Zekun Chen
ASA section A01
Week 6 blog

Safety or Privacy?

Among the reading this week, the “USA PATRIOT Act: A Sketch” by Charles Doyle caught me the most attention. In this article, Charles Doyle elaborates and lists out some new crimes, new penalties and new procedural efficiency created by the USA PATRIOT Act. Such a content stimulates my thinking between the choice of safety and privacy.  Although the Patriot Act more or less reinforces a sense of security for Americans after the 9-11 terrorism attack, it also leads to the great doubt of violating Americans’ freedom and causing their great discomfort while under surveillance. It is definitely a horrible thought when one believes that he or she will be tracked whenever he or she makes a phone call, sends an email or even has a face to face conversation to other people. Although out of safety reason, our privacy should still be considered. If the government keeps sacrificing people’s privacy, it will possibly cause the prevailing anxiety which might concur the whole society.  Thus, the government should refine this act, with the aim of protecting the safety of Americans, while maintaining their privacy.

Question: Are there any cases which government abuses the power of this act and accesses to people’s privacy mistakenly?