Patriot Act, Part II

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

> Delivered-To: dfarber+ () ux13 sp cs cmu edu
> Date: Tue, 23 Sep 2003 10:48:18 -0400
> From: steven cherry <steven () panix com>
>
> Dave, I'm surprised if no one sent you this very strongly-worded editorial 
> in yesterday's NY Times.
>
>  Steven
>
>
> <http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/22/opinion/22MON1.html>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> September 22, 2003
>
> Patriot Act, Part II
>
> The Bush administration has been on a campaign to shore up support for the 
> Patriot Act and argue for an expanded version, which is being dubbed 
> Patriot Act II. This public-relations offensive comes, however, at a time 
> when a growing number of Americans are saying the original act already 
> gives government too much power. Faced with these reasoned objections, the 
> administration is becoming more shrill. Last week, Attorney General John 
> Ashcroft named librarians as the latest group to pose a threat to freedom. 
> Rather than lash out at well-intentioned critics, the administration 
> should listen to the thoughtful voices from across the political spectrum 
> who are saying we need less Patriot Act, not more.
>
> President Bush spoke out last week in favor of a three-point plan for 
> expanding the law. Patriot Act II would give the government broad powers 
> to seize documents and force testimony without a court order, expand use 
> of the death penalty and make it harder to be released on bail. None of 
> these tools are necessary to fight terrorism, and each threatens to 
> infringe on the civil liberties of Americans.
>
> The most troubling part of the new plan is the call for expanding 
> government access to private data, allowing federal agents to issue 
> subpoenas for private medical, financial and other records, without a 
> court order. The lack of judicial oversight removes an important check on 
> government misconduct. Record holders would be required to comply, or face 
> prison, and would be barred from telling anyone about the subpoena.
>
> The two other parts of the plan are equally misguided. The new death 
> penalty provision is not needed: antiterrorism laws already provide for 
> capital punishment. And it is worded so vaguely that it could be used 
> against people with no ties to international terrorism, including domestic 
> political protesters. The bail provision, which creates a presumption in 
> terrorism cases that bail will be denied, is also unnecessary. Judges can 
> already withhold bail when defendants pose a threat. The new law simply 
> tries to coerce judges into holding people they do not think need to be held.
>
> The Justice Department announced on Thursday that it had not used its 
> power under the Patriot Act to demand library records a single time. That 
> revelation may have been intended to support Mr. Ashcroft's mean-spirited 
> attack on librarians, whom he charged with being caught up in "baseless 
> hysteria." But selectively releasing this one statistic has a three-card 
> monte feel: if the number grows, it is unlikely that the Justice 
> Department will be so forthcoming. If the administration truly had nothing 
> to hide about its use of this power, it would not be arguing for the 
> authority to put a librarian in prison for speaking publicly about 
> receiving a subpoena.
>
> The administration is acting as if it does not have the legal powers it 
> needs to fight terrorism, when it does. The drive to roll back civil 
> liberties is a threat to freedom and a distraction. The administration 
> would better use its energy on more effective law enforcement strategies 
> to keep us safe.
>
> Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company |
>
> --
>
>   Steven Cherry    <s.cherry () ieee org>
>   Senior Associate Editor, IEEE Spectrum
> --
>                                                   <steven () panix com>
>   =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>   What an immense mass of evil must result . . . from allowing
>   men to assume the right of anticipating what may happen.
>          -- Tolstoy

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