Paper #3	

Is Security Worth Liberty?

        It is often easy for Americans to be so focused on the moment that we lose sight of the "big picture".  For example, immediately following the horrible events of 9/11 our nation, for the most part, banded together against a common threat.  We as individuals were willing to surrender some of our basic liberties that we had previously enjoyed in order to guard against this threat.  However, as time wore on and the perceived threat became less evident in everyday life, many of us began to think more of our own situations rather than the priority of the common good.  Some of us have publicly begun to criticize the wearing away of some of our basic liberties in the wake of what has happened.  Our world as we knew it prior to 9/11 is gone forever and we must make allowance for the necessary changes to our way of life.
        One of the most obvious changes is the increased security measures at our airports.  This summer I was flying out of Pittsburgh International Airport with my family when I was directly affected by these changes.  I had placed my bag on the screening belt and had walked through the metal detector when the detector indicated that I was possibly carrying some type of metallic object on myself.  Immediately an airport security worker escorted me to a small booth where she used a hand held detector to determine that my shoes apparently had some metal parts on them.  I was then allowed to board the plane and continue on with the rest of my family.  However, I recall that at the time, I found the episode annoying and inconvenient.  I can see why others faced with a similar set of circumstances would feel that their rights were being infringed on.  But if we take a moment to put these instances into perspective, as they apply to 9/11, I think our initial irritation would quickly subside and the inconvenience would seem less significant.    
	More drastic measures have been taken by the government than just simply tightening security.  One thing most people feel as a direct violation of their rights is that one of the new powers given to the government is the right to administer searches without a warrant.  This power has effects on criminal investigations as well as terrorism based searches.  Today, police can search homes, computers, and even people’s cars without reasonable suspicion.  This violates the rights given to the American people in the Fourth Amendment of our constitution.  This may seem more discriminatory than being asked to step aside at an airport.  People that have been through this experience could be very angry with the government for making them feel unfairly treated.  But returning to the idea that these things are done for our good can help them get through it.  When stories are told of these so called injustices making the American people out as victims our thoughts should go back to the events of 9/11.  Everything falls back into perspective and the remembrance of the real victims takes over our own emotions.
	During this time we need to rely on the government for protection.  This means trusting that they are doing everything they can to ensure our nation’s security.  Even if at times we think they are taking it too far we have to trust their judgment.  Americans need to concern themselves with all people of our nation not just our individual liberties.  We need to keep in mind that the government has our nation’s security at the top of their list of priorities and we should not be too quick to criticize changes being made for us.  With our sights focused more on the safety of our nation than on our individual liberties we will deal with the small sacrifices of our rights to the government in a more comforted manner.  We need to ban together as a whole to end terrorist acts on our nation, which sometimes means putting our own rights second.