Civil Liberties and Privacy in Peril

This week has been troubling for our nation's civil liberties, namely the people's right to privacy and freedom from unwarranted government intrusion. On Monday, the Supreme Court allowed police  to gather the DNA of arrestees to help them solve unrelated crimes. That decision drew justified dissension from Justice Scalia and civil liberties groups. Besides its unsound application of Fourth Amendment precedents, the opinion gave too much deference to the police, as if pretending that the State would not abuse its power to collect DNA for ulterior purposes, and minimized the loss of privacy, which surely was great for arrestees. We shouldn't be less sympathetic just because arrestees are involved - any of us can be arrested and what rights taken from some are taken from us all.

Compound that is this week's revealing of massive surveillance of American citizens by their government and collection of communications records by the NSA. It has drawn justified debate about the extent of government surveillance necessary to protect Americans from terrorism while maintaining their civil liberties. And finally, President Obama and the politicians have to be candid about what's going on. What is discouraging is the muted response from Congress, with many politicians (besides Rand Paul) too spineless to criticize the NSA's actions. While the intelligence community and politicians will try to muzzle the media and informants, this timely revelation advances our ideals of a transparent government and having the people (through the press) check on their government.

These happenings are not surprising and shows what happens what the government has too much power and lacks transparency. The checks and balances prescribed by the Constitution failed because Congress lacks the will to speak up and investigate, the Executive Branch predictably stretched their powers under the Patriot Act, and the judiciary fails to be an independent check on the powers of government. In fact, the judiciary has done the people disservice by trusting the government to not abuse its powers, whether under the Patriot Act or the Fourth Amendment, and by shielding activities of the FICA from meaningful review. What will ultimately drive change will be the people. It might not be easy to advance the cause of civil liberties, especially when terrorist threats remain, but it is necessary to safeguard our right to privacy and check on the power of government.

Privacy in the digital age

Maybe Griswold was ruled just in the nick of time. In 1965, the Supreme Court first ruled that there exists a constitutional right to privacy (in that particular case, marital privacy to use contraceptives). That right is commonly and rightfully assumed in our culture. Now, more than ever, privacy is needed as the Internet and digital technology breaks traditional barriers. I recently read about Facebook's long history with privacy intrusions. Indeed, it is quite befuddling to tackle the privacy controls on Facebook - I tried but still cannot master it. Likewise, Google's collection of users' data for its satellite maps is also troubling. Sure, we appreciate the useful Google Apps but would prefer that our cars and pools remain off limits to remote public eyes.

Facebook and Google are just the biggest players. Granted, we are not Britain where public surveillance exists to an uncomfortable degree (thank goodness Labour's ID cards scheme has been scrapped by the coalition). Nonetheless, a sizable number of Americans are worried about big government and corporations looking over their shoulders. Technology plays a dual role: it liberates us to do new things but also breaks barriers that once protected private actions from public scrutiny. We are no longer sure. In fact, we are insecure about the privacy and sanctity of the home, an interest long protected by common law. Computer viruses pop up unexpectedly. Telemarketers continue to call. One paper not shredded may result in identity theft. Sometimes, this makes me (and likely others) want to board a raft and flee for an atoll.