Patriot Act Homeland Security Act 21st Century form foundation United States’ domestic response terrorist attacks September 11, 2001. Many legal political voices advocated acts resulted a reduction rights citizens a loss civil liberties.
The Patriot Act and the Homeland Security Act:
Are they a violation of our constitutional rights?
According to the U.S. government, the Patriot Act and the Homeland Security Act gave the government the necessary tools to investigate acts of terror, including greater leeway in the use of surveillance technology; greater leeway in sharing information between law enforcement agencies, and increased the penalties for terrorist-related crimes (The U.S. Patriot Act, 2014, Department of Justice). However, it is very difficult to establish whether a law has genuinely prevented crime, particularly a crime with such complex causality as terrorism. Furthermore, civil liberties groups have criticized the Act for limiting the freedom of innocent Americans. Rather than improving the safety of Americans, organizations such as the ACLU allege that it has merely made the U.S. more vulnerable to charges that it practices discrimination against Muslims and is willing to trample the civil rights of individuals. What use are more stringent laws against terror if the take away the liberties they are ostensibly supposed to protect?
Throughout American history, there have been many examples of times where fears during wartime resulted in a curtailment of national liberties, including during the McCarthyism of the Cold War in which people with left-leaning sympathies were targeted as potential ‘communists.’ However, the Patriot Act actually enshrined into law certain provisions which seem at odds with basic constitutional liberties, including prosecuting librarians who reveal that the government has subpoenaed library records; searching and seizing without probable cause when an investigation is related to a terrorist treat; and jailing an accused person indefinitely if they are accused of terrorist acts (The Patriot Act in a nutshell, Associated Press).
The Act also allowed persons accused of terrorism to be held without a trial, without the right to confront accusers, and to be held indefinitely without charges. All of these are examples of constitutional violations, critics contend, given that Americans are given the right to free speech under the First Amendment, the right to be free of unreasonable searches and seizures under the Fourth Amendment, and the right to confront their accusers under the Fifth Amendment. As well as to conduct surveillance of a suspect’s home, under the Act the government acquired sweeping powers to acquire personal data from “car rental companies, casinos, Internet hosts like Google, social networking sites like Facebook, and most likely cafes and businesses that offer Wi-Fi access to their customers” (Rose 2011). According to the U.S. Constitution, a person is innocent until proven guilty, while under the tenants of the Act, it would seem that everyone is a potential suspect with no expected right to privacy, even when typing on a computer in the privacy of his or her own home.
Parts of the Patriot Act have already been ruled unconstitutional. In 2007, a Muslim convert and attorney named Brandon Mayfield was subjected to warrantless surveillance of his house and searches of his home and office after a fingerprint was misread and “he was mistakenly linked by the FBI to the Madrid train bombings that killed 191 people in 2004” (Judge rules part of the Patriot Act unconstitutional, 2007, NBC.). The judge found that the Patriot Act, “now permits the executive branch of government to conduct surveillance and searches of American citizens without satisfying the probable cause requirements of the Fourth Amendment” and thus as unconstitutional (Judge rules part of the Patriot Act unconstitutional, 2007, NBC.). However, despite this ruling, under the Act, “delayed notice search warrants, or ‘sneak-and-peak’ warrant” still allow government investigators “to enter an individual’s business or dwelling to obtain limited and specific information for an investigation and notifying the individual of the search at a later date” (Reform the Patriot Act, 2011, ACLU).
Defenders of the Act, of course, would counter that because there have been no attacks on U.S. soil of the magnitude of 9/11 then the Act must be ‘doing something’ to improve the safety of ordinary Americans. However, once again there is no clear evidence to support this assertion. What is clear is that “expanding the government’s surveillance powers in foreign intelligence investigations allows the government to do much more than “track spies and terrorists” but also allows them to track many other people, including Americans and others not suspected of involvement in terrorism or crime at all” (Reform the Patriot Act, 2011, ACLU). Many civil liberties groups allege that the provisions of the Act have actually led to more petty drug arrests rather than a meaningful improvement in widespread safety. Even the claim that the Act was necessary to increase sharing between intelligence agencies is questionable: “information sharing between criminal and intelligence investigations occurred before 9/11 and the Patriot Act [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] FISA information, properly obtained for foreign intelligence purposes, could always be shared with criminal investigators if relevant to crime” (Reform the Patriot Act, 2011, ACLU).
