by Ruth Scalpone

Created on: March 06, 2009   Last Updated: March 19, 2009

We Are The Land of the Free, Not the Land of the Safe

America was founded as a nation of free individuals who could choose their own religion, say what they thought without fear of government oppression, have an armed militia, and have the other rights listed in the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

The country was not meant to be in a cocoon, protected from the rest of the world, safe from wars, disease, or terrorism. We have the right as citizens to live where we want, get the education we desire, and work at the type of jobs we want to. How many citizens of other countries can say that?

When people are afraid to say what they think, do what they want to do, or go where they want to go, terrorist acts have succeeded. In the same way as governments that say they won't negotiate with terrorists so terrorists won't be encouraged to commit even more acts of terrorism, we must not give up our rights as American citizens.

A large part of the world was surprised when the U.S.A. military started bombing Afghanistan in response to the 9-11-01 terrorist plane crashes in New York and Washington. America had been said to be a "paper tiger" before that, willing to endure anything rather than go to war. We are not only the land of the free; we are the home of the brave, as our military has shown and continues to show time after time, and as the national anthem states.

Which rights are we wiling to give up for national security, free speech, a free press, no unreasonable search or seizure? How about being able to face our accusers in court? Do we want government employees and criminals the only people in the country who have guns?

Would we allow homes and workplaces to be searched only because an anonymous tip was given to law enforcement? Is it all right if no proof or probable cause would be necessary for those searches?

Without our rights as citizens, double jeopardy, where a person can't be tried for the same crime more than once under our current system, would become legal. People could be compelled to testify against themselves. There would be no more "taking the Fifth," because there wouldn't be a Fifth Amendment to the Constitution anymore.

Would there even be court cases? If law enforcement or military officers could haul anyone at any time off, why would the accusers even have a trial in court for the accused?

Why should they go to the trouble of investigating crimes and proving them in court, when it would be a lot easier to take those people directly to prison or a labor camp than to have the burden of trying them in court?

There have been wars for thousands of years. A terrorist who is willing to bomb themselves and anybody else who happens to be there, would not be stopped by laws against their activities, anymore than they are now. They would disregard any goodwill and help offered to them by the government. They would commit their illegal acts anyway.

Even if we did surrender all of those rights, would we be completely safe from acts of terrorism? That is doubtful, at best. American citizens would be less free, and it wouldn't stop any future terrorism.

The only thing it might accomplish is to make the U.S.A. less appealing to the thousands of people from other countries every year that want to come to America. That's a trade I'm not willing to make, and I hope the other citizens of America aren't either.

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