Community Corner
Issue: Is Edward Snowden a Hero or Traitor for Leaking Top-Secret Info?
University of Chicago law professor says: "He is most certainly a criminal who deserves serious punishment."
Now that he’s outed himself and offered his motives, top-secrets leaker Edward Snowden is being scrutinized by every pundit.
Said Geoffrey R. Stone, a University of Chicago law professor, in his Huffington Post blog:
Snowden is neither a hero nor a traitor, but he is most certainly a criminal who deserves serious punishment. ... There is no reason on earth why an individual government employee should have the authority, on his own say so, to override the judgment of the elected representatives of the American people and to decide for the nation that classified information should be disclosed to friends and enemies alike. Such an act is a complete usurpation of the rule of law.
But did Snowden's disclosure of vast telephonic snooping by the U.S. government actually serve national security by letting the public know more about its loss of privacy? Or is Professor Stone right? Should the book be thrown at him? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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