The Act, aimed at updating both the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 and the Electronics Communications Privacy Act of 1986 is composed of 10 titles all of which were hurried through Congress on October 24th, 2001 and passed the senate the following day, “…with little deliberation. Unlike a typical statute, neither the House of Representatives nor the Senate issued a report on the PATRIOT act.” (Standler, 2007-2008, p. 4) To this day, the Patriot Act remains controversial; its supporters uphold it as a requirement for The War on Terrorism and for the enforcement of modern electronic communications law. The Act’s critics cite its numerous infringements on civil and individual rights. Title II, considered the most controversial, deals directly with surveillance, wiretapping, and computer fraud. Title II also details sanctions placed on trade with the Taliban, Syria and North Korea. The Patriot Act’s Title II, Enhanced Surveillance Procedures is a breach of privacy and infringes upon the tenants of our Fourth Amendment rights.…
To ensure expressive, associational, and privacy rights are strengthened instead of being compromised by new technology is the goal of the Protecting Civil Liberties and protect the core democratic rights when corporate and government practices that rely on new technology that invades these rights. The government regularly tracks all calls of nearly every common American and spy on a large number of Americans’ international calls, text messages, and emails. Whistle blower Eric Snowden, a contractor with NSA, willfully and knowingly exposed the government’s most sensitive surveillance techniques without authorization and the most fundamental rights as individuals. The ACLU has been fighting for over 12 years to end government surveillance’s lack of oversight that allows it to invade the rights and lives of millions of Americans. When the case against mass surveillance reached the Supreme Court several years ago, was dismissed due to lack of sufficient evidence of the secret programs. Leading the way, the ACLU’s struggle to rein in the surveillance superstructure which strikes at the core of our privacy rights, freedom of speech and association will continue. ("ACLU: National…
In 2001, people are quick to dismiss the idea of an internment of American citizens, suggesting that the country has come a long way from 1942. The hypothesis that the government might conduct surveillance or use illegal wiretaps to monitor groups or individuals that it suspects of domestic terrorism seemed foreign before September 11th, and now has become a way to gain more information about potential suspects. These new measures, included in the USA Patriot Act, delicately trace the line between national security and civil liberties. A brief look at how the Bush…
Developed “to deter and punish terrorist acts in the United States and around the world, to enhance law enforcement investigatory tools, and for other purposes” the USA Patriot Act, bears the formal name ‘‘Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA Patriot Act, 2001, p. 1). Heretofore referred to as the “Patriot Act” the USA Patriot Act was signed into law within 6 weeks from initial draft to final approval supporting the enforcement of laws for the ultimate protection of the United States and her citizens by granting access to persons and information with liberal criminal and civil procedure exceptions. The Patriot Act immediately granted broad-based interrogation, surveillance and isolation abilities to law enforcement when investigating “crimes against terror” (US Government, 2011)…
All we hear about is NSA spying on domestic soil and on foreign nations. Erick Montero said in his article “Road Block” that the “NSA is the National Security Agency created in 1951 in response to the aftermath of World War II and the communist regimes around the world”. He further argues that “Whether its legal or illegal to spy on American soil is debatable, but for a fact violating our Fourth Amendment by government agency for the threat of terrorism and fear is wrong” some might see this as propaganda, but regardless, this is true and is happening. Benjamin Franklin once said “Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one” (Benjamin Franklin). Even the fathers of this country knew that in some point…
Thesis: Wiretapping enables both parties and government agencies to monitor the communications of targeted people to determine if they are doing something wrong. The Government should not have the luxury of imposing on the privacy of Americans without a reasonable doubt as to when they should get a warrant to be able to do so. The Government should not wiretap because it is an abuse of power, distrust, and ethical dilemma, the violation of the Fourth Amendment which involves the collecting and storing information about people who are not criminals to be penalized.…
I chose to focus my analysis on Edward Snowden and his disclosure of classified domestic surveillance documents. When the leak first came out, I was upset at the thought of my privacy being violated by the NSA. However, the feeling dissipated when I considered the protection making that sacrifice affords. The NSA, like many organizations, are sometimes faced with ethical dilemmas. Occasionally, there is no right answer. Thus, the decision made, while not ideal, is the lesser of evils. In his TED talk interview, Snowden stated, “Your rights matter because you never know when you're going to need them” (TED, 13:20). While I admit his statement did trigger the reexamination of my stance, I arrived at the same position. Perhaps, I will look back…
