The Orange County Register published my hit on the dangers of federal surveillance. Here are some outtakes:
Americans seem to have forgotten why the Founding Fathers prohibited government from spying on them. Public opinion polls show a rising percentage of Americans approving of the warrantless National Security Agency wiretaps authorized by President Bush.
Many Americans seem to believe that labeling the wiretaps a “terrorist surveillance program” somehow inoculates them from harm. American history warns that unleashing the government subverts not only privacy but also democracy……
Are Americans supposed to assume that illegal surveillance is covered by a reverse Miranda warning: any information government acquires will never be used against them? In reality, people will likely never know how much information the government has stockpiled on them unless and until the government openly takes some punitive action against them.
Illegal wiretaps will pave the way for other government crimes. The more information government gathers on people, the more power it will have over them.
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