Non Fiction Reading Response

Jacob Sutton 808

 

            The article “Watching You” by Patricia Smith in the New York Times’ Upfront newsmagazine talks about how in the years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, the government has been adding more and more types of surveillance systems to keep an eye on its citizens.  Every year Americans grow more and more accustomed to these intrusions.   There are more body scanners, shoe searches and video surveillance cameras keeping tabs on Americans than ever before.  According to this article, the question Americans are asking is “how much privacy is worth sacrificing to keep the nation safe?”

             There are methods of surveillance that the government uses that affects our privacy.  One example of this is body searches at airports.  Regular airline passengers are subject to full body scans and invasive physical “pat downs” to ensure that they are not bringing any banned substances on a flight.  Another example of increased surveillance is how the government can monitor the communication on your phone 

            The article talks about former National Security Agency (N.S.A.) contractor Edward Snowden and his leaking of information to the media that details an extensive government phone surveillance program.  Snowden risked a long prison sentence for disclosing top secret material to the journalists because as Snowden says, “The public needs to decide whether these programs and policies are right or wrong.”  Snowden’s documents revealed that the government always has access to your phone and instant messages, and can be monitoring you and the people that you are communicating with.  These surveillance techniques make me feel like the government may be invading our right to privacy as identified in the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.     

            At the same time, this might all be a good thing.  Think about it… if there are terrorists among us, and the government is checking their phone messages, terrorists could be apprehended before they harm Americans. If that is the case, do I really have no problem with the government checking my phone messages?  Yes it is a little spooky, but if they can stop a terrorist attack by doing this, then I have no complaint. 

             This article has really gotten me to think: On one hand, the government is really invading our right to privacy.  And on the other hand, this could mean protection from future terrorist attacks.  This article has really challenged me to think about my desire for privacy versus what might be necessary to ensure the safety of Americans. 

 

 

 

Works Cited

Smith, Patrca. "Pre-K-K." January 13, 2014. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2014. <http://upfront.scholastic.com/issues/01_13_14>.