With Julian Assange’s arrest restarting the debate over the role of whistle-blowers, now is an excellent time to revisit Campaign for Liberty Chairman Ron Paul’s 2017 column for USA TODAY, “Whistle-blowers are heroic, patriotic.”
You can read Dr. Paul’s column here and below:
It’s deeply troubling that so many in the news media and in both political parties attack the efforts of whistle-blowers and those who publish their revelations. These individuals risk it all, not for their own wealth and glory, but to inform us of what is being done to us and in our name.
Their releases are both heroic and pro-American.
We are told that the government must be allowed to operate in secret in order to keep us safe, but how much security do we really have if we allow the government to deprive us of our liberty?
What have we learned from whistle-blowers Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning or WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and others? We now know that our government views the Fourth Amendment as a mere suggestion, rather than a constraint on its actions.
Our consumer products have been turned into listening devices that the government can turn on and off at will. Those who ruled East Germany could only fantasize about such technology and its potential for controlling anyone who disagrees with the government.
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