by Elliott Hall

Created on: April 21, 2008

One of the fundamentally important rights of any Americans is the right to Due Process. Due Process contains many aspects, one of the most important ones being privacy. With warrant-less wiretapping going on unchecked, that right is severely hindered. In this country, we rely on the government to follow its own rules. We expect it to be fair and balanced, to serve the common interest of the nation, and to handle the peoples' business. But for the government to blatantly break one of its' own laws for seemingly fruitless endeavors is disheartening. It is paramount to following a cop who is speeding without his lights on, and then to be pulled over by another cop. The government is not allowed to break the rules that are put in place for its' citizens.

Now one of the biggest arguments against putting a check on warrant-less wiretapping is National Security. National Security is extremely important. The United States must do all in its power to secure its borders, and to provide safety for its citizens. That much will never be argued against. The greatest fundamental American right is the right to safety and security. However, when the government of this great nation is disregarding the rules that it set for itself, then the safety and security it provides for its citizens is already being destroyed.

The United States has something special for cases when it must eavesdrop on its citizens - the FISA courts. The beauty of the FISA court is that there is a 72 hour retroactive window to submit a warrant. That means you can wait up to three days after the wiretapping took place to submit the petition for a warrant. With that kind of waiting time, there is no excuse not to have every wiretapping incident legally authorized by a judge. The pursuit of liberty and justice in the United States is second to none. However, when someone utilizes a form of vigilante justice, breaking laws to accomplish a means, there is no justice. When the government breaks the law and illegally installs wiretaps, it is executing vigilante justice; regardless of the pretense. Fortunately, as earlier mentioned, there is a 72 hour retroactive window. The United States government has no excuses.

If the United States were to follow the laws prescribed, and had the wiretapping legalized, then the civil liberties we cherish would not be in danger. Unfortunately, as of now, with this current administration, we are in danger of losing one of the things we love the most: Privacy.

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