Sunday, July 14, 2013

From Russia with Love, Part 3

Trey Smith


Today I have been sharing and commenting on portions of Edward Snowden's recent statement issued from Moscow on Friday. The full statement can be read at the WikiLeaks website.
I announce today my formal acceptance of all offers of support or asylum I have been extended and all others that may be offered in the future. With, for example, the grant of asylum provided by Venezuela’s President Maduro, my asylee status is now formal, and no state has a basis by which to limit or interfere with my right to enjoy that asylum. As we have seen, however, some governments in Western European and North American states have demonstrated a willingness to act outside the law, and this behavior persists today. This unlawful threat makes it impossible for me to travel to Latin America and enjoy the asylum granted there in accordance with our shared rights.

This willingness by powerful states to act extra-legally represents a threat to all of us, and must not be allowed to succeed. Accordingly, I ask for your assistance in requesting guarantees of safe passage from the relevant nations in securing my travel to Latin America, as well as requesting asylum in Russia until such time as these states accede to law and my legal travel is permitted. I will be submitting my request to Russia today, and hope it will be accepted favorably.
Imagine the outrage from US officials if the shoe was on the other foot. Suppose the US had granted asylum to an individual from North Korea and the North Koreans had made efforts to block the person's ability to travel. You know as well as I do that President Obama and congressional leaders would mount their bully pulpits to denounce North Korea's actions in the strongest way possible. They would rally support from other nations to apply as much pressure as possible to force the North Korean government to allow this individual safe passage.

But that's the insidious nature of American Exceptionalism. What is not kosher for any other nation even to contemplate is completely kosher for us. We don't care what anybody else thinks and we certainly won't kowtow to any manner of pressure. We are god and, by this logic, anything we say and anything we do is right, just and the way things must be.

Edward Snowden is in Obama's crosshairs because he valiantly stood up to look in the face of power to say No, you are not god!

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