Suspending Civil Liberties During War a Good Thing
When the United States is at war, it is our government’s responsibility to keep the civilians living in the country safe. ... When the United States government pries into the lives of citizens during war it is only to protect the greater freedoms that the constitution itself has to offer. In this editorial a complaint that was published in the New York Times against the FBI will be presented as well as a well known case involving wartime civil liberties. ... Some may argue that this could be true at any point in time, not just wartime, which is true, but during wartime is when we have to be the most careful. Many people resent the United States and may think that during war we become vulnerable and this is not the image we would like to project. ... Perhaps many of the people fighting against the suspension of civil liberties simply do not fully understand what they are fighting for. Now I admit the United States government has taken the suspension of civil liberties too far in the past, especially in the 1940’s when all people of Japanese decent were placed in internment camps for the duration of the war. I am in no way condoning that action at all; the civil liberties I am talking about are fairly small things such as right to privacy. Although important to preserve our definition of freedom things like right to privacy are things that Americans can live without during times of war. ... “ As a result of the memorandum, the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) cried foul play and accused the FBI of spying on protest groups in getting this information. Anthony Romero, the Executive Director of the ACLU says, “It is troubling that the FBI is advocating spying on peaceful protesters, but even protesters who engage in civil disobedience or other disruptive acts should not be treated like potential terrorists.” This statement of his is absolutely ridiculous, protesters who engage in civil disobedience or other disruptive acts ARE terrorists, though on a much smaller scale than we are used to seeing.