*The War on Terror is a war on American freedom* --- it's important to give law enforcement the tools and info they need to catch the bad guys.
On Friday, July 19, 2013 9:41:23 AM UTC-5, MJ wrote: > > *The War on Terror is a war on American freedom > *By *Anthony Gregory > *07/15/2013 > > In the aftermath of 9/11, President George W. Bush guided the Patriot Act > through Congress, unilaterally expanded surveillance of Americans, > amplified executive detention authority and took other dramatic measures > that shifted the balance between liberty and government power > significantly, in the name of national security. > > After the initial Patriot Act was passed, many Democrats perceived the > growing threat to civil liberties and started to have misgivings. Now, five > years into the Obama presidency enthusiasm for these measures seems to be > bipartisan. > > As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama in 2007 and 2008 argued that > sacrificing liberties in the name of anti-terrorism posed long-term risks. > He condemned military commissions and violations of habeas corpus as > serious threats to �the great traditions of our legal system and our way > of life.� He called the Patriot Act �shoddy� and �dangerous.� > > Senator Obama sharply criticized President Bush�s surveillance policies > as going beyond the boundaries of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act > and the Fourth Amendment. He vowed that if elected he would run an > administration of unprecedented transparency and vigorously protect > whistleblowers. > > President Obama�s deeds have not matched Senator Obama�s words. > Indeed, he has raised the stakes. > > He promised to close Guantanamo by January 2010, but instead slowed down > releases from Guantanamo and vastly expanded the prison camp at Bagram > Airfield in Afghanistan. > > In 2009, he announced a policy of �prolonged detention,� ensuring > indefinite imprisonment for detainees, including those against whom the > U.S. government had no evidence of wrongdoing. In 2011, he signed the > renewal of the Patriot Act. He has increased the role of unmanned drones > and claims the authority to order a strike against any suspected terrorist: > no trial necessary. > > He also has expanded the surveillance operations of the National Security > Agency (NSA), monitoring phone and internet traffic in a seemingly > indiscriminate manner. The full extent is uncertain, but the goal is > �total information awareness,� an idea floated shortly after 9/11. > > The agency spies not just on Americans, but on residents of U.S. allies > and other friendly countries. Germany, where President Obama has enjoyed > high popularity, has protested particularly loudly, knowing well the > dangers of totalitarian surveillance powers. > > The administration also has spied on reporters, and Attorney General Eric > Holder signed an arrest warrant for Fox News correspondent James Rosen over > normal journalistic behavior. > > Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden exposed the agency�s vast > surveillance program. Instead of affording him whistleblower protections, > the administration now wants to imprison him. > > In fact, the current administration has used the Espionage Act against > whistleblowers more than all previous administrations combined. And to > prevent future whistle-blowing, the White House is encouraging federal > employees to spy on one another. > > Our Democratic law professor president, a self-described progressive, has > created a perfect storm. Ten years ago, liberals screamed because the > Republican administration took note of what patrons checked out at the > library. Today, they seem much more complacent in the face of more intimate > forms of mass surveillance. > > Democrats once talked about prosecuting executive officials for > wrongdoing. Today they muse about whether the government should jail > journalists like Glenn Greenwald, U.S. columnist for the British newspaper, > the *Guardian*, merely for providing a soapbox for whistleblowers. > > The president has announced that the �war on terror� is all but over. > We need a new approach to the threat. If the war on terror is being ended, > the extraordinary measures that threaten our personal liberties also should > be ended. > > Some say that foreign terrorists hate the United States for its freedom. > This seems oversimplified at best. But if it�s true, America�s enemies > must love what U.S. leaders have done in the nearly 12 years since 9/11. > > The question isn�t about balancing freedom and security. Determined > terrorists can always take lives. But only our politicians, with our > acquiescence, can take our freedoms. > > *Anthony Gregory is research fellow at The Independent > Institute<http://www.independent.org/>and author of > *The Power of Habeas Corpus in > America<http://www.independent.org/store/book.asp?id=104> > > http://dailycaller.com/2013/07/15/the-war-on-terror-threatens-american-freedom/ > > -- -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. 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