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Patriot Act II: Scarier Than the Originalby Ken Ilgunas |
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In October of 2001 Congress passed The Patriot Act. It received almost unanimous approval in Congress (83 percent from the House and 98 percent from the Senate) and popular support from a fervently patriotic post-9/11 America. Because it was rushed so quickly through both houses, politicians failed to realize that there wasn’t much that was patriotic about the Patriot Act. One facet of the bill, for example, allows the government to seize medical, library, school, and Internet records from anybody deemed a suspected terrorist without a judge’s approval. On Dec. 31, 2005 many sections of the Patriot Act are due to expire, but legislators are pressing to both renew and strengthen what would be the “Patriot Act II.” The Act has received criticism from conservatives, liberals and citizens everywhere, but it has also proved to be a potent weapon in our nation’s arsenal for the war on terror. Should we be willing to give up some of our civil liberties for reasons of national security, or should we judge the Patriot Act unconstitutional and rid it from our law books?
Name: Gregory Ingram
Occupation: Salesman
Residence: Buffalo
Do you think that the government should be able to seize citizens’ personal records in order to prevent terrorism? I totally disagree with the Patriot Act because it’s an infringement upon the liberties of Americans. I understand trying to pinpoint terrorists, but when it infringes upon the privacies of born Americans, I think it’s a farce, it’s ugly, and it’s big brother having his fingers in every piece of the pie.
Should we give up some of our civil liberties to help the war against terrorism? No I don’t. I think that government should do a better job policing their own activities in different areas of the world. There’s an undercurrent here—that you have big politicians who are padding their own pockets off the blood and sweat of our young men and women that are fighting in the military on foreign grounds. They’re taxing our liberties, they’re taxing us by taking away our children—all in the name of democracy. It’s a farce. Bin Laden was trained as a terrorist here on American grounds. Who’s guilty? We’re guilty. We’re looking for a scapegoat to blame it on. C’mon man, one cat? How long have we been fighting and you still haven’t found this guy? One guy in the world, and you can’t find him?
Do you believe that there’s a legitimate threat of terrorist attack in the U.S.? Every day. In fact, I was speaking with some Arabs who owned a corner store on my block and I asked them, “Why is it that you find so many Arab stores prevalent in the inner city as opposed to suburban areas?” If any one is concerned about a terrorist attack, it would be me in my own neighborhood. A terrorist attack could come through our food, our medications. Lackawanna Six was right under our noses. We’re right on the border. I think there is a terrorist threat everyday and it’s closer to our doors than we even imagine.
Name: Julia Dutka
Occupation: Academic Librarian
Residence: West Seneca
Do you think that the government should be able to seize citizens’ personal records in order to prevent terrorism? No. Maybe, if they have enough reason, but I don’t think they should.
Should we give up some of our civil liberties to help the war against terrorism? No, because that’s the whole point. They’re taking all our civil liberties as it is.
Do you believe that there’s a legitimate threat of terrorist attack in the U.S.? Not locally, but nationally. There’s always going to be a threat of terrorism. If you take one person down, there’s always going to be someone else. As long as the world is still turning, I think that there’s always going to be bad guys and good guys.
Name: Ali Kazmi
Occupation: Student
Residence: Buffalo
Do you think that the government should be able to seize citizens’ personal records in order to prevent terrorism? They can do it if there’s a sense of urgency, like if they suspect someone is starting something that could be used for terrorism. But before implicating on their findings, they should get approval from a judge to arrest a guy or to put sanctions on him.
Do you think we should give up some of our civil liberties to help the war against terrorism? Define exactly what the war against terror is. If you’re talking about the war against Iraq—that certainly isn’t a war against terrorism. If you’re talking abut the war in Afghanistan—that is a war against terrorism. Yes, when you have a goal to achieve you have to sacrifice a lot of stuff and American citizens should sacrifice some of their basic rights to secure their life, their future, and their kids’ future. The Patriot Act is asking too much from citizens. There could be many alternatives—to monitor the money transactions among terrorists, for example.
Do you believe that there’s a legitimate threat of terrorist attack in the U.S.? Yeah, there is a threat, but we have to stop interfering in the world’s affairs. If you interfere, you should accept the consequences.
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