National Security in the US

On 9/11/2001 a group of terrorists organized an attack that resulted in the destruction of the twin towers shaping the modern world. As a response, the United States took military action as well as created policy to increase surveillance. These policies were put into place over a decade ago and still continue to influence policy today.

            The main legislation that was passed as a response to the terrorist attack on 9/11 was the Patriot Act. This was a policy that increased surveillance reach in the United States and increased the reach of the CIA as a way to legalize surveillance the CIA was already doing. The obvious answer is legislation such as this indeed violates the Constitutional Rights of Americans by looking into information that should be private without probable cause or a warrant to allow such actions. It is also unknown what is being done with the information that is being collected that creates an entirely new range of ethical problems.

            With organizations such as the CIA and the NSA, many rights are violated by collecting phone records, text messages, GPS tracking, and other substantial concerns that raises many questions as to why it is being collected and what is being done with the information that was acquired illegally. One problem with the massive amounts of data collection is the fact that a lot of the information is not deleted from the servers. This leaves information on the American people open to the risk of being acquired by cyber terrorists.

            By accessing information without proper process this leaves a range of doors open to how certain people are treated that may be a suspect under false pretenses. Those who are considered suspected terrorists or potential affiliates have the risk of being “taken in” or put on “no fly” lists without any type of trial or due process. This leaves everyone to simply trust the government to make the proper decision when put into these situations, which is also a violation of the Constitution by not allowing any type of trial as guaranteed by the Constitution.

            The counter to this argument is the fact that many terrorists are getting away with violent acts, sabotage, and mass murder. By giving up some freedoms, such as privacy, the U.S. government will have substantially higher chances of tracking those who are suspected terrorists and even preventing terrorist attacks on U.S. soil. In a post 9/11 world, this will become a norm that many will not even consider as it already fades away from most discussions because people would rather simply stay ignorant to the matter and have the potential of remaining safe instead of eliminating government surveillance and being open to a world of terrorism.