On the other hand, I think that our government has the right to do everything in it’s power to ensure our safety, including spying on those in countries who have threatened our own. If the NSA could have taken a closer look or had more information about Hazmi and Midhar’s plan to travel to the United States, their trip would have never been successful. The NSA needs to focus their attention more to the other countries instead of basically wasting all of their time with U.S. citizens, and maybe slips like letting terrorist into our homeland wouldn’t happen. They are getting their systems blown up with information that is useless to them from Americans. If they didn’t have to spend the time to sort through all of America’s “evidence,” then they would probably be able to seek out and confirm the terroristic threats and evidence coming from outside of the
Individual Privacy vs. National Security William J. Crabtree ENG 121 Instructor: Jessica Hamman July 02, 2012 First off let me just say that National Security is not just a bunch of government spy’s out there to take your privacy away and put your information out there for everyone. National Security serves many purposes from emergency preparedness and management to keeping threats isolated. So as history has revealed before, the people of our nation cannot afford to be self-centered on their Individual Privacy and the fight against our government’s way of protecting us. If we just take a minute to weigh the outcome of letting the government monitor not take away our Individual Privacy for the good of National Security we would see that many disastrous events could have and can be prevented. On September 11, 2001, the United States was invaded for the first time since the War of 1812 also known as “America’s second war of Independence”.
In the essay “Why Fear National ID Cards?” by Alan Dershowitz, Dershowitz elaborates his views on national identity cards and the benefits of having one. He sums it up by stating “A little less anonymity for a lot more security.” With that being said what makes him so sure that something as simple as a national identity card would make society secure? What would stop a person with a national ID from committing a crime or other acts of terror? Yes having one would make it easier to pin point a suspected terrorist but the reality of the situation is there would be no change in the level of security with or without a national identity card. Dershowitz makes it clear that he is skeptical about the idea of national ID cards and states that he supports national identity cards with chips matching a person’s fingerprints.
The Destruction of the American Freedom An instruction memo, discarded by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) states, “under certain circumstances, the FBI has the ability to bend or suspend the law and impinge upon the freedom of others”. Federal counter-terrorism agencies like FBI and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) protect citizens and the constitution of the United States of America.. However, what happens when these agencies stop believing in the laws they are to enforce? In the novel, Little Brother by Cory Doctorow, the DHS, turns San Francisco into a police state and break the law they are to preserve. The DHS is so determined to protect society from terrorism that ultimately they destroy the freedom that they are striving to protect.
After the terrorist attack of 9/11 several criticized the intelligence community for failing to warn about the terrorist attacks. The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) was one of the main agencies criticized mainly for not focusing on the domestic terrorist threat, collecting useful intelligence, analyzing strategic intelligence or sharing intelligence internally and with other members of the intelligence community. The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks report identified that the failure of the United States intelligence Community to share information in being a problem and identified that intelligence is the first line of defense in our nation’s security and recommended integration of all domestic and foreign sources of intelligence resulting in the creation of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA). The IRTPA established the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) to oversee the intelligence community and facilitate the exchange of information with the community. It also redefined national intelligence to include foreign intelligence, domestic intelligence and homeland security intelligence.
Imagine a society where the rights of individuals are not protected. A law enforcement agency can search a person’s telephone, e-mail communications, medical, financial, and other records. If they suspect any terrorism-related acts, they can detain anyone indefinitely. This is Patriot Act. Even though advocates claim that the Patriot Act helps to protect the national security, the Patriot Act is unjust.
The 20th century novel 1984 by George Orwell is a dystopian text where a totalitarian government has taken full control of its populous. It is in this world crafted by Orwell where we as readers are immersed into the life of the protagonist, Winston Smith. The novel may have been written as a warning to the people against the adverse effects of a totalitarian government as Orwell wrote his novel in the wake of World War II and in the face of fascism. This message is conveyed throughout the novel but it is most effectively portrayed through the characters that inhabit the world of 1984 and this is explored none more so than through the main protagonist himself Winston Smith. This character’s development is highly significant as it contributes to the novel and Orwell does this in a variety of ways.
"Profiling" “Section 412 of the Patriot Act permits the attorney general of the United States to detain aliens he certifies as threats to national security for up to seven days without bringing charges (USA PATRIOT Act, 2014).” The United States is in a constant battle to prevent terrorist acts and to ensure the safety of every U.S. citizen. I believe there are certain occasions that losing individual freedoms is worth enduring in order to have safety and live in the great country that we do today. However, enduring a type of "profiling" is not necessary to prevent terrorism in the United States. Nevertheless, many terrorists do not fit a single profile. Many terrorists come from Europe or from within the United States, which do not fit
Running Head: BORDER PORTECTION AND IMMIGRATION Border Protection and Immigration Eric R. Kloss Excelsior College Border Protection and Immigration Americans live in a country where freedom is taken for granted, and not appreciated. Most Americans do not know the cost of freedom and are unwilling to contribute to keeping America free. Americans forget the price that so many have paid to keep America free. I feel that immigration and border security is one of the main issues associated with terrorists and the smuggling of illegal goods, and equipment into America. Changes must be enforced instantly in order to stop this illegal entry into America.
After all, their purpose is to protect America from other countries. With many Americans unaware of what is happening this proves that our border control policies are inadequate and are in need of our full attention. FBI assistant director Kevin L. Perkins went before the Homeland Security Committee March 11th, 2010