Here's the needle in the haystack. The core of the issue is that there IS no "right way", which is why I agree with what he did and also believe that the whistle-blower laws need heavy, heavy reform (and hopefully will get such treatment as a result of all of this). I say "wrong way" only because, no matter his moral "rightness" was still illegal. This is the age-old difference between obedience (following the law regardless of 'rightness') and Morality (doing the 'right' thing regardless of the law). By no means do I suggest he be treated as a criminal or a traitor. But the fact is that, the way the laws are currently written, he's both. But then, so were the founding fathers of this country.

He did the right things, but in the wrong way. No matter his intentions or the results, both of which are good, it doesn't change the fact that he broke the law. My opinion on this would be to acknowledge that he broke several laws, including espionage and other serious offenses, but keep his punishment light (as in non-existent) an call it "time served" for whatever incarceration/detention is needed to get his case in front of a judge that agrees to rule like this. We need to be careful not to praise the acts only because the results were good. Certainly the current whistle-blower laws need heavy reform; they can take that into consideration when handing down sentencing.

Already in the US, we pay more per Mb/s than pretty much any other 1st world country. This isn't due to the size, as some would have you believe, but rather due to the lack of oversight, regulation and, most importantly, competition. There are no laws preventing the formation of what basically become monopolies from companies such as Comcast, where they can charge what they want and basically print their own money. I sincerely hope that they are not successful in basically paying to avoid having real competition. I know I, personally, would love to have "real" Internet speeds provided to me at world-comparable rates, no matter if they came from State, county, city or private sources. Just bring it on!

I can't help myself but to notice the similarities between this and the fictional "TruBlood" as I'm sure everyone else will, too. Maybe this is just the precursor to the vamps integrating with our society! (not like the current versions we have in the US serving in Congress)