“Do you begin to see, then, what kind of world we are creating? It is the exact opposite of the stupid hedonistic Utopias that the old reformers imagined. A world of fear and treachery and torment, a world of trampling and being trampled upon, a world which will grow not less but more merciless as it refines itself. Progress in our world will be progress toward more pain.” George Orwell, 1984.
Well, here we are again, we are at another crossroads. The Patriot Act (USA PATRIOT Act Sunset Extension Act of 2009) has passed the Senate Judiciary Committee and is going onto the Senate to be reauthorized. Well isn’t this just a great day for freedom in America?
So, where do I begin?
First off, the Patriot Act is a horrible idea from the get-go. We are all aware (or should be) of the various abuses of power associated with the Patriot Act. One of the major problems is associated with definition of Terrorist groups. Within the Patriot Act there are a lot of problems, many of which I will not be able to cover. Here are some of the best:
Sec. 411. Definitions Relating to Terrorism- This section makes it a deportable offense to knowingly or unknowingly aide a terrorist organization. This section is vague and hard to understand, like most of the act. Some of the issues with this section are that it is hard to determine what a terrorist organization is; one man’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter, so the saying goes. Also, this section can apply to a worker from the Red Cross helping members of Hamas care for their children, a lawyer giving advice to the IRA, Greenpeace, the ACLU or an ordinary citizen using their freedom of speech.
I did understand this part here, under clause (F) of section 411 the sub clause (iv) is stated below:
(iv) ENGAGE IN TERRORIST ACTIVITY DEFINED- As used in this chapter, the term `engage in terrorist activity’ means, in an individual capacity or as a member of an organization
`(I) to commit or to incite to commit, under circumstances indicating an intention to cause death or serious bodily injury, a terrorist activity;
`(II) to prepare or plan a terrorist activity;
`(III) to gather information on potential targets for terrorist activity;
`(IV) to solicit funds or other things of value for–
`(aa) a terrorist activity;
`(bb) a terrorist organization
Section 411 is a well known problem with the Patriot Act, same with Sec. 802 Definition of Domestic Terrorism. Sec. 802 clause ‘A’ sub clause 5 is stated below.
`(5) the term ‘domestic terrorism’ means activities that–
`(A) involve acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State;
`(B) appear to be intended–
`(i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population;
`(ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or
`(iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping; and
`(C) occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States.’.
Here is a brief overview of these fun sections.
Section 215 allows for third-party holders of your information, like an internet service provider or a bank, to be searched without your knowledge or consent. So, if you are involved in acts dangerous to human life that are also a violation of the law, then you can have all of your information pulled and searched without you even knowing. An example of this would be drunk driving, that is not only proved to be dangerous to human life but it is also against the law, you damn terrorists!
Section 213 is a good one too. This part allows for the search of private homes without any notice.
Or, what about Section 505 which “authorizes the use of an administrative subpoena of personal records, without requiring probable cause or judicial oversight.”
Section 218 modifies the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. This allows for secret searches without any public knowledge or accountability from the Department of Justice as long as the government uses foreign intelligence as an excuse.
So, here are a few of the sections that cause people to be fearful of unnecessary government intrusion of their lives. I even failed to mention good ole Section 412, one of my favorites. This section allows for ‘brief’ detention of anyone who “is engaged in any other activity that endangers the national security of the United States.” Someone who runs a political commentary website might be a prime target under this section.
These past 800 or so words are meant to give you an idea of why the Patriot Act is bad. I have never once in my life met someone who is in support of this act, so I do assume that many of you already know some of the reasoning for being against this bill.
Even though we have a populist as the President, the lust for more power is still there. Obama was one of many who supported the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 and he will undoubtedly fully support this new and improved version of the Patriot Act.
Right now, the Senate is getting set to reauthorize this bill under the guise of S. 1692 USA PATRIOT Act Sunset Extension Act of 2009. This bill is not any better for Civil liberty or privacy then the first incarnation.
However, according to the ACLU, “there were two amendments included in the final bill – both offered by Senator Feingold – that are victories for privacy: The Department of Justice would be ordered to discard any illegally obtained information received in response to an NSL and the government must notify suspects of “sneak and peek” searches within seven days instead of the thirty days currently outlined in the statute. “Sneak and peek” searches allow the government to search a home without notifying the resident immediately.”
As the Senate is set to reauthorize this Act we must remain vigilant towards the dangers that US Citizens face from abroad and domestically. One bill that aims to improve the Patriot Act but still give the US Government powers to battle terrorism is the Justice Act. Also known as, The Judicious Use of Surveillance Tools In Counterterrorism Efforts (JUSTICE) Act, it would give US citizens more privacy and it would not infringe on the US Constitution like the Patriot act does.
U.S. Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jon Tester (D-MT), Tom Udall (D-NM), Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Daniel Akaka (D-HI) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) have introduced the Justice Act.
