Quote:
Originally posted by James
Well if you have nothing to hide then why worry about anything at all I guess.
I mean search my car, search my house, my personal self. If we are doing nothing ilegal than it should not in the least concern us?
The primary argument of those that are in favor of harsher security measures is that the safety of the "american People" overrides anyone's generic civil rights.
People seem to remain unconcerned that those quirky and often inhibitary (at least to government agencies) civil rights are actually what gives this country its basic character. Perhaps even more than the capitalism we practice.
But those arguments are hard for me to counter. When you say that your right for your children to live and be protected from imminent death by terrorists supersedes my right to privacy . . . well its hard for me to argue qualitatively.
Or if you disagree that the USA as a nation state has been definied by its Civili Liberties, and believe that they are basically just antiquated ideals that should be cast by the wayside in our effort to protect our children . . . well again, what acceptable response presenting my right to privacy and not being hassled by government agencies is there to make?
After all there is an assumption of trust between human beings and most especially in our instritutions isn't there?
The idea is that if we give blanket powers to government agencies to protect our children, they will not in anyway use these powers in ways not intended by the framers of the law.
Further that people entrusted with these powers will be imbued witha superior sense of fair play and won't make mistakes or manipulate the statutes to achieve their objectives.
If these things are true, then maybe we shouldn't be worried about losing civil liberties?
I admit to being a simple person and perhaps these arguments are too sophistacted for me.
All I know is that people since the beginning of time and in whatever part of the world remain people.
All I know is that many nations that have developed a "secret police" or something with that power have come to regret it.
I know that humans can be fallible, manipulative and petty. I know that power structures lend themselves to corruption and abuse.
I know that law is a tool and that the way that tool is used is determined by the capabilities and ethics of the people that use it.
Stepping down from my rhetorical high horse, it might be very naive to assume that there won't be abuses in a system that disregards a lot of civil liberties that we take for granted.
The capacity ot technology to track our lives is currently unsurpassed by any epoch of history.
Can anyone imagine how such massive files, centrally gathered could be used in unethical ways?
Maybe not today, tomorrow, but how do we guard against the abuses of ten years from now or more?
Then we will have a new population of people that will see these laws ina different light than the people handling them now. People that are somewhat restrained by having been trained in a system that has fully enforced civil liberties.
Even thoough that current system has led to such corruption as beating confessions from innocent people. Has anyone forgotten Illinois?
Can you imagine the excesses that can be perpetuated under the aegis of a system that has a certain disdain for civil liberties?
Sorry got to cut this short lol . . . got to go . . .
But Damn, you are all a lot more trusting of your fellow man given power than I am as well as maybe less a student of history and human nature.
We have created a state of war with no War DEclaration. We have created a state of emergency with no end and no limits . . can anyone cite some historical prescedents?
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So how exactly did you totally ignore the first part of your post and just to the last part? :P
Mobile companies have provided law enforcement with the ability to open up any encryption since the beginning.
The NSA has been picking up phone calls for a very long time. I can't remember when it started but it's been quite a while.
Countries prevent certain people from coming into their country after monitoring their behavior.
People are monitored after they are released from jail and rehabilitated.
The NASD watches me like a hawk.
There are cameras in department store changing rooms.
Your work most likely monitors everything you do.
Hoover had files on anyone and everyone. Martin Luther King had a file on him.
-Rudey
--So what's the difference? All can be abused.