The Review Student Magazine-RVHS Spring/ Summer 2014 Volume 1 | Page 26

Edward Snowden and the Backwards Mentality of Modern America by Joel Chapman E dward Snowden became a household name when he sold out his employer, the National Security Agency (NSA) and the United States of America, after taking off from the NSA headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland, with documents containing secrets of spying on the citizens of the United States and the leaders and citizens of our allied nations. The nation went into an uproar over a breach of privacy by our government, and our allies overseas went into a fit and diplomatic tensions flared. With the Pulitzer Prize just recently being awarded to the journalists of The Guardian newspaper in the United Kingdom (who published his words and told our secrets), the question rises once again: Was the NSA in the wrong? If asked, many people would respond with a quick, “Yes, they did the wrong thing!” But did they really? One quick visit to the NSA website and you find their mission statement, the following being the most critical part of understanding what they do: “This Agency enables operations to defeat terrorists and their organizations at home and abroad, consistent with U.S. laws and the