Ron Paul:

"My understanding is that espionagemeans giving secret or classified information to the enemy. Since Snowdenshared information with the American people, his indictment for espionage couldreveal (or confirm) that the US Government views you and me as theenemy."

Ron Paul recently said on his Facebookpage:

"My understanding is that espionagemeans giving secret or classified information to the enemy. Since Snowdenshared information with the American people, his indictment for espionage couldreveal (or confirm) that the US Government views you and me as theenemy."

He's right. If nothing else, the way thishas played out tells you everything you really need to know about the Land ofthe Free right now.

Snowden has been demonized by just aboutevery government official on record. US Secretary of State John Kerry calledSnowden's actions "despicable and beyond description," while USSenator Lindsey Graham said, "I hope we'll chase him to the ends of theearth..."

Words like "hanging" and"treason" are floating around the mainstream media. It's incredible.The issue no longer has anything to do with the criminality of the governmentspying programs. But whether Snowden should be shot or hung.

Yet amazingly enough, many polls show thatroughly half of Americans think that Snowden is a traitor and should beprosecuted. And among the Twittering classes, the discussion quickly turned toSnowden's 'hot or not' status as a potential sex symbol.

Such data is truly profound. Roughly halfof Americans don't give a rat's eye about their own liberty. And it's obviousthat the US government has every intention to continue these programs fullspeed ahead.

When it becomes this clear that you nolonger share basic, core values with your government... or your neighbors...maybe it's time to consider other options.

The world is a big place, after all. Andthere's a tremendous amount of freedom and opportunity ripe for pioneering,talented people.

One last thing I'd like to point out onthe matter is whether or not Mr. Snowden would have been aided if he hadprocured a second passport. The answer, quite simply, is a resoundingYES.

Snowden is now marred in a number of banallegal technicalities.

The US government has cancelled hispassport (another questionable legal move from Uncle Sam). So he appears stuckin the international transit area at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport.

He's not legally able to fly back to HongKong. Nor is he legally able to board a flight to Havana for onward travel toEcuador, in order to apply for asylum.

If Mr. Snowden had been able to procure asecond passport prior to stepping into the limelight, he would likely not be inthis predicament as he could have been traveling on his other passport.

This is one of the hidden virtues ofhaving a second passport. You might never 'need' one. But should such a needever arise, it can really be a life saver.

In Mr. Snowden's case, the best option onthe table would have been Brazil.

Why? Because anyone can beBrazilian. It doesn't matter what your ethnicity is; Brazil is a melting pot of200+ million people. White, black, brown, it doesn't matter. Even obviouslyanglo names like Edward Snowden are not terribly uncommon in Brazil.

Moreover, Brazil has a very clear policyof not giving up its citizens.

Yes, Brazil technically does have anextradition treaty with the US. But nations routinely set aside extraditiontreaties whenever it suits them.

So if Snowden had become a Brazilian(which anyone can do-- via 2-4 years of residency, or marriage, or even havinga child), he could be happily living out his days on the beach in Fortaleza,rather than being stuck in a Russian transit zone.

I personally would like to wish Mr.Snowden safe and speedy travels to his next destination... which will hopefullybe far from the United States of America and its faux justice system.

Simon Black
Senior Editor, SovereignMan.com