Find the Balance Civil liberties can be defined as rights in which all people have, and can only

be taken away by the national government. On the other hand, national security can be described as the requirement to maintain the survival of a sovereign state, such as the United States, through the use of economic and political power. When the founding fathers created the government of the United States of America, they did not want it to be so strict in its rule. This essentially meant that they wanted the people to have freedom, but not total and pure freedom, as that becomes a danger to all of society. For this, the founding fathers gave the executive branch of government the power to enforce laws and keep peace within the nation, but only to a certain extent. Nowadays, with the events of September 11, Columbine, and Newtown, security has been continuously increased to the point where many people believe that their civil liberties have been limited too much. Despite these outcries, it is clearly evident that even if some civil liberties are lost, tighter security measures must be put in place to ensure the safety of American citizens, especially in areas concerning gun control, warrantless wiretapping, and terrorism from 9/11. Many issues that arise concerning the issue of civil liberties versus national security often relate towards events of terrorism. However, there are still a significant amount of concerns over this that have to do with the debate over gun control in the United States, especially after the events at Columbine High School and Sandy Hook Elementary School. In response to these two tragedies, especially after Sandy Hook, gun laws have been reconstructed to place even more restrictions that before, despite conflicting with the 2nd Amendment. In recent massacres, it has

been commonly found that the killers used high-capacity magazines in their weapons, allowing them to kill more people in less time (LoGiurato). In response to these tragedies, President Obama has signed twenty-three executive actions, which do not require congressional approval, to further strengthen current gun laws. In addition to this, he called on Congress to reinstate the ban on assault weapons that expired back in 2004, restrict ammunition magazines to ten rounds, and to expand background checks on anyone buying a firearm (Bash, Yellin, and Cohen). Even though opponents agree that this will make obtaining guns harder for citizens, they still believe that some will find their way around these laws to obtain guns, if these regulations pass Congress. Nevertheless, these regulations will make it harder for certain criminals to obtain firearms, and possibly even deter them completely from making an attempt in the first place. Not only this, but many opponents also argue that these regulations, and past regulations, have infringed upon the Second Amendment, which protects the right for people to keep and bear arms. However, the common viewpoint of the Second Amendment is defined by its most radical elements in gun rights, which outlines how any type of restriction would infringe the right to bear arms. The true viewpoint, that many often miss, is that the Second Amendment is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in an manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose, as stated by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia (Winkler). Based on his ruling, restrictions on the Second Amendment are constitutional, thus disproving the arguments of the opponents. Although gun control and regulation is still a work in progress, it is clearly evident that by

infringing on the Second Amendment, the government can guarantee the safety of American citizens from further mass shootings. Following the attacks of 9/11, warrantless and wireless wiretapping came into use throughout the United States, in hopes of preventing another event similar to 9/11 from happening. However, this sparked huge debates over peoples right to privacy and whatnot. Many opponents often assert that with these warrantless wiretappings, citizens of the United States are in violation of their privacy because their conversations with people are no longer only to them, but can be used by the NSA create profiles of who these people are. However, many proponents assert that the benefits to this method outweigh these violations, whether they exist or not. As stated by Steven G. Bradbury, innovations in communication technology have fundamentally transformed how our enemies communicate, and therefore how they plot and plan their attacks (Clemmitt). This creates a huge potential danger for all American citizens, as enemies have advanced methods of communicating to each other to plot attacks. By wiretapping through to these types of conversations, the government can prevent attacks similar to 9/11 from happening. This method has been shown to have support in the legislative and executive branches of government, as President Obama authorized five more years of warrantless wiretapping in the recent months. Even though this method may infringe on privacy of American citizens, warrantless wiretapping is clearly in the best interests of the United States for guaranteeing the safety of its people. One of the first major pieces of legislation passed after the tragic events of 9/11 was the Patriot Act, which was designed to improve security measures in the

