Stop Looking At Me!

Well, ladies and gentlemen, just when you thought maybe you didn't have a reason to be paranoid, think again. An article in the September 19th issue of The Nation, written by John S. Freidman, tells about the return of domestic surveillance. Yep.That's correct. This means that someone is watching you right now. They are watching to see who you talk to, your daily routine, what you do on the Internet, what you read, etc., etc. Hell, they are probably watching me right now.

If you are wondering who "they" are, here you go. The FBI, the National Guard and Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF's). The JTTF's are about 110 teams (for the time being) comprised of local and state police. Is it not nice to know that your local police officer can report you to the feds under the guise of "protect and serve". It also has to be said that it is refreshing to see that the FBI can finally work well with others.

For some Americans, there is no cause to worry. Well, at least for now (you never know who they might go after next). Unless you have publicly spoken out or critizied the war in Iraq, you can consider yourself off the hook. For others, your sense of paranoia may have just increased. Think of the things you can look forward to: strangers with dark sunglasses at your front door asking if they can come in and have a word with you, the police at your house wanting you to come with them to answer a few questions, unknown vehicles on your street keeping record of your comings and goings.... Oh, the endless possiblities!

However, before you cower in the corner from fright, there are some who want to come to your defense. Can you guess? Yes, that's it. The ACLU. In May of this year, they filed a lawsuit requesting information about the practices and funding of JTTF's. The information that they received was a ".... Who's Who of national and local advocates for well known causes, including anitwar, environmental, labor, fair trade and human rights causes."

The ACLU does have a strongman that can offer you protection as well. The strongman's name is the U.S. Constitution. We are afforded protection by the Constitutions 4th Amendement which states that: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable serches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and paticularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

To read John S. Freidman's article in its entirity go to http://www.TheNation.com

To read about legal action being taken in our defense, check out the following sites:
http://www.aclu.org
http://www.bordc.org --Bill of Rights Defense Committee
http://www.ccr-ny.org --Center for Constitutional Rights(NY,NY)