Re: Bah!
Imagine how much stranger it would taste to be cheering for the USA
America will hold high-level talks on political and military teamwork with Russia this Friday - despite the latter country's offer of temporary asylum to NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. US Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel are due to meet their Russian counterparts in Washington to discuss " …
"Wasn't it Obama himself who said whitleblowers should be protected and not procecuted?"
Yup, so he's taken the ingenious* step of declaring him to not be a whistleblower and blame "cold war mentality" on the Russian's part, despite it being a cold war mentality that's led to the US spying on all and sundry.
* ingenious by a 9-year-old's standards
Hands up anyone who thinks that the US would return a Russian who bolted to the USA and started revealing how the FSB (KGB as was) monitors their population?
The current situation has to be the most spectacular own goal in the history of the US - what were they thinking? Frankly I think Obama could win reelection (yea, I know he's term limited) by simply issuing a Presidential Pardon to Snowden as an American who stood up for the principals in the US Constitution.
US Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel are due to meet their Russian counterparts in Washington to discuss "strategic stability, political-military cooperation and regional issues", including Syria and Iran's nuclear programme, the state department said.
Syria has a nuclear programme?
Yes, I know what the sentence means really, however the way it is structured it could also mean that they want to discuss Syria's nuclear programme.
"Syria has a nuclear programme?
Yes, I know what the sentence means really, however the way it is structured it could also mean that they want to discuss Syria's nuclear programme."
Israel bombed the project into dust, but that does not mean that Assad has not started up another site.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/07/obama-putin-talks-canceled-snowden
In a separate announcement, the White House said Obama will visit Sweden instead, travelling to Stockholm the day before the St Petersburg summit. "Sweden is a close friend and partner to the United States," it said in a statement. "[It] plays a key leadership role on the international stage including in opening new trade and investment opportunities."
Speaking on Monday night, Obama said he was disappointed that Russia had allowed Swowden to stay instead of sending the former government contractor back to the US to face espionage charges.
In his first direct comments about Snowden since Russia's decision last week, the president said the situation reflected "underlying challenges" in dealing with Moscow. "There have been times where they slip back into cold war thinking and a cold war mentality," Obama said on NBC's Tonight Show.
"Obama is probably going to Sweden to sew up the deal to get Assange extradited the moment the Swedes get their hands on him.
Can't waste an opportnity to tidy up a few loose ends can he?"
As has been pointed out so many times, under the terms of the EAW Sweden cannot allow the US to extradite Assange from their jurisdiction without first gaining our permission. Since we are in any case more likely to bend over at Obama's request - ToniBliar signed a treaty that makes it very easy for the US to extradite people - it makes more sense for the US to address their requests to us; indeed, the Swedish government has already made it clear that they will stand aside and let the US have first fuck with Assange if they want to.
As you wait for your comet to fly by, why don't you peruse this link which will help you avoid those dodgy NSA beams: http://zapatopi.net/afdb/
" he should be returned to the United States as soon as possible where he will be accorded full due process and protections," press secretary Jay Carney said."
In other news Private Bradley Manning's prison sentence has been reduced to 90 years.
Is Carney stupid, or does he think the rest of the world is?
Back then when someone in the USSR did something like Snowden did and he managed to escape the country, we were happy to protect him as a "dissident" despite the Soviet Premier angrily demanding his return. I was proud of my country for standing on the side of right.
Now the dissident has to escape the US and take refuge in Russia, while our President angrily demands he be returned. What the hell happened to my country?