Goody's Girl
05-28-2002, 06:22 PM
I got this forwarded to me today from one of the watch groups I belong to. This is crazy.
MAY 28, 2002 Lima news.Ohio www.limanews.com
-- Your mail to or from foreign countries soon could be read without a
search warrant. "On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives
approved the
new surveillance powers by a 327 to 101 vote," reported Wired.com. "The
bill,
titled the Customs Border Security Act, says that incoming or outgoing
mail
can be searched at the border 'without a search warrant.'"The Customs
Service
already can open suspicious packages, such as those suspected of having
anthrax or explosives. But non-suspicious letters until now have been
protected by the Fourth Amendment right to protection against
"unreasonable
searches and seizures."Sadly, west-central Ohio's four Republican
representatives all voted for H.R. 3129: Reps. Michael G. Oxley, Paul
E.
Gillmor, John A. Boehner and David L. Hobson. They should have listened
to
their Republican colleague, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who explained,
"Exercise
of these new powers could infringe on the right of innocent Americans
to
travel and communicate internationally free of unnecessary federal
control.
Please say no to unconstitutional searches and unaccountable
government, and
say yes to liberty and constitutional government."The constitutional
facts
were explained by Robert A. Levy, senior fellow in Constitutional
Studies at
the Cato Institute. "It's quite clear that, while I'm not concerned
about the
rights of foreigners in other countries, I am concerned about the
rights of
U.S. citizens and foreign residents living here," he said. "There's no
justification for a search if the only reason is that the mail
originated
abroad." The bill won't do much to fight terrorists, who easily could
send
encrypted messages over the Internet. But it will erode civil liberties
for
Americans. Let's hope the Senate rejects it.
MAY 28, 2002 Lima news.Ohio www.limanews.com
-- Your mail to or from foreign countries soon could be read without a
search warrant. "On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives
approved the
new surveillance powers by a 327 to 101 vote," reported Wired.com. "The
bill,
titled the Customs Border Security Act, says that incoming or outgoing
can be searched at the border 'without a search warrant.'"The Customs
Service
already can open suspicious packages, such as those suspected of having
anthrax or explosives. But non-suspicious letters until now have been
protected by the Fourth Amendment right to protection against
"unreasonable
searches and seizures."Sadly, west-central Ohio's four Republican
representatives all voted for H.R. 3129: Reps. Michael G. Oxley, Paul
E.
Gillmor, John A. Boehner and David L. Hobson. They should have listened
to
their Republican colleague, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who explained,
"Exercise
of these new powers could infringe on the right of innocent Americans
to
travel and communicate internationally free of unnecessary federal
control.
Please say no to unconstitutional searches and unaccountable
government, and
say yes to liberty and constitutional government."The constitutional
facts
were explained by Robert A. Levy, senior fellow in Constitutional
Studies at
the Cato Institute. "It's quite clear that, while I'm not concerned
about the
rights of foreigners in other countries, I am concerned about the
rights of
U.S. citizens and foreign residents living here," he said. "There's no
justification for a search if the only reason is that the mail
originated
abroad." The bill won't do much to fight terrorists, who easily could
send
encrypted messages over the Internet. But it will erode civil liberties
for
Americans. Let's hope the Senate rejects it.