Benjamin Franklin once wrote, “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Freedom can be taken away by a foreign attack, but it also must be protected here at home by ensuring that the public stays informed when the government attempts to enact laws that undermine American liberty.
The terrorist attacks that took place in New York and Washington D.C. Sept. 11, 2001, caused a sense of panic among the American people. Congress rushed to put together a bill giving the government more power to crack down on terrorism. Out of fear, the American people accepted laws that infringed on their personal liberty in exchange for a sense of security.
Shortly following the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11, President George W. Bush signed what is known as the Patriot Act into law. Signed Oct. 26, 2001, the act made it legal for the United States government to monitor its citizens for the purpose of countering terrorism.
The government regularly passes new laws designed to make people feel safer. Each time one of these laws is put into effect a little piece of our freedom is taken away. In a way, it is almost like the government is forcing its own ideals on us, rather than giving us a right to choose for ourselves.
There are numerous laws that regulate almost every aspect of our lives. We are legally bound to wear our seat belts, smokers are told where they are allowed to smoke, and we are told how fast we can drive.
On Dec. 31, 2009, various sections of the Patriot Act are scheduled to expire. Some of the sections up for renewal include permitting the government to use electronic surveillance on all phones and allowing the government to demand access to all business records.
Perhaps the most controversial section up for renewal is Section 215. This act allows the FBI to require bookstores and libraries to surrender sales and checkout records, as well as lists of all customers immediately upon request.
With expiration pending on these acts, there is a chance for the people to challenge the constitutionality of the Patriot Act and possibly put an end to the unnecessary invasion of our privacy.
In wartime, it is often difficult to balance civil liberties and civil rights with the demands of war and the need to create support for the war effort.
After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, people were scared and uneasy around Arab-Americans. This same type of fear was also present toward Japanese-Americans after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941.
In 1941 the U.S. government acted quickly to separate the Japanese citizens from the general population out of fear that they would undermine the war effort. They were officially classified as enemy aliens and put into internment camps.
Japanese-Americans were forced to live behind fences of barbed wire surrounded by armed guards. Life in these camps was not as harsh as in the concentration camps of Europe; however, their right to happiness and prosperity was taken away.
Fortunately, in 2001 Americans did not overreact to the same degree. Although America has periods of its history that we are not proud of, as a nation we continue to strive to stay true to the promise of our constitution.
On Nov. 11, 2009, take time to celebrate Veterans Day. Veterans deserve our respect for what they do to protect our freedom. The United States was built upon individual rights and personal freedom, and we should continue to stand up for them.
Veterans deserve our strength and courage to protect at home those freedoms they are fighting so hard to protect overseas.
