To close with another history lesson: In 1777, Commodore Esek Hopkins of the Continental Navy assisted in the torture of British sailors. Two whistle-blowers, Richard Marven and Samuel Shaw, reported the misdeed to Congress, which duly relieved Hopkins of duty. Hopkins promptly sued Marven and Shaw for libel.
Congress, rather than shirk, instead instructed a certain “Sam. Adams” to see that the gentlemen’s legal fees were paid and enacted its first whistle-blower protection law on July 30, 1778, noting, “It is the duty of all persons in the service of the United States … to give the earliest information to Congress of any misconduct, frauds, or misdemeanors committed by any officers or persons in the services of these states.”
Edward Snowden did just that, and he shouldn’t have to live a life of exile and infamy for it.
Idrees M. Kahloon ’16, a Crimson editorial executive, is an applied mathematics concentrator living in Dunster House. His column appears on alternate Tuesdays.