Originally posted by storch
eagleDNY, that's why I'm of a torn opinion on the matter, as are most of us I would suspect.
here's the rub. throughout human history far more of humanity has died at hands of our governments than by any other means.
It is a sad comment on humanity that your statement is true. As a 'history-geek' myself, I frequently find it appalling how little of our history most people know these days. We've got students graduating high school that can't tell you who the president is, or when the civil war was fought, or what amendment to the constitution guarantees freedom of religion. Without this link to our past, I wonder how they expect to lead our nation into the future.
I worry about the direction our government it taking - sure I do. I'm not so worried about the administration, which by it's nature goes through a referendum every 4 years, than I am about congress and the courts though. When I see congress pass a law limiting my freedom of speech during the political campaign season, I get upset and people hear about it. When I see the courts uphold the proposition that it is OK for local governments to use eminent domain to kick people off their land so that we can have another shopping mall or condo development, I think the founding fathers must be spinning in their graves.
Terrorism, by it's very nature, cannot beat us militarily. That doesn't mean that it isn't a threat to our freedoms however. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness doesn't hold up well to suicide bombers and nutbag snipers. Do I think it was some great constitutional affront to let the NSA listen in on international cell phone calls - no, if the terrorists were using pack radios instead of prepaid cell phones it wouldn't even be a question. Do I want the government monitoring international banking to track terrorist funding - damn right I do. Do I think the idiots who leaked the story to the NY Times did this country a disservice - damn right I do.
Yes, I agree that we do have to watch out for encroachment on our freedoms from all sides. We are going to have to strike a balance between privacy and security, and the debate will be ongoing as to what we should allow the government to do in the name of security. The beauty of our system is that when We the People think things have gone too far, we will be able to speak, and vote, and change things for the better.
EagleDNY
$.02
