The Patriot Act: America's Struggle between Security and Their Civil Rights - Coursework Example

The Patriot Act Introduction According to Smith and Hung (2009), some American citizens believe that the Patriot Act does not affect United States’ safety. These Americans are under organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and several leaders of the congress. Some opponents in the congress argue that the Act impedes some American civil rights like personal freedoms and privacy despite assertions that the act only affects suspected terrorists (Gerdes, 2009). This essay tries to prove the authenticity of this controversy through providing the pros and cons of the Patriot Act. History of the Patriot Act On 11th September, 2001, terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. This stimulated a nationwide call for stricter security and advanced approaches by the law-enforcement agencies to help impede terrorism. To respond, the US government drafted the Patriot Act. This Act was formulated by Viet Dinh, the Assistant Attorney General, and introduced to Congress by Jim Sensenbrenner, a Republican Representative. The House of Representatives and the Senate received separate versions of the Patriot Act. On 11th October, 2001, the Senate passed its version, however the version of the House underwent several alterations after which it was redrafted and merged with the version of the Senate then finally the House approved it. The revised consolidated version was approved by the Senate after which President Bush signed it into law on October 26, 2001 (Stefoff, 2010). Pros of the Patriot Act The pros of the Act include: Simplicity of Surveillance The Act ensures the ease of surveillance. The Act permits companies to exhibit a clear labor division amid the employees that is capable of investigating terrorist activities. Surveillance, in the past, seemed as an awkward process for most government agencies, however this Act smoothened the processes making it manageable. Expedite Investigations and sharing with intelligence community The Act permits Government surveillance to surpass both artificial and natural barriers (Gerdes, 2009). Speed is a key factor in proper terrorism investigations, and the Patriot Act permits faster inquiries into activities considered potentially suspicious. Terrorists in the US territory can no longer hide under the freedoms established for law abiding citizens. Helps in Law Enforcement Before the implementation of the Patriot Act, law enforcement faced several barriers that hindered investigations into the activities of terrorists. Most American citizens despite having the belief that the federal government had absolute independence in investigating parties suspected to have involvement in terrorist activities; this was relatively complex before implementation of the Patriot Act. Expanded Collection of Intelligence The Patriot Act has ensured alteration of the regulations concerning wiretapping. Government therefore, finds it easy to listen to any conversation considered as a potential threat to the nation’s security. Additional provisions were included into the Patriot Act such that police officers could gain intelligence without a potential terrorist noticing that their cell is under surveillance. Elevates Security Measures Patriot Act is regarded necessary by individuals concerned about time technology taking priority over appropriate investigation. As communication modes continue to undergo changes on an unvarying basis, there exist more investigations to be carried out (Fredericks, 2010). Potential terrorists are no longer limited in their capacity to contact each other; therefore Patriot Act supporters consider increased security measures necessary. Victim’s Funding Costs Saved The existence of the Patriot Act also addresses funding concerns. Before the implementation of the Patriot Act in the American justice system, victims of a terrorist attack could not receive compensation they required to help them properly recover from the traumatic ordeal. Quickly Prevents Attacks In case the security intelligence team uncover any potential or planned attack, they can easily strike fast, thus limiting a growing threat before it is put into action. The government can easily authenticate whether a cell under surveillance is a real threat, therefore they are always ahead of the terrorists. Ensures Safety to Citizens Apart from victims of terrorism not receiving proper compensation, the affected families by a terror attack also received no funding (Lindauer, 2010). This was particularly a problem to families that suffered loss of their bread winner because of terrorism. Less Effects on Businesses Businesses that lost their revenue because of the terrorist attacks, or even received a terrorist attack threat, no longer needed to worry how they would cope with the aftermath of the situation in the future. The Patriot Act not only offered an enhanced funding to terrorist attacks victims and their family members but also compensated business owners whose businesses had been affected by a terrorist attack. Expansive Directives and Titles According to Gerdes (2009), the individuals who formulated the Patriot Act did it carefully ensuring the existence of several diverse sections, which clearly outlined a range of possible scenarios. The title or rather the sections provide a deeper framework to the listed provisions in the Patriot Act. Balances and Checks in Place The balances and checks contained in the Patriot Act are all similar therefore the American citizens have grown familiar to seeing into the documents of their government (Stefoff, 2010). All the newly distributed powers are not corrupted by any outside forces because of these balances and checks. Citizens contact enhanced A keen focus on the sections of the Act assists American citizens in gaining more understanding about the new powers included in various entities of the government. Increased capabilities in surveillance and investigation are not the momentum for the Patriot Act, but are techniques that the security forces use to ensure safety to the American people. Cons of the Patriot Act The cons of the Act include: Alienation of privacy When the US government still tracks a US citizen who no longer lives