Letters_____________
2 _______
WedNEsdAy, J anuary 16, 2002
• Opinion
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Patriot Act: The power of the police is profound
On Oct 26 of2001, PresidentBush
signed the USA Patriot Act into law,
giving federal secret police immense
power to legally investigate any citi
zen or noncitizen they want. Of
course, the secret
police (FBI, CIA, Se
cret Service) have
been doing this for
decades illegally,
but now that it’s le
gal, this activity is
increasing greatly.
“The USA Patriot
Act gives law en
forcement agencies, nationwide, ex
traordinary new powers unchecked
by meaningful judicial review,’’said
Laura W. Murphy of the American
Civil Liberties Union.
“Section 215 authorizes the FBI
to acquire any business records
whatsoever by order of a secret U.S.
court,” said Rep. C.L. “Butch” Ot
ter, R-Idaho. “The recipient of such
a search order is forbidden from tell
ing any person that he has received
such a request. This is a violation of
the First Amendment right to free
speech and the Fourth Amendment
protection of private property.”
This is our fault, of course. We let
the United States get away with too
much for too long, like the Espio
nage and Sedition Acts (which make
what I’m writing here illegal). The
FBI and CIA were both heavily in
volved in spying on and destroy
ing political activists during the
1960s, going so far as to carry out
the assassination of probably well
over 1,000 political activists. Clinton,
while in office, supported the North
American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA). PresidentBush now sup
ports the Free Trade Area of the
demands that you discover just
what it is that you believe in, and
live by what you think is right.
Which brings me back to the Pa
triot Act, which is drafted for the
purposes of tightening control
over the American people rather
than combating terrorism, as it
claims to do.
Following the Oklahoma
City Federal Building bombing
Jesse Gurzynski in 1995, the Anti-terrorism and
Staff Writer Effective Death Penalty Act
(AEDPA) was created under the
pretense of anti-terrorism. This
Americas (FTAA). Such free trade act makes it nearly impossible for a
agreements prevent communities death sentence to be overturned by
from deciding for themselves how a federal court. Elliot Grossman is
business will operate in their area co-council in the defense case of
by allowing corporations to over Mumia Abu-Jamal, who was sen
ride local environmental and labor tenced to death for the murder of
laws.
Daniel Faulkner. Under AEDPA,
These barely scratch the surface Arnold Beverly’s confession to the
of the intolerable things that the murder is not allowed as evidence,
United States does — that we toler because it came after the year al
ate. The result is that the govern lowed for the admission of new evi
ment is free to create laws that es dence.
tablish itself as a legal police state -
“The AEDPA wouldn’t have
meanwhile still pushing meaning stopped Oklahoma. If this [current]
less propaganda about the freedom, legislation had been in place before
liberty and democracy that we never September 11, it wouldn’t have
really had. If you don’t believe this stopped it. It’s not dealing with the
claim, then speak—as I have—with problem it’s supposed to solve. The
the people who were really involved people who pulled off 9-11 were not
deterred by the death penalty; it is
in political activism in the 1960s.
In a sense there is democracy, but not an effective deterrent against
it does not take place in prescribed those kind of people. Obviously [the
places at prescribed times. Democ legislation] is hot designed to stop
racy is a lifestyle; you must “vote terrorism,” said Grossman.
with your life,” as Henry David
Even some people within the
Thoreau suggested. Democracy government fear the implications of
Be Human.
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Be strong, survive in
By Eric Johnson
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such legislation. “The insult is to cal
this a ‘patriot bill’ and suggest I’n
not patriotic because I insist on find
ing out what is in it and voting no,
said Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas. “
thought it was undermining the con
stitution, so I didn’t vote for it - an
therefore I’m somehow not a patrioi
That’s insulting.”
“Why don’t we say what we ar
doing here? We are going to amen
our wiretap laws so we can look inti
anybody’s computers,” said Sen
Leahy, D-Vermont, who voted ye
on the act. “We do not define terror
ism, but we say we are adding that,
guess some kid who is scaring yoi
with his computer could be a terror
ist and you could go through th
kid’s house, his parents business o
anything else under this language
it is that broad.”
This law also allows activists an
activist organizations to be labelei
terrorists. As we can see from po
lice actions against nonviolent pro
testers (and even non-protestin|
bystanders) in Seattle in 1999 dur
ing the massive protest of the WTO
police violence is already extreme
Now that such protesters are no
merely protesters but “terrorists,” wi
have yet to see how extreme polio
violence may become.
If you are a terrorist or are jus
curious about the implications of th
USA Patriot Act, you can learn mor
at <www.aclu.org>. or type USy
Patriot Act into your favorite searcl
engine and see what you come u|
with.
Do you want to go head to head
with one of our writers?
Bring it on!
Send your opinions to
cccprint@clackamas.cc.or.us 300-500
words or stop by B-104 with it saved on
QM f
In the year 2001, we Ameri-
Life deals us hands that some
cans experienced heartache times we cannot control, am
and pain of
catastrophic
proportions
when
the
World Trade
Center, the
Pentagon
Pronrl Î
Salena De La Cruz
and all of
X LIJL1U»
Opinion Editor
America
were hit by
hatred. I’m here to say wher those days seem like they wil
ever 2002 takes us, we will al never end and we will neve
ways be taken care of, whether live through them, but we di
it is by family, friends, angels because we have people whi
or God himself, we will survive. want us to survive, to perse
I know this because when my vere and continue with ou
will withers and my strength lives.
There are some who have n(
fades and there seems to be
nothing left of me and who I one to turn to and no one t(
was to become, I know I'll be comfort them in their time o
taken care of. When the world pain. So, if you see a strange
seems no longer our own, take who’s seen better days, smili
heart, there is a plan, a pur and wave; you may have jus
pose, for you and me both. You saved a life.
When the bills are piling up
see, I am no stranger to heart
break. I know pain. I’ve felt and the money’s not enougl
hatred. I’ve cried. I’ve bled. for food on the table or a roo
When that drink calls my name over your head, and your san
or yours and the drug wishes ity, like mine, has days that i
to inhale and overtake us for may be slipping, look up, lool
just a brief moment of happi around: people care about you
ness, we survive. Though You make a difference.
Be strong in these times be
some have given into the temp
tation and not made it back cause all we can do is survivi
alive, those stories are told to or be defeated.
Questions or comments
teach others of survival, of
cccprint@clackamas.cc.or.us
love and loss.