Dennis Michael Busch - Official Website
By Dennis Busch, collective opinion of the
University Journal Editorial Board
EDITORIAL: Liberty needs protection as much as ever
There is little doubt that the United States seems to be facing a new wave of attempted terrorist attacks, but in the face of such fear, we must all remember what our country is built on, and why it is important to protect.
Leaders throughout history have used collective fears to take away the rights of individuals, even American presidents.
In 1942, Franklin Delano Roosevelt imprisoned over 100,000 Japanese-Americans in internment camps, which at the time was accepted by the American people as a necessary safety measure.
In 1798, the Federalist majority passed the Alien and Sedition Acts, which among other things, made it illegal to criticize the U.S. Government and made the detention of immigrants and aliens easier.
All of these actions were seen as necessary for the protection of our country by those in charge, yet in retrospect are seen as some of the greatest challenges to personal liberty in U.S. history.
When our country was in its infancy, Benjamin Franklin said, “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
The University Journal Editorial Board would like to remind our readers not to be too hasty to sign away their freedoms in exchange for perceived security.
With this new barrage of attacks and plots, the Obama Administration is receiving harsh criticism for being to lax on security while the Bush Administration is being lauded for its protective anti-terrorism policy.
It may seem that tighter laws and rules may be the solution to our security issues, but if we allow terrorists to completely change the way that we live our lives, then their goals have been achieved.
We must not allow fear to lead the U.S., the bastion of freedom for the world, into condoning the unabashed removal of civil liberties nor the practice of racial or religious profiling.
With a strong resolve, our country will continue to be a strong pillar of freedom – just as we have always purported to be.
Leaders throughout history have used collective fears to take away the rights of individuals, even American presidents.
In 1942, Franklin Delano Roosevelt imprisoned over 100,000 Japanese-Americans in internment camps, which at the time was accepted by the American people as a necessary safety measure.
In 1798, the Federalist majority passed the Alien and Sedition Acts, which among other things, made it illegal to criticize the U.S. Government and made the detention of immigrants and aliens easier.
All of these actions were seen as necessary for the protection of our country by those in charge, yet in retrospect are seen as some of the greatest challenges to personal liberty in U.S. history.
When our country was in its infancy, Benjamin Franklin said, “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
The University Journal Editorial Board would like to remind our readers not to be too hasty to sign away their freedoms in exchange for perceived security.
With this new barrage of attacks and plots, the Obama Administration is receiving harsh criticism for being to lax on security while the Bush Administration is being lauded for its protective anti-terrorism policy.
It may seem that tighter laws and rules may be the solution to our security issues, but if we allow terrorists to completely change the way that we live our lives, then their goals have been achieved.
We must not allow fear to lead the U.S., the bastion of freedom for the world, into condoning the unabashed removal of civil liberties nor the practice of racial or religious profiling.
With a strong resolve, our country will continue to be a strong pillar of freedom – just as we have always purported to be.
© 2010 Dennis Busch, University Journal
