More Secure or Spooked?
... for many no direct proof was produced. In the late 1940’s, several events caught the American public attention. There was a Communist revolution taking place in China. This scared Americans because the Chinese were their allies during World War II. The Soviet Union had supposedly acquired an atomic bomb, which could only mean a nuclear war was inevitable. Then the belief that the communists had spies and supporters in America working to bring down the United States. All of these issues combined made Americans very paranoid. In 1950 Joseph McCarthy made a claim that he had a list of Communists in the State Department. Just the mere accusation made Americans start questioning everyone. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were two American citizens and they were also members of the Communist party. They were accused of espionage, and then they were arrested because of the accusation. There was no hard evidence, just mainly one testimony against another. However, instead of being charged with espionage, the Rosenberg’s were charged with and convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage. On June 19, 1953, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were put to death in the electric chair after they were convicted of the charge. Over fifty years later Americans realize that McCarthy was really just “full of it” and many still debate as to whether or not the Rosenberg’s were guilty. Although many agree that the fear of the communist party taking over was hype and ridiculous, similar issues and fear of Middle Eastern supporters is much the same today as it was in the 1950’s, but it is spurred on not by a list per say, but acts to “secure” the American public. Since September 11, 2001, the United States presidential administration has put in place a number of safety features to reduce the fear and impact of the situation. Homeland Security was created to “prevent terrorist attacks within the United States, reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do occur.” To inform Americans of the “risk” of a terrorist attack, Homeland Security has an advisory system that is updated frequently. However, the use of words in the system alone inflicts a certain amount of fear. The system ranges from the lowest level that is the color green, meaning a “low risk of terrorist attacks,” to the highest level that is red, meaning a “severe risk of terrorist attacks”. There is no level below green, and because of this it is implied that there is always a risk of an attack. This implication of a constant risk, keeps the American public in a constant, yet subconscious state of panic. Does this affect Americans’ everyday lives? Maybe not consciously, but it does create small problems that appear to be larger than they actually are due to an exaggerated sense of concern. The real question posed here is can one truly prevent the next attack or provide true security? Forty-five days after the attacks in New York, Congress passed the USA Patriot Act, which states its purpose is “To deter and punish terrorist acts in the United States and around the world, to enhance law enforcement investigatory tools, and for other purposes.” (Patriot Act, 2001). Through this act the government applies the ability for all government agencies to enhance surveillance procedures through invading US citizen’s privacy by “intercepting wire, oral, and electronic communications” (Patriot Act, 2001). Now the American government has the ability and right to eavesdrop on conversations, read anyone’s e-mail, and if a search warrant is used they have the “authority for delaying notice of the execution of a warrant.”(Patriot Act, 2001) So the American government can “delay” telling someone if they have entered their house and maybe left a few wire taps or surveillance cameras. It’s just another thing to worry about. Are Americans even able to walk around their own...