- 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.
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- 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.
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- 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.
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- 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.
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- 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.
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- Two wrongs do not make a right. Two wrongs make it doubly
wrong.
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- 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 nineteen suicidal maniacs attacked us on 9/11, our country
became convinced that further sacrifice of personal and financial privacy
was required for our security.
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- 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.
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- 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.
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- 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.
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- 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.
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- We need no more Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act!
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- No more Violent Radicalization & Homegrown Terrorism
Prevention Acts!
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- No more torture!
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- No more Military Commissions Act!
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- No more secret prisons and extraordinary rendition!
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- No more abuse of habeas corpus!
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- No more PATRIOT Acts!
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- What we need is more government transparency and more
privacy for the individual!
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