in US, this becomes a problem for individuals who consider their right to freedom valuable including their privacy as accorded in the Fourth Amendment. Most critics assert that the Patriot Act fails to offer legal protection at similar levels to citizens, even the citizens who face false accusations. In-efficacy Smith and Hung (2009) assert that the overall effectiveness of the Patriot Act has come under criticism in several occasions and most people have never given it a good recognition. Some critics also believe that the terror attack that occurred on 11th September, 2001 was an isolated occurrence. Most of the critics of the Patriot Act believe that the country has not had terrorist attacks for a long time because of the military might of the nation and not the newly written act. In most instances, the greatest concern of the critics of Patriot Act is the permission it offers the government to check and track the activities of private citizens including the citizens who have never had any involvement in terror related activities. Generally, the Act never gave any true guarantee that the government would never track the average citizen (Lindauer, 2010). Excess Power Given to Government Critics of the Act believe that terror attacks prevention can be done without providing too much power to the government to do whatever they consider fit when carrying out investigations. These debates still keep on raging since there is no clear way through which the quantification of the fact that the Patriot Act can prevent follow up attack can be established. Waste of Essential Resources The Patriot Act often allocates vital resources to tracking of the American citizens even in times when the spending habit of the government is being roundly criticized. Further, this Act permits the tracking of the US citizens who have resettled overseas. Critics consider these actions a gross mismanagement of the government funds. Unlawful Imprisonment The existence of the Patriot Act permitted the existence of the Guantanamo Bay, a period that goes down in history as being an infamy to the American government (Fredericks, 2010). Even the individuals who supported the establishment of Guantanamo Bay have never stopped admitting that the imprisonment of suspected terrorists without providing a due process to them was never the key factor that the Patriot Act anticipated to accomplish (Fredericks, 2010). Hard to comprehend The Patriot Act put a lot of effort into ensuring that most of its sections were clearly defined with regards to what would happen. However, many observers still do not understand what the Patriot Act intended to do so as to prevent occurrence of future terror attacks happening in the US. No Clear Definition In the Patriot Act, Title II provides the government with the right to have access, and track any public record, even the records considered semipublic (Lindauer, 2010). The critics of the Patriot Act insist that there exists no clear definition indicated within the Patriot Act concerning what action the government plans to take with such power and autonomy. Unlawful Detainment Some few months and years after the terrorist attack in September 11, many American citizens and foreigners were held as prisoners in Guantanamo Bay without any clear reasons. Later the American government established that some of the prisoners had no ties to the terrorist attack that took place (Fredericks, 2010). All these happened because of the excess power that the Patriot Act provided to the government. No Rights for the Counsel The United States is a nation that sees itself as a free land and prides itself about the fair legal processes it has adopted, however some of the practices permitted by the Patriot Act seemed somehow unjust. Foreigners from various parts of the world received unfair treatment and detention after the September 11 terrorist attack. In most instances, the detained foreigners were never given a good reason for their detention and were never given the opportunity of retaining a legal counsel. Causes Panic and Hostility Gerdes (2009) insists that when the library records of a citizen become a concern of the government, it is of significance that the individuals who happen to be cynical about such government regulations have their suspicions assuaged. It however became clear that to the skeptics of the Patriot Act that an opportunity would never be created for them to air their complaints. The emotional situation during the inception of the Patriot Act was characterized by panic and hostility towards various cultures, rather than one of understanding. Citizens accused falsely Of course there are obvious reasons why the US government may not desire any American citizen who is part of a terrorist cell to evade surveillance. However, after the initiation of the Patriot Act many instances have come up whereby some citizens are falsely accused of having an involvement in terrorism. This happens for some time before the government notices the mistake they have done: at that point it is always too late since the mess has been done. Conclusion In general, considering the pros and cons of the Patriot Act, there is evidence that the cons are more pressing than the pros. As much as the Act ensures that security problems are tackled with ease, it breaches the rights of the American Citizens particularly the right to privacy and freedom. The American government should therefore consider renewing the Patriot Act if it has the interest of its citizens at heart. It should also consider determining if its citizens feel safe with the Patriot Act in effect and how much privacy the citizens are willing to give up so to be safe from terrorists attacks. References Fredericks, R. (2010). The True American Manifesto. Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press. Gerdes, L. (2009). The Patriot Act: Opposing Viewpoints. Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press. Lindauer, S. (2010). Extreme Prejudice: The Terrifying Story of the Patriot Act and the Cover Ups. New York, NY: Houndmills Basingstoke. Smith, C. S., & Hung, L. (2009). The Patriot Act: Issues and Controversies. Springfield: Charles C Thomas Publisher, LTD. Stefoff, R. (2010). The Patriot Act. Westport Conn: Greenwood Press Read More