can any one fill me in?
The "Patriot Act" grants the US government sweeping powers over aspects such as the definition of domestic terrorism. It grants the FBI extended powers of search and surveillance; both citizens and non-citizens may be detained (indefinitely) without formal charges. i think the principles of free speech and equal protection under the law have both become a bit more hazier subsequent to the introduction of this Act.
There were a few detailed threads in this Forum regarding the Patriot Act. i can paste them here if you want to read those - they contain much more detailed information?
It is an act to weed out the terrorists who are hell bent on killing innocents in America by monitoring their movements, curtailing their financial nets and luckily, pre-emptively stopping them from hurting Americans.
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*Originally posted by Matsui: *
It is an act to weed out the terrorists who are hell bent on killing innocents in America by monitoring their movements, curtailing their financial nets and luckily, pre-emptively stopping them from hurting Americans.
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Preemptive....hmmm.. "Minority report" comes to mind.
Lets search, and follow and punish someone based on what they might or might not do. Sounds like a good idea to you ?
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:k:
Well all of the powers given through the Patriot Act will be repelled by 2005, I think. Though a much more intrusive Act is in the works called Patriot Act 2, which will make all of the changes permanent. That act has a much slimmer chance of passing as there is significant opposition in the within the people of america as it further curtails their civil liberties.
This is the Patriot Act. Couldn’t have put it better myself. All (many) of the freedoms that were built into the constitution are out the window.
"Patriot Act Finds Trouble in Texas
By William Rivers Pitt
…
I have listened to the defenses of the Patriot Act offered tonight. The essence of the defenses, the essence of the rebuttals to our reservations and complaints, is “Trust us. We’re the government. We’re the constitutional scholars. Trust us.”
I've heard that before.
There are tons of mass destruction weapons in Iraq. Trust us. There are al Qaeda terrorists all over Iraq. Trust us. September 11 happened because of enemies who hate our freedoms. Trust us.
With all due respect, I say hell no. The one thing this government's behavior has not created is trust.
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There are hundreds and hundreds of sections to the Patriot Act. My personal favorite is Section 213. Legal scholars have dubbed this the “Sneak and Peek” provision. Section 213 of the Patriot Act gives authority to agents of the Federal government to enter your home, search your belongings, tap your phone, tap your computer so every keystroke and website and email is recorded. They can do this without getting a warrant, and without ever letting you know they were there.
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I’ll give you one quick example. On December 6, 2001, Attorney General Ashcroft stood before Congress to testify about the Patriot Act. In his opening statements, he said, “To those who scare peace-loving people with phantoms of lost liberty; my message is this: Your tactics only aid terrorists – for they erode our national unity and diminish our resolve.”
Therefore, according to Mr. Ashcroft, if you criticize the Patriot Act you are, under section 411, publicly endorsing terrorist activity by "frightening people with phantoms of lost liberty." If you criticize the Patriot Act publicly, you are also potentially in violation of section 802.
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The Patriot Act asks us to throw over the first, fourth, fifth, sixth, fourteenth and fifteenth amendments to the constitution, period.
The Patriot Act allows the government to detain, indefinitely and without access to an attorney or a trial by jury, anyone they deem to be a terrorist.
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there are some detailed items in this thread posted by me.
http://www.gupistan.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=103294