn't make me feel any better. By the government keeping this away from us and having to hear it from a whistleblower......
Yunlin Xie
2/25/2016 11:41:55 pm
NSA and intelligence community in general can surveillance anyone at any time. Snowden mentioned they can even see president’s emails if they want. The surveillance now is applied not only for foreign countries but is also used domestically. They collect data, analyze data, and store data.
Kaysie Nassman
2/26/2016 09:42:35 am
I agree that the government should have access enough to block possible terrorist attacks, however as I stated in my post, this kind of surveillance has not prevented ONE terrorist attack. It hasn't been proven effective at all. When we talk about national security and "national interest", they should reevaluate their means of surveillance.
Nadia Villanueva
2/25/2016 11:46:47 pm
Basically what Snowden does is to expose the NASA and explain how surveillance passed from being used for foreign intelligence to be domestically used to target the U.S. citizens. He explains that NASA, CIA, other agencies, and the government are watching us and they have the power to hack and see phone calls, e-mails, messages, any conversations, and even see with who have you talked with in the street long time ago. Isn't it scary? Snowden ensures that with this kind of information that he had the access to, people can easily target an innocent person, or anyone suspected from a crime anytime, and anywhere. That is practically how they target people as possible terrorist but also they can detect dangerous people. Now the question is, have they been using these systems of sensor networks correctly? The main use use for surveillance was primarily to detect and estop terrorism but Snowden points that he has been watching a lot of corruption coming from the government abusing these systems.
josue monroy
2/27/2016 07:14:59 pm
i agree with you. i also believe that Snowden did the right thing by sharing information that should not be kept a secret, he was very brave by doing so. I'm sure he was aware of the greater risk he was taking. Only if there were more people like Snowden willing to stand up against the government and reveal everything that the government is keeping from us, maybe our government wouldn't be as corrupt.
Kevin Manago
2/25/2016 11:51:38 pm
There are many abuses to this power of surveillance that the government uses. It takes away the freedom of basically anyone they decide to watch on. With the power they have, they could also manipulate the words of anyone to show them as a suspect for anything. All one has to do is to say or do something that catches their eye and suddenly they're being watched and their words are being twisted.
Kaysie Nassman
2/26/2016 09:47:34 am
I find it interesting that you mentioned that there are pros and cons to the issue, in which there definitely is! However from my research and talking with other students on the topic, I have concluded that NSA hasn't been able to successfully "catch" terrorists, or stop an terrosit attack. I think that they are jammed with a ton of domestic data, that they have a hard time sorting it out, and focusing on where such attacks are coming from, domestically or foreignly. Its definitely a hard call because we don't have many security options. ( i think )
Rohit Mathew
2/25/2016 11:54:30 pm
Privacy is a luxury that is rapidly diminishing in our lives, the main reason is the government's concern for national security. Given the increasing terrorism threats in the 21st century, the government is obligated to use any these resources to remain a step ahead, may it come at the price of our privacy. "you have nothing to fear, if you have nothing to hide" is what was said by a spokesman during ongoing debates on our right to privacy. Edward Snowden tells that all media, including phone messages, any conversations with friends, things online and especially the internet are all under surveillance.This system collects, filters, analyzes, measures, and stores them over periods of time because its the "easiest way”. Knowing that we are constantly being watched hampers us from being ourselves. It will eventually come to appoint where we literally have to mind each word that we say, as we don't know how it may be interpreted and used against us. The issue then turns out to be, to what extent should it be used, if it be utilized and what regulations ought to be put on the utilization of this gigantic gathering of information. So as such, it's not about whether our legislature ought to or ought not have this data, but rather what we as an individuals can do ensure it is utilized for the right purposes. For this reason I feel the government can afford to be a little more liberal or at the very least, they could not threaten to sabotage an innocent person, whilst there are real threats to this country lurking around.
Chrissy Bishop
2/28/2016 07:21:14 pm
I never understood how being watched could ever protect us. And how do "they" know what we say to one another is a threat or not? I liked how you brought up the fact that if and when we are watched we aren't ourselves at all. We crate a mask to hide in so no one can tell what we are saying.
Chelsea Payaqui
2/28/2016 11:13:20 pm
I've never thought of privacy being a luxury, but I would agree with that. However, I feel like being watched and being paranoid over a slip up, would cause us to attract attention to ourselves too even if we had nothing to hide to begin with. I like how you question the extent of use with the data they collect.
Noel Alejandre
2/26/2016 12:02:21 am
Snowden exposed various forms of surveillance like recording phone calls, going through peoples emails, video calls on popular web sites, collecting data from big companies and anything that has to do with the internet. Every time someone goes online, they leave a trace that the NSA can see in the future. They can use it and manipulate it to say that you did or could of done something bad. The potential uses for surveillance is that people would be more careful about using the internet for a bad thing. It can prevent people from using it for a bad thing because they would be aware that they are being watch. The negative thing about surveillance is that there will be no privacy for anyone. People are going to be afraid to do things online because they might be afraid they can get arrested. Some people might not want to join cell phone companies because there information can be tracked down. big companies can loose business too. All of this surveillance impacts everything because everything is being tracked down. All the online purchases, video calls, phone calls, web sites visited and everything we do online can have a potential to hurt citizens in the future. I don't think the government should have this kind of information because its a waste of peoples time and tax money. Someone has to be there to listen to all those phone calls and check emails and get paid for. If the money comes from the tax payers, its a waste of money and they need to invest the money more wisely. I think Snowden did the right thing because all the Americans need to know what the government is doing. Its their right to know what is being done in the government. People should be aware of everything that they do. I think we can still have a democracy with this kind of surveillance, even though most of the people won't like it.
Chelsea Payaqui
2/28/2016 11:18:41 pm
The thought of being under surveillance and having everything traceable, just reminds me of George Orwell's novel 1984. I always thought it was crazy how controlled that dystopia was, but in a way our world is also censored. I agree that democracy can still work, but I think people will feel like they have to tip toe around the government.
Landon tang
2/26/2016 09:11:56 am
Snowden was one of the biggest whistleblowers of our time. He exposed secret and definitely illegal government wiretaps, video surveillance, and record auditing. With the world becoming smaller and smaller due to the internet, the ability to acquire information follows the inverse pattern and grows. The information "voluntary" surrendered by the general populace cannot be positive in any way but slowly wears the 4th amendment away the people no longer have the right to privacy. Whitleblowers in America feel they have a moral obligation to alert the public to what is really happening within a entity and I believe that Snowden did the right thing in alerting the public to the survelliance government practices.
Landon Tang
2/26/2016 09:17:06 am
If the government wants to store and retain private information upon it's citizens. It opens itself up to the fact that private citizens (black hats) have the potential to obtain this information by breaking the database, this is another key reason why central survelliance cannot be tolerated. I believe the cons outweigh the pros in this situation as the ability to monitor "terrorists" and other extreme radical individuals is slowly marring our 4th amendment right and by the whole, the foundation of what this country was built upon. Leave a Reply. |
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