Replies

"Do you seriously think the FBI has the time, resources , or interest in monitoring the book purchases of the average citizen?"

This is the reason some people never care when their government looks to start doing something that's illegal or unconstitutional: they don't think it affects them. Well, you're probably right that it doesn't affect you yet. Would you care if the government put together a massive computer system and integrated it with the computer systems of every major bookseller and library in the country by law so it could monitor everyone's book purchases and library checkouts? Probably not. Would you care if the government integrated that tracking system with every supermarket, movie rental store, convenience store, gas station, car dealer, computer shop, ISP, contractor, and gun seller in the country? Probably not because you don't believe you're doing anything wrong.

Let me ask you, what exactly was wrong with the society depicted in George Orwell's book '1984'? Was there anything wrong with it at all? Or was the only flaw in the society the lack of control over the proles?

"I read somewhere that in the first 16 months after the Patriot Act was passed, not one single library account was subpoenaed."

So it's ok to have illegal powers so long as you don't use them for a while after they're given to you? How about if we give the FBI the power to arrest and hold indefinitely anyone it thinks might be a threat to the country (a power apparently reserved to the President, according to the current administration, though I fail to see where that is in the Constitution either)? How long would the FBI need to hold off on random and indefinite, unchallengable arrests before it'd be ok for them to come bust down some doors of anyone it thinks might pose a problem? Let's see - how about if they hold off about 3 years? That might just put them on target to start the arrests during President Hillary's reign. You want them to have that power then? Do you want the President to have that power then?

Power always corrupts. Absolute power always corrupts absolutely.