Ron Paul's Speech: how spying to stop terrorists is used to intrude privacy

[Guest guest]

" he who lives by the sword shall die by the sword.''

 

SPEECH OF

HON. RON PAUL

OF TEXAS

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

THURSDAY, MARCH 13, 2008

Mr. PAUL. Madam Speaker, it has been said that " he who lives by

the sword shall die by the sword.'' And in the case of Eliot Spitzer this

couldn't be more true. In his case it's the political sword, as his

enemies rejoice in his downfall. Most people, it seems, believe he got

exactly what he deserved.

The illegal tools of the state brought Spitzer down, but think of all the

harm done by Spitzer in using the same tools against so many other

innocent people. He practiced what could be termed ``economic

McCarthyism,'' using illegitimate government power to build his political

career on the ruined lives of others.

No matter how morally justified his comeuppance may be, his downfall

demonstrates the worst of our society. The possibility of uncovering

personal moral wrongdoing is never a justification for the government to

spy on our every move and to participate in sting operations.

For government to entice a citizen to break a law with a sting

operation--that is, engaging in activities that a private citizen is

prohibited by law from doing--is unconscionable and should clearly be

illegal.

Though Spitzer used the same tools to destroy individuals charged with

economic crimes that ended up being used against him, gloating over his

downfall should not divert our attention from the fact that the

government spying on American citizens is unworthy of a country claiming

respect for liberty and the fourth amendment.

Two wrongs do not make a right. Two wrongs make it doubly wrong.

 

Sacrifice of our personal privacy has been ongoing for decades, but has

rapidly accelerated since 9/11. Before 9/11 the unstated goal of

collecting revenue was the real reason for the erosion of our financial

privacy. When 19 suicidal maniacs attacked us on 9/11, our country became

convinced that further sacrifice of personal and financial privacy was

required for our security.

The driving force behind this ongoing sacrifice of our privacy has been

fear and the emotional effect of war rhetoric--war on drugs, war against

terrorism, and the war against third world nations in the Middle East who

are claimed to be the equivalent to Hitler and Nazi Germany.

But the real reason for all this surveillance is to build the power of

the state. It arises from a virulent dislike of free people running their

own lives and spending their own money. Statists always demand control of

the people and their money.

Recently we've been told that this increase in the already intolerable

invasion of our privacy was justified because the purpose was to

apprehend terrorists. We were told that the massive amounts of

information being collected on Americans would only be used to root out

terrorists. But as we can see today, this monitoring of private

activities can also be used for political reasons. We should always be

concerned when the government accumulates information on innocent

citizens.

Spitzer was brought down because he legally withdrew cash from a

bank--not because he committed a crime. This should prompt us to reassess

and hopefully reverse this trend of pervasive government intrusion in our

private lives.

We need no more Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act! No more Violent

Radicalization & Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Acts! No more

torture! No more Military Commissions Act! No more secret prisons and

extraordinary rendition! No more abuse of habeas corpus! No more PATRIOT

Acts!

What we need is more government transparency and more privacy for the

individual!

Source:

 

http://thomas.loc.gov/