Senator Russ Feingold, one of the sponsors of the bill said, “Every single member of Congress wants to give our law enforcement and intelligence officials the tools they need to keep Americans safe. But with the PATRIOT Act up for reauthorization, we should take this opportunity to fix the flaws in our surveillance laws once and for all. The JUSTICE Act permits the government to conduct necessary surveillance, but within a framework of accountability and oversight. It ensures both that our government has the tools to keep us safe, and that the privacy and civil liberties of innocent Americans will be protected. When he was in the Senate, President Obama was a strong ally on these issues, and I look forward to working with his administration to find common ground on commonsense reforms.”
The American people elected Obama because they didn’t like the authoritarian direction our country was moving towards. The fact is nothing has changed. If you are concerned about the Patriot Act let your representatives know!
Here is the Fact Sheet for the JUSTICE Act that is listed on Russ Feingold’s official website.
Fact Sheet JUSTICE Act Of 2009
The Judicious Use of Surveillance Tools In Counterterrorism Efforts (JUSTICE) Act would reform the USA PATRIOT Act, the FISA Amendments Act and other surveillance authorities to protect the constitutional rights of Americans while ensuring the government has the powers it needs to fight terrorism and collect intelligence.
Title I – Reasonable Safeguards to Protect the Privacy of Americans’ Records
Sections 101-106 – National Security Letters
The bill rewrites the National Security Letter (NSL) statutes to ensure the FBI can obtain basic information without a court order, but also adds reasonable safeguards to ensure NSLs are only used to obtain records of people who have some connection to terrorism or espionage, and to provide meaningful, constitutionally sound judicial review of NSLs and associated gag orders.
Section 107 – Section 215 Orders
The bill would reauthorize the use of Section 215 business records orders under FISA, but with additional checks and balances to ensure these orders are only used to obtain records of people who have some connection to terrorism or espionage, and to provide meaningful, constitutionally sound judicial review of Section 215 orders and associated gag orders.
Title II – Reasonable Safeguards to Protect the Privacy of Americans’ Homes
Section 201 – “Sneak & Peek” Searches
The bill would retain the Patriot Act’s authorization of “sneak and peek” criminal searches but eliminate the overbroad catch-all provision that allows these secret searches in virtually any criminal case. It would shorten the presumptive time limits for notification, and create a statutory exclusionary rule.
Title III – Reasonable Safeguards to Protect the Privacy of Americans’ Communications
Section 301 – FISA Roving Wiretaps
The bill would reauthorize roving FISA wiretaps, but eliminate the possibility of “John Doe” roving wiretaps that identify neither the person nor the phone to be wiretapped. It would require agents to ascertain the presence of the target of a roving wiretap before beginning surveillance.
Section 302 – Pen Registers and Trap and Trace Devices
The bill would retain the Patriot Act’s expansion of the FISA and criminal pen/trap authorities to cover electronic communications, but would allow pen/traps to be used only to obtain information about people who have some connection to terrorism or espionage. It would impose additional procedural safeguards to serve as a check on these authorities.
Section 303 – Telecommunications Immunity
The bill would repeal the retroactive immunity provision in the FISA Amendments Act.
Section 304 – Bulk Collection
The bill retains the new warrantless authorities in the FISA Amendments Act but would prevent the government from using that law to conduct “bulk collection” of the contents of communications, including all communications between the United States and the rest of the world.
Section 305 – Reverse Targeting
The bill would ensure that the overseas warrantless collection authorities of the FISA Amendments Act are not used as a pretext to target Americans in the U.S.
Section 306 – Use of Unlawfully Obtained Information
The bill would limit the government’s use of information about Americans obtained under FISA Amendments Act procedures that the FISA Court later determines to be unlawful, while giving the court flexibility to allow such information to be used in appropriate cases.
Section 307 – Protections for International Communications of Americans
The bill would amend the FISA Amendments Act to create safeguards for communications not related to terrorism that the government knows have one end in the United States.
Section 308 – Computer Trespass
The bill would guard against abuse of a warrantless surveillance authority in the Patriot Act that allows computer owners who are subject to denial of service attacks or other episodes of hacking to give the government permission to monitor trespassers on their systems.
Title IV – Improvements to Further Congressional and Judicial Oversight
Section 401 – FISA Public Reporting
The bill would require limited additional public reporting on the use of FISA.
Section 402 – Use of FISA Evidence
The bill would apply the Classified Information Procedures Act to the use of FISA evidence in criminal cases, and allow the use of protective orders and other security measures in civil cases, to ensure that courts have discretion to allow litigants access to information where appropriate while still protecting sensitive information.
Section 403 – Nationwide Court Orders
The bill would permit a recipient of a nationwide court order to challenge it either in the district where it was issued or in the district where the recipient is located.
Title V – Improvements to Further Effective, Focused Investigations
Section 501 – Domestic Terrorism
The Patriot Act’s overbroad definition of domestic terrorism could cover acts of civil disobedience by political organizations. The bill would limit the qualifying offenses for domestic terrorism to those that constitute a federal crime of terrorism.
Section 502 – Material Support
The bill would amend the overly broad criminal definition of material support for terrorism by specifying that a person must know or intend the support provided will be used for terrorist activity.
WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH
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Other variant is possible also