I was never crazy about Greenwald, and don't care for Snowden. But some of you make me a fanboy

[Armstead]

164. I think you've miscategorized some of that

Frankly, when this whole story broke I figured there would be varying reactions. It's a serious subject tat deserves serious consideration. I expected there would be some differences of opinion, and some would think that Snowden went too far. Enh. That would be a legitimate debate.

Although it was not a surprise that the Government is spying on us on a mass level since 9-11, this would I figured there'd be a lot of
reaction to the extent of it. That it would rekindle the issue of privacy and freedom that has been been swept over the rug but remains important.

I didn't see it as "anti-Obama" because its a much bigger and longer-running issue that transcends individual presidents, although he should be expected to at least try to keep them under control. And it would seem that a website where people generally opposed intrusiveness under Bush,would have the same principles no matter who is president.

But next thing you know, the hives were swarming with the kind of vitriol against Snowden and Greenwald one would expect from people like Rush when Bush was President. And it was personalized -- Never mind that respected media institutions like The Gurdian were also involved.

That's when it turned sour, IMO. And yes, both sides have treated it like a game of Recess Dodgeball.

But if people who disagreed with what Snowden did had focused on the lager isssue, instead of making it a partisan "pro or anti Obama" litmus test, there would have been an actual discussion about the larger issues involved.