How Patriotic is the Patriot Act?: Freedom Versus Security in the Age of Terrorism

In his most recent State of the Union Address, President Bush called upon Congress to enact legislation that would extend the time-limited provisions of the controversial anti-terror law known as the Patriot Act (they are scheduled to expire on December 31st, 2005). Championed by Attorney General John Ashcroft and approved by Congress in the fearful aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Patriot Act has been cast by its critics as the greatest threat to our civil liberties since the Alien and Sedition Acts or the suspension of habeas corpus during the Civil War. Yet, as Amitai Etzioni argues, ‘any reasonable deliberation about our national security is the recognition that we face two profound commitments: protecting our homeland and safeguarding our rights.’ In this short book, Etzioni, the well-known and respected public intellectual and communitarian thinker, charts a middle course, or third way ‘between those who are committed to shore up our liberties but blind to the needs of public security, as well as those who never met a right they are not willing to curtail to give authorities an even freer hand.’ This book will prove a useful guide for citizens looking for a thought provoking, well-reasoned and sober analysis of one of the hot button issues of our time.