Life & Liberty Essay -- essays research papers fc

livelihood and LibertyA bill of rights are what the people are entitle to against every government, and what no just government should refuse. doubting Thomas Jefferson 1781There has been no abuse of rights, and sometimes we must weigh rights against responsibilities. -Attorney General John Ashcroft 2004Since our presentation fathers first drafted a constitution, Americas core values make up been life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness without interference from the government. For the better part of two light speed years, Americans devote focused on developing a fair and superfluous democracy, in which every iodine has an equal say and as umteen individual rights and freedoms as are possible in an effective society. Every once in a while, (America fights a major war astir(predicate) every cardinal years on average.) improving and maintaining democracy falls into the shadows, and protecting what we have created becomes Americans fore nearly concern.The U.S.A. Patriot Ac t was passed on October 26, 2001, with some no opposition from Congress. (Senate 98-1, House of Representatives 357-66.)( life & Liberty) The country was still shaken by the event of September the 11th. In fact while the bill was in deliberation, there was almost no opposition of any kind from additional interest groups or organizations nationwide. Once the bill was enacted, two distinct sides were formed, one side confident that any loss of privacy was worth ensuring our refuge device and protecting our free democracy, and the other side questioning whether the assurance of safety was worth trading away our personal freedoms and right to privacy dapple by piece.The three-hundred forty-two page Patriot Act effects many American institutions, from local laws and civil policies all the way up to the Constitution, and most controversially, the Bill of Rights. The Bush administration maintains that the Act is an instrumental device in counteracting terrorism. They point to Sections 203 through 211 of the bill (Evergreen, Title II), which change the way info... ...ely (PIPA). With alter poll results like these, it is easy to resolve that the American public is exclusively unsure of how the Patriot Act affects them. While the Bush administration seeks to comfort Americans and assure them that the Act protects our freedoms, groups like the ACLU seek to frighten and enrage Americans, qui vive them to what freedoms have been taken away. With 62% of Americans still in the dark about what the USA Patriot Act actually means and does (Gallup), this is a action that surely will not end soon. Works CitedEvergreen responsibility College Official legal summary of the USA Patriot Act, February 14, 2003Gallup Polling agreement poll conducted August through September 2003, released September 6, 2003On-Air interview with Larry male monarch October 21, 2004, taken from cnn.com Supreme Court case decisions taken from lawlibrary.com/supremecourt Letters of Thomas Jeffer son, 1781, Virginia State Library FoundationCongress voting results taken from Life&Liberty.gov PIPA (Program on International Policy Attitudes and the Center for International and certification Studies) University of Maryland. Poll conducted August through September 2003, released September 18, 2003.