The US Patriot Act

3 Pages 767 Words

The Patriot Act

In the wake of the attacks on the World Trade Centers on September 11, 2001, the United States Congress passed the Patriot Act. This bill changed the way that law enforcement works. The bill legalized many different search devices and tactics that were previously not allowed. This change in law caused much conflict in the country in that the new regulations came close to violating the first amendment rights of citizens being investigated. From time to time the Humanities Base Faculty members host panel discussions on topics that pertain to the lives of college students. A panel discussion about the Constitutionality of the United States Patriot Act would illustrate the complexities of the humanities based theme of the individual and society.
In society, there are many different institutions that socialize and manage individual’s behavior and thought. One of the major institutions that exist in our society is in the form of government. The United States Government is in charge of establishing the rights that individuals can exercise, and what laws they must abide by. The Patriot Act infringes on the rights of individuals in the United States, and it has been enacted by our government. This is how the Patriot Act pertains to the Humanities Base through the theme of the individual and society.
Some of the things that are in the Patriot Act that are perceived to be against the first amendment are in regards to personal freedoms and privacy. For instance, under the Patriot Act, an individual could come under investigation by the Feds for exercising their first amendment rights. The government can monitor certain search engines on the internet, and if a person does a search containing terms that might relate to terrorist activities, the individual can go under investigation.
Also, if an individual is being investigated by the government, their personal records such as doctors, business, or various things like book...