Richard L. Cain, JD BS PO Box 91016, Santa Barbara, California 93190 Phone: 818-451-3660 cainrl@tjsl.edu…
Some people believe, when the NSA spies on their own citizens illegally it creates an atmosphere of distrust between the government and its’ citizens; the NSA might believe by doing so, they are saving and preventing certain situations from taking place. Edward Snowden revealed the level of infiltration in his statement about NSA spying. Woodburn stated that "Seven months after the initial Snowden leaks, sixty-three percent of Americans stated that they were dissatisfied with the government's Surveillance of U.S. citizens" (28). U.S citizens disagree at times with their government's choices, and the National Security Agency infiltrating cell phone and computers makes this situation worse. Americans resent the government taking away their right to privacy in order to find terrorists. But, terrorists have found United States citizens, born in the USA, to help them commit terrorist acts and the NSA is wasting time and effort searching into American people while they are allowing real threats happen.…
In the wake of September 11th, the country was in turmoil. Fear and confusion were rampant; direction was required. President George Bush, in a famous address, acknowledged the severity of the attacks, and called for a newly invigorated sense of nationalism. His plan for preventing future attacks called for the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, and expanded powers to intelligence agencies (Bush). During this time, one of the most provocative bills was allowed to pass, under the guise of a terrorist seeking bill. The Patriot Act was indeed effective in increasing the power allotted to surveillance agencies, but many feel at too high of a cost. Many have asked the question "is the cure worse than the disease?" In order to appropriately analyze the Patriot Act, it is important to look at its exact stipulations, and how it has been used (misused) at the time of its passage and now.…
Contention 2: Domestic surveillance is justified as a defensive tactic against potential enemies. Domestic surveillance has already been used to prevent terrorist attacks in the United States. According to the NSA Intelligence officials, “the government’s sweeping surveillance efforts helped thwart “potential terrorist events” more than 50 times since 9/11.” This demonstrates how surveillance is an effect method in anti-terrorist tactics and should be continued to ensure our national…
Wiretapping can prevent many serious accidents from occurring which could save many lives .According to Leslie Ellis, “The 1,149 court-ordered wiretaps in 2001 produced 3,683 arrests, and 732 conviction-proofs enough that electronic surveillance is a valuable tool in catching the bad guys."With this valuable fact, this clearly proves how effective wiretapping can be. Many say this would be a violation of the U.S constitution, but that is incorrect. The U.S Constitution contains…
In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a U.S. law called the Patriot Act was passed under the Bush administration. The goal of passing this law was to strengthen domestic security and broaden the powers of law-enforcement agencies with regards to identifying and stopping terrorists (Grabianowski). The privacy of the American public was first questioned in 2006 when USA Today reported that the NSA had “been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth” and was “using the data to analyze calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity” (Greenwald). This article referred to a secret…
Louise I. Gerdes. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2005. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. SAN JOSE PUBLIC LIBRARY SYSTEM. 2 Dec. 2008 http://0- find.galegroup.com.mill1.sjlibrary.org:80/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS. Bader, Eleanor J. "The Patriot Act Discourages the Free Exchange of Ideas." Current Controversies: Free Speech. John Boaz. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. SAN JOSE PUBLIC LIBRARY SYSTEM. 8 December 2008 http://0-find.galegroup.co m.mill1.sjlibrary.org:80/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS. " How Patriot Act 2 Would Further Erode the Basic Checks on Government Power That Keep America Safe and Free." American Civil Liberties Union. 30 Oct. 2002. ACLU Foundation. 2 Dec. 2008 http://w ww.aclu.org/safefree/general/17346leg20030320.html Levendosky, Charles. "Unconstitutional Sections of the Patriot Act Should Be Repealed." Opposing Viewpoints: The Patriot Act. Louise I. Gerdes. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2005. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. SAN JOSE PUBLIC LIBRARY SYSTEM. 2 December 2008 . Miller, Amy, and Ryan Lozar. "The Patriot Act Threatens Students ' Privacy…
"Hello Garci" refers to the alleged wiretapped conversations where vote rigging in the 2004 elections was discussed by, among others, a woman presumed to be President Arroyo and man presumed to be Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano.…