dda
Premium
join:2003-12-29
Bolton, MA
| Re: Pffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffft! quote:
I'm not going to say that Patriot Act or what the FBI wants to do is all perfectly ok (again we need to be vigilant), but in this day and age given the threat of terror attacks, such things are necessary and hopefully, like the Alien and Sedition acts, they can be rolled back when they are no longer needed.
Both the Alien and Sedition Acts weren't necessary when they were enacted; they were done for the same "fear + control" reasons as the Patriot Act. You don't step on the Constitution whenever you feel "threatened." Pulling my library records wouldn't have stopped 9/11; all it will tell you is that I like O Brother, Where Art Thou?.
There are very good reasons why the power of wiretapping and other information gathering techniques is limited; we need only to look at the FBI's past and the whole "Red scare." Since they have abused their power in the past, I see no reason to believe them when they say it will only be used against "terrorists" this time. |
