A Crime for a Crime Makes the Whole World Blind

Ever since Edward Snowden began releasing information on the NSA and their methods of monitoring the population, the people of the United States have more been concerned about their privacy than ever. As people are becoming more and more aware of this surveillance, they are discussing ways to prevent access to this information. But is Snowden unjust in revealing this information to everyone? Should we really blame them when so many other huge corporations have a lot of the same technology to commit the same "crime" that the Government is? After reading this article, these are some of the questions that I have considered.

Many government officials paint Edward Snowden as the "bad guy," often calling his actions treason. The people who really benefit from this information he is releasing probably think differently. There is a price to pay in order to uncover larger crimes.  "So the question really isn’t whether Snowden committed a crime, but whether he uncovered larger crimes and that of course is the case, not just in the US, but in many countries. When crimes are committed we wouldn’t know about it if it were not for Snowden." Says Nohl, the journalist that commented on the issue in this article.  Obviously the NSA does not praise Snowden for his actions, however the public should. Though he is seen as someone who betrayed our country and put it under more stress, I believe that Snowden is releasing information that we should already know. 

This idea can go both ways, though. Think about the reason that the government really is tapping into this information. They are, in a sense, trying to "...uncover a larger crime" (Nohl) just as Snowden was. The NSA does not care about your personal information unless you are a threat to the safety of your country. So why is it such a crime that they have access to this unless you are actually a criminal, in which case you probably shouldn't have the right to your privacy. I believe that sometimes we should justify these little crimes by looking at the bigger picture. The question is, what does your bigger picture look like? A society where you are free to communicate without the fear of someone surveilling your every move, or one where everything is monitored by officials for "the safety of the nation"?