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George Orwell's Threats To Freedom

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“Threats to freedom of speech, writing and action, though often trivial in isolation, are cumulative in their effect and, unless checked, lead to a general disrespect for the rights of the citizen (Orwell).” George Orwell was an outspoken American author, whose most famous work, 1984, showed how a world of surveillance was harmful to not only individual citizens but also society as a whole. If the government was to monitor internet content to a deep extent, such as collecting emails/communications, tracking people’s web history, or restricting what we, the citizens of the US, say, we would move one step closer to the world Orwell imagined in 1984. The United States government has no business in monitoring or restricting internet content, except …show more content…

If the United States government were to sift through the information they found through monitoring, and they found something they did not like, they may try taking steps to remove the data from the internet. The minute that the government starts to do something like that is the minute that we stop living as American citizens and we start living as citizens of a police state. However, there are some exceptions that can be made. Terrorists and terror groups, most notably ISIS, have begun to put propaganda and promotional materials online for people all around the globe to access. Thus the problem of national security arises and the United States government must do something to stop American citizens from joining some of the most evil and anti-American groups out there. Instead of monitoring all citizens’ internet usage, the US government can only monitor those on no-fly lists or those that have had possible ties to terror in the past. Even then, they should not monitor and restrict everything that they post or look at - possibly only key words or key websites. The aforementioned PEW Research study found that 82% of American citizens found that monitoring terrorists and terrorist suspects is perfectly okay and will uphold the citizens’ best interests. Because the government has their support and permission to do so and since the United States is a democracy, the have the responsibility to monitor terror suspects and uphold the wants and safety of the American people. Freedom of speech was one of the most important amendments that the Founding Fathers included in the Bill of Rights. Americans today hold this right in the highest regards and have there have been many court decisions to uphold freedom in speech in all situations. Whether it be in journalism, like the New York Times vs. United States case, or in other landmark cases, like Gitlow vs. New York,

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The U.S follows a different school of surveillance. Despite the fundamental right to be held “innocent until proven guilty”, it monitors everyone until proven innocent. The status quo could of course damage America’s long known liberties granted by the Constitution. Recent revelations by whistleblower Edward Snowden, have confirmed that the government is more likely to cross some constitutional lines in the name of national security. “The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) regulates the government’s acquisition of any electronic surveillance within the country for foreign intelligence use.

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"The Government began to become concerned with the United State’s national security after the events that transpired on September 11, 2001. The NSA began to monitor various forms of communication throughout the United States. Recently, after Edward Snowden released classified information about the NSA surveillance programs, the idea of monitoring internet content has become upsetting and worrisome to many. From monitoring phone calls to facebook posts, the government practically has access to it all. So what platforms should be deemed necessary for public safety and where should the line be drawn?

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There are many constitutional implications of government spying programs, one of those being a complete violation of privacy here in the United States. Snowden himself exposed the NSA, as he noted that calls were recorded and various other electronic data were collected on many individuals and kept for future use. There is no denying that the use of spying programs violates an American’s 4th amendment and it often leads to people refraining from posting something controversial due to the fear of being watched. Ever since the WikiLeaks documents were publicized, many people feel paranoid, and rightly so. People used to be able to talk, post and do anything they wanted to with complete freedom.

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814 Words | 4 Pages

Every American is being monitored even without reasonable cause for the government to be monitoring them. The intentions of both acts were to monitor Americans who are supporting the terrorist and help fight the terrorist crimes within our country. The problem is that the government is over stepping that line and is monitoring everyone’s phone data. Phone data is not a reasonable source to gain suspicion of someone who a terrorist or helping a terrorist. Washington Post has posted on May 24, 2015 that the FBI confirms that no major terrorism cases were caught form the Patriot phone data collection (Krieger, 2015)

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515 Words | 3 Pages

I believe that they are violating our rights by tracking us digitally. If their reason is to track terrorist threats, it’s a bit ironic to do that since we are taking oil from the Middle East, which is a country full of terrorism. The National Security Agency can access everything we do online and monitor text messages that we send. They collect every single thing we do digitally to track any terrorist threats.

