Where is the balance as far as hiding secrets of government? [View all]
On the one hand, I despise the fact that many Bush era civil liberty wounds have not been healed by Obama. I think he owes Bradley Manning a pardon, and Julian Assange an apology. I think that there needs to be an outright overhaul of the intelligence agencies of this country, from the NYPD to the CIA. The CIA in particular has gotten way too big for it's britches, way less accountable than it should be, and indeed, may need a complete disbandment and reboot. It says a lot where we spend so much on an agency that has become known for it's blunders, while smaller intelligence agencies across the world laugh.
However, there is the other hand. As much as we may think we are exceptions to History, we are not. There will always be a need for spies and covert operations, because psychopaths of all stripes, creeds, and nations are going to hide what they do, and unless we have people who can out sneak them, they will do their damage long before the standard cops can show up. There is a need for covert ops to stay covert, as Valerie Plame showed. Ms Plame that makes the talk shows could have very easily been Ms Plame shot by a North Korean firing squad. The people that try to save lives can be exposed, then killed, all because some internet twit wants to become a celebrity. We need a blanace here, the question is, where to draw the line?
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