Vinson’s Variety: How much will Uncle Sam peep?
The latest edition of Rolling Stone magazine featured an article titled, “Spying on Ourselves,” which allowed readers, punningly enough, to sneak a peek into the future and ponder just exactly what Big Brother has in store for us. Quoted the article: “Bush’s homeland security team is building a massive surveillance state.”
With the atrocious Sept. 11 terrorist attack, and the ever-looming possibility of further and even more drastic terrorist attacks, it is little wonder our government has tightened up its laws and regulations pertaining to national security.
Spearheading the effort to bolster the security of the United States and its citizens is the tandem of John Ashcroft, U.S. Attorney General, and Tom Ridge, director of the White House’s Office of Homeland Security. In addition to helping convince Congress to pass a blockbuster anti-terrorism package a few months ago, Ashcroft and Ridge were instrumental in bringing about the enactment of the USA Patriot Act, which gives “new powers to the FBI, U.S. intelligence agencies (CIA, NSA, DEA, etc.) and other law-enforcement entities. From major cities such as New York ? to tiny, rural sheriff’s departments ? Ashcroft and Ridge are rushing to help police establish and upgrade intelligence functions.”
With these post-Sept. 11 enactments, our police forces, nationwide, are much less restricted and can operate with more freedom than prior. “Surveillance, wiretaps, Internet-monitoring, detentions, investigative authority and the ability to conduct secret searches of homes and offices” are but a few of the police procedures-tactics that have been upgraded and given greater latitude and longitude. Concerning Internet-monitoring, it is a matter of public record that, for several years, now, the FBI has been utilizing a system referred to as CARNIVORE, which allows the FBI to get into the e-mail accounts and monitor the e-mail transactions of those the bureau feels poses a threat to U.S. security.
While most will agree these new laws and acts bear merit and are much needed in the wake of the threat of 21st Century, high-tech terrorism, there, too, are major concerns. As brought out by the author of the Rolling Stone article, ” ? the issue of police intelligence is a minefield, because of the potential that state and local police could run roughshod over the privacy acts and civil liberties of fringe and protests groups in their regions.”
In no way attempting to undermine the seemingly noble efforts of Ashcroft-Ridge and others like them, but these new, enhanced powers handed to our collective police forces, via acts/laws such as the USA Patriot Act, bring to mind, in a certain sense, the Gestapo units of Adolph Hitler’s oppressive World War II era Third Reich. Basically, the Gestapo was a secret police organization that monitored and totally disregarded the civil liberties with unannounced searches.
The real issue, here, is whether these police forces will wisely and legally utilize the new and greater powers afforded them, as opposed to utilizing them in an oppressively illegal fashion. Predicts the author of the Rolling Stone article: “But the reality is that with these powers in place, it’s not a question of whether they will be abused. It’s only a question of when.”
Personally, I just pray this Ashcroft-Ridge effort will prove to be more a life-saving endeavor than an opportunity for malcontented, neurotic voyeurs. The old folks called them “Peeping Toms.” How about “Seeking Sams” for the 2002 group?
(Mike Vinson is a Warren County columnist. His e-mail is vinsonmike_b_@hotmail.com.)