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924 Words | 4 Pages

What is a hero? A hero is someone who has the ability to rise above challenges and is brave enough to sacrifice himself for others. In the novel 1984 by George Orwell, by definition, Winston Smith can be considered the novels hero. This is because of his strength and bravery to go against the party. While reader can admire Winston, they can over exceed his actions.

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1523 Words | 7 Pages

On 9/11/2001, The United States was attacked by a Terrorist group by the name of Al Qaeda, and ever since then internet privacy has never been the same. A bill was passed by the name” USA PATRIOT Act” which in short is The U.S. government claims that government surveillance protects ordinary citizens while tracking down domestic threats. ( USA Patriot Act. Pub. L. 107-56.

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The government is unlawfully invading the privacy of the American people. Bills and surveillance programs have been set in place to spy on the American people which is an invasion of privacy. Shortly after 9/11 the government passed a bill that was to help protect Americans from any further terrorists attacks. That bill was the Patriot Act short for “Providing Appropriate Tools Required to intercept and obstruct Terrorism Act”, this was the first of many bills passed which gave the U.S government freedom to use tools of surveillance to spy on Americans. The government then had the authority to monitor the actions of any Americans such as their phone and email communications, bank and credit records, and internet activity.

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The technology introduced by the internet was so powerful that monitoring it became one of the highest priorities for American intelligence agencies. The NSA scans bulk internet content for “keywords” to determine their surveillance targets. This is done with little limitation and no court approval (Todd 7).The NSA operates with few restrictions on what content

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747 Words | 3 Pages

Whether it is taking our freedom of speech away to some extent; to being able to go through our mail looking for possible harmful things. They are doing it to protect us; not to hurt

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1359 Words | 6 Pages

“Threats to freedom of speech, writing and action, though often trivial in isolation, are cumulative in their effect and, unless checked, lead to a general disrespect for the rights of the citizen.” This quote is from George Orwell’s book, 1984, written in 1944 about domestic surveillance. This quote has become all too real in today’s technology-idolizing society in which our freedom of speech and the security of our digital thoughts and papers are constantly put at risk by the government, particularly the National Security Administration. The NSA conducts wiretaps and digital surveillance without the acknowledgement of the majority of citizens and without constitutional evidence to do so. Although the NSA must appear before Foreign Intelligence

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1404 Words | 6 Pages

The idea of freedom in 1984 In modern politics, we are very accustomed to word such as “fake news.” Politicians use statistics and make statements that are not based in any facts, present them as hard evidence for their stances, and watch as people instantly believe what they say, simply because they are in a position of power. That is why George Orwell’s novel, 1984, is more relevant today than it ever has been before. In the past, people have viewed this novel as simply a story, a different look at how history could have been changed.

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501 Words | 3 Pages

In order to determine the extent to which the U.S. government has the duty to monitor internet content, it is imperative to first understand that this is a complex issue. With complex issues, there is never a simple answer that is purely black or white. The answer lies in a grey area where the government must protect the safety and well being of its constituents while also guaranteeing their right to privacy. The Preamble of the Constitution outlines the goals that the founding fathers had for the United States, which are still very relevant to contemporary issues of the United States.

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(Bilton, 2013) Surveillance of search engines permits information to be monitored so that if any hazardous search word like how to make bomb is looked it up several times by someone then it can be identified (Anon, 2014). Also, watching over the public assists police to capture crime suspects so that government organizations can protect national security (mass surveillance 위키피디아) To be specific, after terrible incident occurred in September 11, 2001, government of United States enacted the Patriot Act which stands for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001. The act was signed by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001 in the name of declaring war with terrorism. (위키피디아) The law grants the right to Federal Bureau of Investigation to profile people who fit certain stereotypes so that potential crime and potential terror can be prevented.

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1336 Words | 6 Pages

George Orwell has left a lasting impression on the lives of his audience despite only living for forty-six years. Known for his politically critical novels, Orwell’s material is proven relevant, even today, to explain situations pertaining to society or to government. However, the question of how Orwell understood totalitarianism to the extent that he did remains. On June 25, 1903, this Anglo-French writer, originally named Eric Arthur Blair, was born in Motihari, India, to Richard Blair and Ida Limouzin. At a young age, Orwell was sent to a convent run by French nuns, where his hatred of Catholicism was established.

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