I am not very political, but the other day I had a very interesting conversation on my front porch. I have a friend who works with the government; its best not to say anything more specific. This friend is involved in safeguarding our country from the "bad guys". These bad guys are the type that are happy to blow themselves up, along with thousands of innocent others for the cause of a hypothetical world controlled by religious zealots. I trust that you now have the right mental images of what I mean.
My friend told me that soon they will be heading overseas, to spend an extended period of time learning from the intelligence agency of another country. The comment was made during our conversation that "those folks over there don't have a constitution" to deal with in terms of domestic surveillance. And, as a result, in this particular country, they do a number of things better than we do here in terms of actually catching bad guys.
Now I know that many folks think that The Patriot Act is a raw deal. I also revere and respect the protections offered by the Constitution. However, this little chat on my front porch about bad guys got me thinking about activist lawyers and the so-called infringement of individual liberties of our government over the past five years. It also made me remember this really is a war. A war like no other. The UN cannot solve this problem, let alone order their own office supplies without assistance.
Here is my short response. Please, Big Brother US Government - keep up the good work. Read my mail, listen to my phone calls, intercept my email. I don't really care. I have nothing to hide. Frankly, I am glad you guys are at it every day. If you were not, by now, we might just have experienced the horror of multiple passenger jets blowing up in mid-air over our nations most populous cities, in a horrific aftermath to 9/11.
I am glad for my friend's work, and I think, after our conversation, I am a bit more thankful for things like the Patriot Act.
1 comment:
Maher Arar had nothing to hide either. I suspect if he were white, had two kids and lived in South Pasadena, he would not have been sent (by the US) to a country that we accuse of arming Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations.
So I ask you, Steve: What “freedoms” are we fighting for if we are willing to give up our right to privacy; engage with terrorist regimes to do our dirty work; conduct arrests that resemble Kafka’s novel, “The Trial;” to name only just a few sacrificed liberties? Think about this. Because EVERY ONE you consider is being questioned now by Bush & Co.
Steve, I’m sure you’re a good man. But suspending civil rights to win a war has never worked. Whether it be FDR’s order to place 120,000 Japanese in camps or Joseph McCarty’s witch-hunt, this policy is simply un-American and some are down-right inhumane. These are Gulag-esque tactics. You might want to consider this: http://triode.blogspot.com/2005/11/none-dare-call-it-gulag.html.
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