Being non-anonymous is a point in favor of Snowden being remembered (DT did a lot more than Ellsberg but...), although being in limbo in Russia really isn't hel

Being non-anonymous is a point in favor of Snowden being remembered (DT did a lot more than Ellsberg but...), although being in limbo in Russia really isn't helping. Another interesting question is timing. If Snowden had happened in December 2002 (so, no elections, and the programs well underway), he probably wouldn't have the level of support we have today. Before the Iraq War, there was certainly a lot more support of the GWoT among even "reasonable" people. I remember launching an anonymous remailer late on 9/11 or 9/12 and it really seemed like the end for people caring about privacy. If MLK had happened much earlier, it probably would have been a lot more difficult for him, too. With Snowden, I think we're a bit late (in time for the elections of 2008 or 2012 would have been great; the financial collapse might have been a necessary precondition for distrust of institutions though) -- a decade more on the same trajectory would have been a lot worse, and IMO probably irreversible.