The Patriot Act
How
is listening and or recording telephone conversations, without benefit of a
search warrant, making me safe from terrorist attacks? Much like the old spring loaded mouse trap
which functions best against mentally deficient mice, only a mentally deficient
terrorist would plan an evil act over a traceable telephone.
We
can conclude, therefore, that the Patriot Act, which has now expired, was
designed to catch "stupid" terrorists.
Considering surveillance without benefit of a search warrant is illegal,
how, then, was this administration going to prosecute these evil doers? Of course, there is always Guantanamo Bay
where we send accused terrorists without benefit of a trial.
Possibly
our lawmakers might recall the 1978 federal law, "the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act," which provides for
domestic surveillance under extreme situations, but only with court approval;
but, even this has been widened to include a provision whereby the President
could authorize spying on certain individuals without court approval provided
he submitted his justification within 72 hours after the fact.
The name "Patriot Act" seems a terrible irony when so many
shed their blood over the idea that "all men are endowed with certain
unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness." This "act" repudiates the
very rights for which so many were willing to die!