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Name one court case that says it's illegal for a business to access PUBLIC RECORDS of its patrons and to cooperate with a FEDERAL AGENCY in develping a program to strengthen NATIONAL SECURITY.
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Jollyrodger are you aware they released this information to the public? and on the internet none the less?? I dont think you would like Jetblue releasing you customer information (name, address, date of birth, social security number, etc) on the internet anymore then the people who are sueing jetblue for doing so. If you make a purchase on the internet that information does not automatically become public information just because it was now handed over to a a public company, and while it is legal for companies to access their own records it is NOT legal for them to publish this information on the internet.
As a nation we must take extraordinary actions against the evils which face us, but eroding our freedom is not one of them. Hundreds of thousands of men have died to protect these freedoms which so many are now so willing to sacrifice. Im a lawful citizen....I never break the law, but I still dont want the FBI or any other government agency snooping around in my personal business without just cause. There are other ways to fight terrorism besides destroying the framework...the binding fabric......of this great country.
Sure give up a little freedom in the name of catching terrorist, then we give up a little more and a little more.. and soon theres no more to give up..
The only one who wins this is the terroist. They instill fear in the american public and in our rush to save the world we give up the one thing we have fought so hard to preserve. I'm not paranoid or worried the government is out to get me, personally I could care less, but that isnt the point!. However I dont believe we should allow the government to step all over us for whatever cause they are seeking to save. Thats why we have Laws.. Next your going to say we should throw out the right to the 4th amendment and allow police to not need a search warrent to enter someones house or place of business and go through your personal stuff after all only guilty people have something to hide. Our laws were designed to protect the innocent as well as the accused from government abuse. Its these laws like the MIRANDA rights that protect us, and I by no means am willing to throw the rule book out the window.
I believe that part of being in a free country is being free from the government intruding into our lives. It is only a small step from here to the "Papers, please." That so many governments have fallen into. Its not like our govt or law enforcement has never abused there power or miss used data that was aquired.
The right to privacy is a freedom when their is a expectation by a reasonably prudent person to that privacy. The right to privacy in our own homes is also a freedom. Thats why we require a search warrant to invade someones privacy, because there is a reasonable expectation to privacy in ones home. That's also why a third party "The Judge" is their to interpet the law and facts so he/she can decide if the police, FBI or whoever has enough probably cause to effect that search warrant and thats a crash course in criminal law for you.
Some of you don't seem to get the idea that if we lose personal freedoms and due process....we have torn and tattered our constitution. Due process is a basic tenet of American freedoms. If we allow Ashcroft and Bush to destroy these in the name of "hunting terrorists" You don't really believe we will get them back? In the US the government, FBI etc is not allowed to behave like thh Taliban or the Gestapo. If we don't make certain they remember this ...you won't have to move..you'll wake up one morning under the control of that kind of government. Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it. Anybody who believes that if you are law abiding you have nothing to fear is nieve.
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
- Benjamin Franklin, 1759
And where do you draw the line Jollyrodger??
Have any of you heard of Mccarthyism. To me the whole deal with the TSA could lead to the same kind of witch hunts. If an individual is willing to give up any of there rights in this country then they better be willing to give up all of them. Our govt. has been successfully taking away our rights for years. Ever hear the words Innocent until proven guilty?
The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution places limits on the power of the government to make arrests; search people and their property; and seize objects documents and contraband. These limits are the bedrock of search and seizure law.Search and seizure law is constantly in flux and so complex that entire books are devoted to it.
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
The search and seizure provisions of the Fourth Amendment are all about privacy. Most people instinctively understand the concept of privacy. It is the freedom to decide which details of your life will be revealed to the public and which will be revealed only to those you care to share them with. To honor this freedom, the Fourth Amendment protects against "unreasonable" searches and seizures by state or federal law enforcement authorities.
Ryan