The question that must be asked, therefore, is not if America is safer than pre-2001, but if the specific provisions of the Patriot Act have made us safer. There is evidence that the government has greater ability to engage in constant surveillance of ordinary Americans. This is constitutionally questionable and also expensive and not necessarily the best use of scarce financial resources. Rather, keeping track of library books and web searches seems more likely to find ‘false positives’ than genuine terror threats.
References
Judge rules part of the Patriot Act unconstitutional. (2007). NBC. Retrieved from:
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/20999950/ns/us_news-security/t/judge-rules-part-patriot-act-unconstitutional/#.Ux2qlIX5Pz8
The Patriot Act in a nutshell. Associated Press Retrieved from:
http://www.scn.org/ccapa/pa-meta.html http://www.scn.org/ccapa/pa-meta.html
Reform the Patriot Act. (2011). ACLU. Retrieved from:
https://www.aclu.org/free-speech-national-security-technology-and-liberty/reform-patriot-act-myths-realities#three
Rose, C. (2011). Ten years of the Patriot Act. Boston.com. Retrieved from:
http://boston.com/community/blogs/on_liberty/2011/10/ten_years_of_the_patriot_act.htm
The U.S. Patriot Act. (2014). Department of Justice. Retrieved from:
http://www.justice.gov/archive/ll/highlights.htm
l
Get Professional Assignment Help Cheaply
Are you busy and do not have time to handle your assignment? Are you scared that your paper will not make the grade? Do you have responsibilities that may hinder you from turning in your assignment on time? Are you tired and can barely handle your assignment? Are your grades inconsistent?
Whichever your reason is, it is valid! You can get professional academic help from our service at affordable rates. We have a team of professional academic writers who can handle all your assignments.
Why Choose Our Academic Writing Service?
- Plagiarism free papers
- Timely delivery
- Any deadline
- Skilled, Experienced Native English Writers
- Subject-relevant academic writer
- Adherence to paper instructions
- Ability to tackle bulk assignments
- Reasonable prices
- 24/7 Customer Support
- Get superb grades consistently
Online Academic Help With Different Subjects
Literature
Students barely have time to read. We got you! Have your literature essay or book review written without having the hassle of reading the book. You can get your literature paper custom-written for you by our literature specialists.
Finance
Do you struggle with finance? No need to torture yourself if finance is not your cup of tea. You can order your finance paper from our academic writing service and get 100% original work from competent finance experts.
Computer science
Computer science is a tough subject. Fortunately, our computer science experts are up to the match. No need to stress and have sleepless nights. Our academic writers will tackle all your computer science assignments and deliver them on time. Let us handle all your python, java, ruby, JavaScript, php , C+ assignments!
Psychology
While psychology may be an interesting subject, you may lack sufficient time to handle your assignments. Don’t despair; by using our academic writing service, you can be assured of perfect grades. Moreover, your grades will be consistent.
Engineering
Engineering is quite a demanding subject. Students face a lot of pressure and barely have enough time to do what they love to do. Our academic writing service got you covered! Our engineering specialists follow the paper instructions and ensure timely delivery of the paper.
Nursing
In the nursing course, you may have difficulties with literature reviews, annotated bibliographies, critical essays, and other assignments. Our nursing assignment writers will offer you professional nursing paper help at low prices.
Sociology
Truth be told, sociology papers can be quite exhausting. Our academic writing service relieves you of fatigue, pressure, and stress. You can relax and have peace of mind as our academic writers handle your sociology assignment.
Business
We take pride in having some of the best business writers in the industry. Our business writers have a lot of experience in the field. They are reliable, and you can be assured of a high-grade paper. They are able to handle business papers of any subject, length, deadline, and difficulty!
Statistics
We boast of having some of the most experienced statistics experts in the industry. Our statistics experts have diverse skills, expertise, and knowledge to handle any kind of assignment. They have access to all kinds of software to get your assignment done.
