--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Snowden has been very sparing about…" description: "\"Snowden has been very sparing about discussing his early life or his personal life.\" — Barton Gellman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/barton-gellman-3126_about_snowden-has-been-very-sparing-about-disc_2822810.jpg" --- # Snowden has been very sparing about discussing his early… ![“Snowden has been very sparing about discussing his early life or his personal life.” quote by Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/barton-gellman-3126_about_snowden-has-been-very-sparing-about-disc_2822810.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/barton-gellman-3126_about_snowden-has-been-very-sparing-about-disc_2822810.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e04/barton-gellman-3126_about_snowden-has-been-very-sparing-about-disc_2822810.jpg) > “Snowden has been very sparing about discussing his early life or his personal life.” [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He reveals little about his background, keeping personal details private. **In simple terms:** He is secretive about his past. Key Takeaway Respect privacy, avoid speculation. Themes privacy secrecy media whistleblowing Mood cautious reflective Type journalistic informative When to use this quote - journalistic interview - biographical profile Key Concepts personal boundaries public interest Questions to Reflect On - What are the ethical limits of probing personal history? - How does secrecy affect public trust? A Different Perspective Privacy can hinder full understanding of motives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Early life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/early-life/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Personal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal/) [Personal life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal-life/) [Sparing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sparing/) ## Related quotes > [The glory of the old Irish nation, which in our hour will grow young and strong again. Should we fail, the country will not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-glory-of-the-old-irish-nation-which-in-our-hour-will-grow-young/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes blood, for the sake of sparing it, is spilled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vittorio-alfieri/sometimes-blood-for-the-sake-of-sparing-it-is-spilled/) [Vittorio Alfieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vittorio-alfieri/) > [The Coke bottle is a masterpiece of scientific, functional planning. In simpler terms, I would describe the bottle as well thought out, logical, sparing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-loewy/the-coke-bottle-is-a-masterpiece-of-scientific-functional-planning-in/) [Raymond Loewy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-loewy/) > [“To speak of sparing anything because it is beautiful is to waste one’s breath and incur ridicule in the bargain. The aesthetic sense- the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-van-dyke/to-speak-of-sparing-anything-because-it-is-beautiful-is-to-waste-one/) John Van Dyke > [A fundamental premise in cancer therapy is trying to identify how the metabolism of cancer cells differs from normal tissue. When differences are identified,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-perlmutter/a-fundamental-premise-in-cancer-therapy-is-trying-to-identify-how-the/) [David Perlmutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-perlmutter/) > [God be praised for his gracious long suffering towards me in sparing my life so long. Grant, gracious God, that I may make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-gordon/god-be-praised-for-his-gracious-long-suffering-towards-me-in-sparing/) Patrick Gordon > [Love is a tyrant sparing none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-corneille/love-is-a-tyrant-sparing-none/) [Pierre Corneille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-corneille/) > [I've been fortunate in that I never actually read any Jane Austen until I was thirty, thus sparing myself several decades of the unhappiness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathleen-schine/i-ve-been-fortunate-in-that-i-never-actually-read-any-jane-austen/) [Cathleen Schine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathleen-schine/) > [A teacher should be sparing of his smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/a-teacher-should-be-sparing-of-his-smile/) [William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/) > [“You show me no mercy by sparing me for a life without you in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-day/you-show-me-no-mercy-by-sparing-me-for-a-life-without-you-in-it/) [sylvia day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-day/) > [There is no gain so certain as that which arises from sparing what you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/there-is-no-gain-so-certain-as-that-which-arises-from-sparing-what/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [Give us enough but with a sparing hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-waller/give-us-enough-but-with-a-sparing-hand/) [Edmund Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-waller/) > [Ecuador has never stated flatly that it would give asylum to Edward Snowden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/ecuador-has-never-stated-flatly-that-it-would-give-asylum-to-edward/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [For months, Obama administration officials attacked Snowden's motives and said the work of the NSA was distorted by selective leaks and misinterpretations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/for-months-obama-administration-officials-attacked-snowden-s-motives/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Snowden is an orderly thinker, with an engineer's approach to problem-solving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/snowden-is-an-orderly-thinker-with-an-engineer-s-approach-to-problem/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) ## More by Barton Gellman > [On March 12, 2004, acting attorney general James B. Comey and the Justice Department's top leadership reached the brink of resignation over electronic surveillance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/on-march-12-2004-acting-attorney-general-james-b-comey-and-the/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [For political and bureaucratic reasons, governments at all levels are telling far less to the public than to insiders about how to prepare for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/for-political-and-bureaucratic-reasons-governments-at-all-levels-are/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Searches of al Qaeda sites in Afghanistan, undertaken since American-backed forces took control there, are not known to have turned up a significant cache…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/searches-of-al-qaeda-sites-in-afghanistan-undertaken-since-american/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [I don't think Cheney started off in 2000 with a burning desire to become vice-president. I think the prospect gradually became more appealing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-don-t-think-cheney-started-off-in-2000-with-a-burning-desire-to/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [As militias go, the Ohio Defense Force is on the moderate side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/as-militias-go-the-ohio-defense-force-is-on-the-moderate-side/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [I doubt there's any government in the world that guides itself primarily by strategy or conceptual documents or worldview. Anybody who has the reins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/i-doubt-there-s-any-government-in-the-world-that-guides-itself/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [U.S. intelligence services routinely use collection methods against foreigners that foreseeably - with certainty - ingest high volumes of U.S. communications as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/u-s-intelligence-services-routinely-use-collection-methods-against/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Snowden is an orderly thinker, with an engineer's approach to problem-solving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/snowden-is-an-orderly-thinker-with-an-engineer-s-approach-to-problem/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Experts said public companies worry about the loss of customer confidence and the legal liability to shareholders or security vendors when they report flaws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/experts-said-public-companies-worry-about-the-loss-of-customer/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [The United States, a signatory to the Chemical Weapons Convention, destroyed the last of its stocks of VX and other chemical agents on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/the-united-states-a-signatory-to-the-chemical-weapons-convention/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [As Trotsky didn't exactly say, you may not be interested in electronic snoops, but snoops are interested in you, whether or not you keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/as-trotsky-didn-t-exactly-say-you-may-not-be-interested-in-electronic/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [You don't need to be a spook to care about encryption. 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As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/sport-is-not-just-about-entertainment-it-is-equally-about-winning-and/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' 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