Real Kato Blog: Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death

"So that's how liberty dies... to thunderous applause."

So, I thought I was writing a Very Important Post a couple of days ago, when I wrote about blogging. But this one might be even more important. There were a couple of things that happened today, and they've sparked a chain of thoughts in my head.

First, more bombs were set off today in London. Thankfully, the casualties were not nearly as severe; one person was wounded, and no one was killed. But no doubt Londoners' nerves were rattled by this... and that's all the terrorists really are trying to do, to strike fear into us. If they can make us so afraid that we do irrational things, they've accomplished what they set out to do.

Second (speaking of irrational things), the House of Representatives voted to extend the USA Patriot Act. Even the most contentious part of the law, the one that allows the government to seize our personal records from hospitals and libraries, was approved for a ten-year extension. In the waning moments of the debate, the latest London bombing attack was used to help justify the provisions of the law.

Third, the New York police are going to being randomly searching subway passengers. The London bombings are also being used to justify this action.

I'm really starting to get worried about how we Americans are slowly allowing our rights to get chipped away, in the name of combating terrorism. The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution is being lost. The Fifth Amendment will be next, then the Second, and then the First. We have started down the path to fascism. The really scary part is that some people think that's okay. Better to be safe than to be free, some say.

Let's talk about the Fourth Amendment, which deals with unreasonable search and seizure. By law, you cannot be searched without your consent, unless the police have a search warrant, or you're under reasonable suspicion for committing a crime ("probable cause"), or a few other very specific cases ("exigent circumstances"). That means that, if you're about to enter the New York subway system, and some police officer asks to search your bag even though there's no indication you're doing anything criminal, you have the right to refuse. They can stop you from getting on the subway, but they can't make you consent to the search. You can just walk away.

Most people don't know this. Most people will allow themselves to be searched even if they're carrying a pound of marijuana and the severed head of their ex-girlfriend in a duffel bag. Why? Because they're afraid that refusing to be searched will make them look suspicious, and they believe that they're going to get searched no matter what they do or say. If you ever watch "Cops", you'll see this all the time. A guy will get pulled over by a traffic cop because he failed to use his turn signal or something. (AND because he's black.) The officer will say, "Is it okay if I take a look in the trunk of your car?" The guy will say "Um, okay", and the policeman will find an M-14 and a dead hooker in his trunk, and it's off to jail he goes. If he had just said "No, I'm exercising my Fourth Amendment rights to refuse your search", he would have gone scot-free.

(All the white people watching "Cops" on Fox will say, "But that's a good thing, that he got arrested, right? The ends justify the means." Well, sure, until it's your aunt Sally that gets sent to jail for possession of a dildo in Alabama. Or until it's you that has to undergo two hours of questioning because you had a copy of Catcher in the Rye in your pocket.)

So millions of New Yorkers will allow themselves to be searched without cause, and lots of people will go to jail because they forgot they had a joint in the bottom of their backpacks. And you know what? WE WON'T BE ANY SAFER FROM TERRORISTS THAN BEFORE. If anyone is studying up on the Fourth Amendment, it's the terrorists, and they'll laugh as they saunter away from the police officers and just walk to the next subway stop down the line.

What's more, the terrorists are laughing at us right now, because they see that they don't need bombs or chemicals to destroy our country. We're doing a fine job destroying it ourselves, one Amendment at a time.

Permalink 2 Comment

Posted by Ken in: politics

Comments

Comment #1 from MonoCerdo (Guest)
2005 Jul 22 - 10:46 am : #

Oh, Ken. I know. Doesn't anyone remember 1984?

Comment #2 from Ken (realkato)
2005 Jul 22 - 10:55 am : #

Sarah, I asked that exact same question when I was talking on the phone with a friend of mine.

Comments are closed for this post.

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