nation. The act itself outlines many aspects of security, especially towards those regarding terrorism. One of the major aspects of this act is how it enables improvements on communications between government intelligence agencies, and thus removing any barriers that may have existed from officials from communicating to each other in the first place (Grabianowski). This is a major step in preventing future terrorist attacks. Before the 9/11 attack, multiple government intelligence agencies had bits and pieces of information that pertained to the potential attack, but they were not in cooperation, and thus did not share their findings. Now with this provision at hand, large government agencies such as the CIA and FBI now have the ability to work together to stop terrorist attacks from occurring. Not only this, but the Patriot Act also allows government intelligence agencies to investigate those under suspicion of being in relations with terrorist organizations (Lee and DiLascio). This brings up the issue of privacy once again, in which many opponents often argue. However, these intelligence agencies act based on probable cause, meaning that they act if there is apparent suspicion. Had these agencies gone through obtaining proper search warrants, a terrorist attack may already have occurred, meaning countless lives lost over a simple issue of privacy rights. Even though this act may be somewhat controversial, the general consensus shows a 60% majority support for making this act permanent and strengthened (Lee and DiLascio). This just goes to show how civil liberties must sometimes be given up for national security to operate at its best. The Twenty-First Century has brought many events to the eyes of the people of the United States, which have continuously shown greater threats with each new

tragic event. From terrorist attacks to wiretapping, and to gun control, the government has clearly needed to tighten security measures to ensure the safety of American citizens, even if it conflicts with several civil liberties. By tightening security measures at the small cost of civil liberties lost, American citizens around the country are guaranteed the highest level of safety they can possibly receive from the national government, and are protected from horrific events from repeating themselves in the future.

Bibliography Bash, Dana, Jessica Yellin, and Tom Cohen. "Pushback on Obama's Plan to Stem Gun Violence." CNN: n. pag. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http:// www.cnn.com/2013/01/16/politics/gun-laws-battle>. Clemmitt, Marcia. "Privacy in Peril." CQ Researcher. N.p.: n.p., n.d. CQ Researcher. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2006111700>. Grabianowski, Ed. "How the Patriot Act Works." HowStuffWorks. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://people.howstuffworks.com/patriot-act.htm>. Lee, M., and Tracey M. DiLascio. "Points of View: Homeland Security & Civil Liberties." Points of View. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Points of View Reference Source. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://www.icyte.com/system/snapshots/fs1/c/7/0/e/c70eb865140fe42498cd8ed9 9543f2d4225c3790/index.html>. LoGiurato, Brett. "Here's the White House Full Gun Control Proposal." Business Insider: n. pag. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://www.businessinsider.com/white-house-guncontrol-proposal-obama-executive-orders-2013-1>. Nelson, Jerry. "Warrantless Wiretaps: How NSA Does It." Nerdy Lorrin. N.p., 18 June 2012. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://www.nerdylorrin.net/jerry/politics/ Warrantless/WarrantlessINTRO.html>. USA Patriot Act. FinCEN. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. < http://www.fincen.gov/statutes_regs/patriot/>.

Winkler, Adam. "The Second Amendment Is All for Gun Control." Daily Beast: n. pag. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/02/17/thesecond-amendment-is-all-for-gun-control.html>.

Works Cited Bash, Dana, Jessica Yellin, and Tom Cohen. "Pushback on Obama's Plan to Stem Gun Violence." CNN: n. pag. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http:// www.cnn.com/2013/01/16/politics/gun-laws-battle>. Clemmitt, Marcia. "Privacy in Peril." CQ Researcher. N.p.: n.p., n.d. CQ Researcher. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2006111700>. Grabianowski, Ed. "How the Patriot Act Works." HowStuffWorks. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://people.howstuffworks.com/patriot-act.htm>. Lee, M., and Tracey M. DiLascio. "Points of View: Homeland Security & Civil Liberties." Points of View. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Points of View Reference Source. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://www.icyte.com/system/snapshots/fs1/c/7/0/e/c70eb865140fe42498cd8ed9 9543f2d4225c3790/index.html>. LoGiurato, Brett. "Here's the White House Full Gun Control Proposal." Business Insider: n. pag. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://www.businessinsider.com/white-house-guncontrol-proposal-obama-executive-orders-2013-1>. Winkler, Adam. "The Second Amendment Is All for Gun Control." Daily Beast: n. pag. Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/02/17/thesecond-amendment-is-all-for-gun-control.html>.

