The Government Is Watching Us

The Government is Watching Us

The United States government has been one of the most supreme governments ever to exist in the world. For years, there has not been a government that can compare to the US government. However, that does not mean that the US government is a perfect one. In fact, many of the government's tactics are being debated today. For example, after September 11, 2001, the US passed the Patriot Act on October 26, 2001. The term USA Patriot is an acronym which stands for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (Zara Gelsey, p.473). This act allows the FBI to watch what people are doing. The USA Patriot Act gives the government too much power to invade privacy. This act may very well put our futures in jeopardy.

The Patriot Act is a dangerous law. It is completely the opposite of what this country is supposed to be about. It pretty much puts the Constitution on stand-by. It should be known as the Constitution Shredding Act. One of the saddest things about this act is that many Americans do not even know anything about it. The act was also rushed through its process. With very little debate, it was passed. There wasn't even a report from the Senate regarding the act (Patriot Act). It is wrong of the government to pass

laws without carefully analyzing each and every part of the law that they plan to put into effect.

The government has many surveillance tactics. One of the tactics that the government uses is the Big Brother tactic. They use this in the library. The government monitors everything that people do in the library; from internet usage, to the books that are read. This is one of the biggest violations of privacy that the government has been granted to exploit. The biggest negative about this is that they may jump to conclusions to quickly. This is wrong because if someone is reading a book on suicide bombings the government may jump to the conclusion that the person is a terrorist, when that person may have been researching to try and prevent it (Gelsey, p. 474). It is obscene to monitor internet usage and books read in the library because in terrorists are much more intelligent than that; if the have any common sense, they will have read the Patriot Act and already know about the government's tactics.

The Patriot Act allows the government to perform "Black Bag" and "Sneak and Peek" searches. This means that government agents can come and search through your property. They can look through all of your documents and computer files, of even take things. The worst thing about this is that they don't even have to acknowledge that they were ever there. This is very similar to the action of an authoritative regime (The Rutherford Institute).

Some parts of the Patriot Act are not necessary. It is a twisted piece of legislature which gives the government more power over us. It allows US enforcement to disregard amendments 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, and 8. There is a lot of controversy over section 215 of the act, which allows judges to grant warrants to search through personal records (Wikipedia). It is wrong of the government to violate the Bill of Rights. The US government is basically disregarding the United Sates Constitution, which has been working great for the country since it was established. Our freedom in this country may not exist much longer.

What is sad is the fact that Americans do not know what the Patriot Act allows our government to do to innocent people. This Act promotes the imprisonment of "suspects" without requiring any evidence or trial/hearing. It punishes innocent victims by separating them from their loved ones and imprisoning them for no crime...except the crime of "looking like" an Arab or Muslim. This country has attracted people all over the globe for over 200 years because of its freedom and liberties. Our country is not the same country that it was 200 years ago.

The government misuses the Patriot Act in various ways. It is not only used for terror crimes, but for common crimes (The Daily Texan). This act was made to prevent terrorism; we already have a police force preventing crimes. In another case, federal prosecutors filed a charge, "terrorism using a weapon of mass destruction" against a man because he had a pipe bomb in his lap, which happened to explode in his lap as he sat in his car (The Daily Texan). A pipe bomb is a weapon, but it is clearly not a weapon of mass destruction. A North Carolina man who was accused of running a methamphetamine lab was charged with breaking a stated law which banned the manufacture of chemical weapons, which is a law associated with the Patriot Act. If this man is proven guilty; he could get 12 years to life in prison for a crime that should only bring six months (The Daily Texan). This is clearly unfair. The Justice Department conducted seminars on how to stretch wiretapping provisions in order to extend them beyond terror cases. This means that the Patriot Act has become a weapon used against regular citizens, not only terrorists.

Although the Patriot Act was not supposed to be in effect forever, some of its sections were voted to remain permanent. Fifteen of the sections have expired, and ten still remain in effect. Many of the sections that are still in effect grant the government the power to invade privacy such as section 213, Authority for Delaying Notice of the Execution of a Warrant, section 203 (a), (c), Authority To Share Criminal Investigative Information, and section 216, Modification Of Authorities Relating To Use Of Pen Registers And Trap And Trace Devices. The privacy of U.S. citizens can still be violated, which should not be happening after the expiation of the Patriot Act.

The Patriot Act was supposed to be in effect until December 31, 2005. However, the president of the United States, George Bush wants to make it permanent. Far worst, the government is currently discussing the passing of another Patriot