Patriot Act & National Security Letters

An insightful Washington Post article from Sunday provides as much information as I have seen on the increased use of national security letters by the FBI and the compilation of a large database of information gathered sheds light on a little known tool expanded by the Patriot Act. Because recipients of the National Security Letters cannot tell anyone anything about them, they have been hard to examine. However, with one lawsuit pending and one awaiting appeal (the original decision found that the use of National Security Letters with the secrecy involved now violates the 1st and 4th amendments), the article shows how easily and widely used they are. I believe that their use amounts to government spying on innocent members of society to cull a small and otherwise avoided threat and therefore their use (and especially the indefinite storage of information gained) should be ended. There are better ways of preventing terrorism than this and the price of additional safety does not outweigh the cost of civil liberties.