Web Site Evaluation Form

1. URL of the Website: http:// www.cnn.com/2013/01/16/politics/gun-laws-battle 2. Website Title: Pushback on Obamas Plan to Stem Gun Violence 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? CNN 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not? I can rely on this information because it corroborates with information that comes from multiple articles from different sources. 6. Is the material: ___Primary/Original _ Secondary/Derived? 7. When was this page written or last updated? January 17, 2013. 8. Rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

=============================================================== =============================================================== 1. URL of the Website: http://www.businessinsider.com/white-house-gun-controlproposal-obama-executive-orders-2013-1 2. Website Title: Heres the White Houses Full Gun Control Proposal 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? Business Insider 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not? The information corroborates with other sources that I have also read through. 6. Is the material: ___Primary/Original _ Secondary/Derived? 9. When was this page written or last updated? January 16, 2013 10. Please rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

=============================================================== =============================================================== 1. URL of the Website: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/02/17/the-secondamendment-is-all-for-gun-control.html 2. Website Title: The Second Amendment Is All for Gun Control 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? The Daily Beast 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not? The information supplied in the source is accurate based on what has been learned about the Second Amendment and Supreme Court cases outlining this amendment. 6. Is the material: ___Primary/Original __Secondary/Derived? 9. When was this page written or last updated? February 17, 2013 10. Please rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

=============================================================== =============================================================== 1. URL of the Website: http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2006111700 2. Website Title: Privacy in Peril 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? CQ Researcher 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not? The author gave viewpoints on both sides of the question over warrantless wiretapping, which came from credible sources who appeared in a testimony before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary. 6. Is the material: ___Primary/Original ___Secondary/Derived? 9. When was this page written or last updated? November 17, 2006 10. Please rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

=============================================================== =============================================================== 1. URL of the Website: http://www.nerdylorrin.net/jerry/politics/Warrantless/WarrantlessINTRO.html 2. Website Title: Warrantless Wiretaps: How NSA Does It 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? Jerry Nelson 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not? Gave information going over wiretapping and such, which may not have seemed legitimate at first glance. However, the author supplied links that showed the information to be correct and accurate (came from credible sources). 6. Is the material: ___Primary/Original ___Secondary/Derived? 9. When was this page written or last updated? June 18, 2012 10. Please rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

=============================================================== =============================================================== 1. URL of the Website: http://people.howstuffworks.com/patriot-act.htm 2. Website Title: How the Patriot Act Works 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? Ed Grabianowski 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not?

The information is consistent among multiple sources that are not this from HowStuffWorks, although this source is what contains all of the necessary information in one compiled article. 6. Is the material: ___Primary/Original __Secondary/Derived? 9. When was this page written or last updated? 2012 (no exact date) 10. Please rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

=============================================================== =============================================================== 1. URL of the Website: http://www.icyte.com/system/snapshots/fs1/c/7/0/e/c70eb865140fe42498cd8ed99543f2d 4225c3790/index.html 2. Website Title: Points of View: Homeland Security & Civil Liberties 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? M. Lee & Tracey M. DiLascio 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not? The source gives huge amounts of accurate facts pertaining to the Patriot Act. A lot of the information relates to what was in the previous source. 6. Is the material: ___Primary/Original __Secondary/Derived? 9. When was this page written or last updated? 2011 (no exact date) 10. Please rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

=============================================================== =============================================================== 1. URL of the Website: http://www.fincen.gov/statutes_regs/patriot/ 2. Website Title: USA Patriot Act 3. What organization and/or individual created this website? FinCEN 4. Can you rely on this information? Yes No Why or why not? This information comes from a site directly tied with the US Department of the Treasury. 6. Is the material: __Primary/Original ___Secondary/Derived? 9. When was this page written or last updated? Does not say 10. Please rate this web page. use with caution good, basic information excellent for the assignment

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