By Emily Rosen
ERosen424@aol.com
www.emilyrosen424.com
Ya gotta love a country that can produce – within the remnants of Guttenberg print, as well as modern day social media – – columns, blogs and Letters to the Editor excoriating Edward Snowdens whistleblowing as being a danger to the country, and, in equal space, lauding the man for being a patriot, with digital news outlets relentlessly redundant in offering passionate opinions – on both sides and in between. If this isn’t a metaphor for what is “right” (as opposed to “wrong”) about our country, I cannot imagine a better one.
Personally, I have been hoping for such a national debate for quite a while. The obvious fear of a “slippery slope” is on everyone’s mind, a legitimate concern as we study how dictatorial governments usurp power sometimes so gradually as to leave a naïve constituency in shock as it realizes how powerless it has become. This can happen as a result of evil intent – or benign inefficiency .
The other side of that coin is the existential threat we face from clusters of irrational enemies requiring our use of sophisticated surveillance to thwart major disasters. And, alas, there is no official set of rules we can apply to define the boundaries, or to identify standards. Many who express passion on one side or the other are privileged to only partial information. So whistle blowers, watchdogs and defenders of our national security haggle over several versions of the truth, which we, the people, are charged with sorting out. And, just as an aside, it is ironical, though not too surprising, to note the incongruous lineup of allies as the progressive left and the libertarian right cuddle up to each other.
How is it possible to measure the effects of what Snowden did? We will never accurately be able to assess damage and we will never accurately be able to assess the degree to which some parts of our privacy may be restored as a result of his disclosures.
What actually happens to Snowden is a distraction – albeit Hollywood style – from the debate concerning the balance between security and privacy.
The nanosecond speed with which people trumpet to the world the fact that they are about to go to the john, order a Scotch or dance naked makes one wonder about privacy as a priority.
We are a country suffering from dysphoria, dissonance, disaffection, discord, disenchantment, disgruntlement, distrust, disillusionment, dispiritedness and dysfunction. And, if there’s anything we know how to do, it is to “dis” one another.
But here’s the bottom line: It is healthy that we ARE having this debate out in the open. It need not be vitriolic or accusatory. Hopefully, it will settle into more transparency balanced with an understanding and acceptance of the necessary secret measures our government must take in the name of security.
And so here’s to another Happy Birthday to our very flawed, but nonetheless better than any other, country on the planet.