Law
Writing a law essay may prove to be an insurmountable obstacle, especially when you need to know the peculiarities of the legislative framework. Take advantage of our top-notch law specialists and get superb grades and 100% satisfaction.
What discipline/subjects do you deal in?
We have highlighted some of the most popular subjects we handle above. Those are just a tip of the iceberg. We deal in all academic disciplines since our writers are as diverse. They have been drawn from across all disciplines, and orders are assigned to those writers believed to be the best in the field. In a nutshell, there is no task we cannot handle; all you need to do is place your order with us. As long as your instructions are clear, just trust we shall deliver irrespective of the discipline.
Are your writers competent enough to handle my paper?
Our essay writers are graduates with bachelor's, masters, Ph.D., and doctorate degrees in various subjects. The minimum requirement to be an essay writer with our essay writing service is to have a college degree. All our academic writers have a minimum of two years of academic writing. We have a stringent recruitment process to ensure that we get only the most competent essay writers in the industry. We also ensure that the writers are handsomely compensated for their value. The majority of our writers are native English speakers. As such, the fluency of language and grammar is impeccable.
What if I don’t like the paper?
There is a very low likelihood that you won’t like the paper.
Reasons being:
- When assigning your order, we match the paper’s discipline with the writer’s field/specialization. Since all our writers are graduates, we match the paper’s subject with the field the writer studied. For instance, if it’s a nursing paper, only a nursing graduate and writer will handle it. Furthermore, all our writers have academic writing experience and top-notch research skills.
- We have a quality assurance that reviews the paper before it gets to you. As such, we ensure that you get a paper that meets the required standard and will most definitely make the grade.
In the event that you don’t like your paper:
- The writer will revise the paper up to your pleasing. You have unlimited revisions. You simply need to highlight what specifically you don’t like about the paper, and the writer will make the amendments. The paper will be revised until you are satisfied. Revisions are free of charge
- We will have a different writer write the paper from scratch.
- Last resort, if the above does not work, we will refund your money.
Will the professor find out I didn’t write the paper myself?
Not at all. All papers are written from scratch. There is no way your tutor or instructor will realize that you did not write the paper yourself. In fact, we recommend using our assignment help services for consistent results.
What if the paper is plagiarized?
We check all papers for plagiarism before we submit them. We use powerful plagiarism checking software such as SafeAssign, LopesWrite, and Turnitin. We also upload the plagiarism report so that you can review it. We understand that plagiarism is academic suicide. We would not take the risk of submitting plagiarized work and jeopardize your academic journey. Furthermore, we do not sell or use prewritten papers, and each paper is written from scratch.
When will I get my paper?
You determine when you get the paper by setting the deadline when placing the order. All papers are delivered within the deadline. We are well aware that we operate in a time-sensitive industry. As such, we have laid out strategies to ensure that the client receives the paper on time and they never miss the deadline. We understand that papers that are submitted late have some points deducted. We do not want you to miss any points due to late submission. We work on beating deadlines by huge margins in order to ensure that you have ample time to review the paper before you submit it.
Will anyone find out that I used your services?
We have a privacy and confidentiality policy that guides our work. We NEVER share any customer information with third parties. Noone will ever know that you used our assignment help services. It’s only between you and us. We are bound by our policies to protect the customer’s identity and information. All your information, such as your names, phone number, email, order information, and so on, are protected. We have robust security systems that ensure that your data is protected. Hacking our systems is close to impossible, and it has never happened.
How our Assignment Help Service Works
1. Place an order
You fill all the paper instructions in the order form. Make sure you include all the helpful materials so that our academic writers can deliver the perfect paper. It will also help to eliminate unnecessary revisions.
2. Pay for the order
Proceed to pay for the paper so that it can be assigned to one of our expert academic writers. The paper subject is matched with the writer’s area of specialization.
3. Track the progress
You communicate with the writer and know about the progress of the paper. The client can ask the writer for drafts of the paper. The client can upload extra material and include additional instructions from the lecturer. Receive a paper.
4. Download the paper
The paper is sent to your email and uploaded to your personal account. You also get a plagiarism report attached to your paper.
PLACE THIS ORDER OR A SIMILAR ORDER WITH US TODAY AND GET A PERFECT SCORE!!!
