Say Hey to the NSA Is violating the Constitution and using an ineffective counterterrorism method the best way to gather intelligence? If this constitutionally questionable method only began 1.8 percent of terror investigations, the answer seems obvious. Proponents of the National Security Agency’s programs such as PRISM will claim it is vital to protect the nation against terrorists and is well within the law. However, by violating the 1st Amendment, 4th Amendment, being ineffective, and showing an overall lack of integrity, the NSA’s questionable methods of gathering intelligence such as monitoring call data and search history prove to be ineffective an intrusive. People tend to act differently around those who have power over them,
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President Obama claimed in 2013 that 50 attacks have been averted due to the surveillance programs. Likewise, General Keith Alexander, director of the NSA, claimed the information gained has prevented over 50 attacks in 20 countries (Bergen et al.). However, a study done by the New America Foundation makes these claims seem questionable. The NSA’s controversial surveillance, which monitors the number of the sender and receiver of a call, and the time and date of the call, was found to only have a role in 1.8 percent of these cases. According to the authors of the study, traditional methods of intelligence gathering such as the having informants in place and receiving tips from those in local towns provided the start for a bulk of the cases. 1.8 percent of over 50 attacks means the information had an effect on one case (Bergen et al.). Some may claim this one case should be enough to justify the snooping, but this does not take into account the information may have been found later using traditional investigative methods. Others such as attorney John Yoo, have claimed Al Qaeda attacked America on September 11, 2001, and this constituted an act of war (Yoo 901-902). Therefore, the U.S. should gather intelligence in a manner that the military would during a war and not follow the typical approach of the criminal justice system. Mr. Yoo …show more content…
If something goes wrong and America is attacked, the blame falls on them. Those who criticize their actions must acknowledge they will bear no blame if something terrible occurs and do not have a full grasp of the dangers in the world. Leaders will use every tool at their disposal to get the job done, and will search for new tools if they believe there is any slither it will help their cause. This epitomizes what has occurred at the National Security Agency. Though dutifully attempting to keep the public safe, privacy rights were given a back seat and the Constitution was
President Obama claimed in 2013 that 50 attacks have been averted due to the surveillance programs. Likewise, General Keith Alexander, director of the NSA, claimed the information gained has prevented over 50 attacks in 20 countries (Bergen et al.). However, a study done by the New America Foundation makes these claims seem questionable. The NSA’s controversial surveillance, which monitors the number of the sender and receiver of a call, and the time and date of the call, was found to only have a role in 1.8 percent of these cases. According to the authors of the study, traditional methods of intelligence gathering such as the having informants in place and receiving tips from those in local towns provided the start for a bulk of the cases. 1.8 percent of over 50 attacks means the information had an effect on one case (Bergen et al.). Some may claim this one case should be enough to justify the snooping, but this does not take into account the information may have been found later using traditional investigative methods. Others such as attorney John Yoo, have claimed Al Qaeda attacked America on September 11, 2001, and this constituted an act of war (Yoo 901-902). Therefore, the U.S. should gather intelligence in a manner that the military would during a war and not follow the typical approach of the criminal justice system. Mr. Yoo …show more content…
If something goes wrong and America is attacked, the blame falls on them. Those who criticize their actions must acknowledge they will bear no blame if something terrible occurs and do not have a full grasp of the dangers in the world. Leaders will use every tool at their disposal to get the job done, and will search for new tools if they believe there is any slither it will help their cause. This epitomizes what has occurred at the National Security Agency. Though dutifully attempting to keep the public safe, privacy rights were given a back seat and the Constitution was