Outgoing Attorney General John Ashcroft called for a renewal of portions of the Patriot act yesterday as he reinforced the position of an administration that emphasizes fear, stubbornness and a disregard for privacy. This tone needs to be abandoned by the government in order to protect the rights put forth by the Constitution. Bush has an excellent opportunity to do so during tonight's State of the Union address.
This paper has previously argued against the Patriot Act and its infringement on civil liberties, since it allows authorities to tap phone calls, monitor E-mails and even search library records without a warrant or even probable cause. The Act has been defended as an instrument to fight terrorism, but Ashcroft also extolled its purposes in fighting domestic crime.
In his remarks yesterday, Ashcroft argued that crime is declining because of stiff laws and the extra reach given by the Patriot Act. At what price are we buying safety? The war on terror is supposed to be protecting America, but it is pointless if the rights and liberties which make the United States great are destroyed in the process.
The effects of the Patriot Act and the war on terror's reign of fear have taken its toll on the American public. A survey of 100,000 high school students by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation found that a third of them think First Amendment rights are too extreme, according to the BBC. Half of the students surveyed believed that newspapers shouldn't print stories that did not have government approval.
These students hopefully have been taught that the First Amendment rights are the basis of American democracy, yet they do not see value in the freedom of speech. This shows the declining respect for the Bill of Rights in the American public. Americans no longer even expect to have the rights which the founding fathers intended to be upheld in all situations.
Hopefully, President Bush will move away from Ashcroft's stark, black-and-white language in the first State of the Union of his second term tonight. Bush needs to adopt an attitude which allows for grey areas to exist. Our inherent rights, such as the freedom of speech and the right against unreasonable search and seizures must be respected at all times. When the Bill of Rights and the Patriot Act come into conflict, the Patriot Act must be the one that loses.
