Terrorism on our soil: the Patriot Act

Some sections of the USA Patriot Act of 2001 are about to expire. There is a debate over whether to continue the act, revise it, or dump it altogether. I think if you took a second and read about the act, it’s pretty easy to spot how ridiculous and illegal it is, and I’m still amazed it was allowed to continue this long.

The act was passed hurriedly after 9/11 under the guise of protecting America from terrorism, domestic or otherwise. This act legally allows the United States government to track a person through personal records: telephone communication, e-mail, medical and financial records, you name it.  It also allows for the detaining or deporting of immigrants simply suspected of terrorism, regardless of whether or not it can be proven.

The scary part of this act is that it really doesn’t matter whether or not you’re innocent or guilty - your rights are temporarily suspended if you’re even suspected of terrorism.  The government does not need a court order to search your house or any of your personal records.  You can even be detained without a right to a lawyer;  your constitutional rights are suspended.

How did this even get passed?  Well, it was signed into law by George W. Bush on October 26, 2001, directly following the September 11th attacks. But how did the people of the United States of America allow this to pass?  Simple - our government knows how to use fear.

Fear is the greatest motivator of all, and if you’re a nation that’s just had its World Trade Centers and the headquarters of its Department of Defense hit by airplanes, you’re gonna be pretty scared. And this fear, this single motivator, is going to get you to do stupid things, especially when the United States’ government assures you that this act is for the good of all, that it will protect you and this nation.

If you’re knowledgeable of history, all of this should sound familiar: the same thing happened in Germany on the evening of February 27, 1933. Fire broke out in the Reichstag chambers, and using this event, Nazis were able to throw millions of Germans into a convulsion of fear at the threat of the communist terror. Using this fear, the Reichstag Fire Decree was passed, which included the following:

“It is...permissible to restrict the rights of personal freedom, freedom of opinion, including the freedom of the press, the freedom to organize and assemble, the privacy of postal, telegraphic and telephonic communications, and warrants for house searches, orders for confiscations as well as restrictions on property.”

The Patriot Act and the Reichstag Fire Decree are historical synonyms, folks. Merely having the same act passed again in a country that fought so hard against Germany is ironic. But if there’s one point I’m trying to make, it’s that the Patriot Act is the greatest assault on American constitutional liberties in our history.