Since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, national security has been a top priority, physically and electronically. The United States Government has created programs and institutions to handle and prevent threats and attacks within, or towards, our nation. The United States Government does not deny domestic surveillance programs and justifies monitoring the lives of civilians by stating that the programs are for the overall national security of the nation, rather than defending the private lives of American citizens. Because most domestic surveillance is superfluous, American citizens retain the right to private lives and should be sheltered from redundant surveillance.
Throughout American history, domestic surveillance and monitoring …show more content…
“When in compliance with the law... surveillance of electronic communications data can be necessary and effective” (Pillay 3). When utilized correctly, national surveillance can be beneficial. Domestic national surveillance is capable of identifying potential terrorists. Using the information gathered from known terrorists, agencies would be able to find addresses and phone numbers for allies of former terrorists. This would allow agencies to capture terrorists before they became a threat to the nation. Also, the data collected could be used to target specific areas of the nation where there seems to be a high population of suspicious activity. Although the surveillance could be pragmatic, domestic national surveillance is “not the solution to ending terrorism and it never will be the solution” (Sendrick 2). Simply said, the amount of information gathered is not comparable to the number of potential terrorists that could be caught. It is difficult for agencies or officials to be able to guarantee that terrorists will be caught. While these programs are in effect, the federal agencies would spend more time looking at irrelevant information rather than finding potential terrorists. Gathering information from captured terrorists would benefit the nation more than targeting innocent civilians and restricting their fundamental
Throughout American history, domestic surveillance and monitoring …show more content…
“When in compliance with the law... surveillance of electronic communications data can be necessary and effective” (Pillay 3). When utilized correctly, national surveillance can be beneficial. Domestic national surveillance is capable of identifying potential terrorists. Using the information gathered from known terrorists, agencies would be able to find addresses and phone numbers for allies of former terrorists. This would allow agencies to capture terrorists before they became a threat to the nation. Also, the data collected could be used to target specific areas of the nation where there seems to be a high population of suspicious activity. Although the surveillance could be pragmatic, domestic national surveillance is “not the solution to ending terrorism and it never will be the solution” (Sendrick 2). Simply said, the amount of information gathered is not comparable to the number of potential terrorists that could be caught. It is difficult for agencies or officials to be able to guarantee that terrorists will be caught. While these programs are in effect, the federal agencies would spend more time looking at irrelevant information rather than finding potential terrorists. Gathering information from captured terrorists would benefit the nation more than targeting innocent civilians and restricting their fundamental