Lose A Little To Gain A Life
Christine Williams
ENG 122 English Composition II
Instructor Marsha Beckwith-Howard
March 28, 2011

Lose A Little To Gain A Life As of September 11, 2001 (also referred to as 9/11), feeling safe from terrorist attacks was changed. Privacy invasion has been an issue for some individuals over the past 10 years since the USA Patriot Act 2001 was put into effect, as of the result of 9/11. Even though some individuals and organizations do not like the idea that the government can get permission to retrieve or investigate private records, in order to feel somewhat safe from terrorism giving up some privacy is not a hard thing to do (unless you are a potential terrorist or involved with a potential terrorist) there should be no need to worry about your privacy being invaded, it is possible to catch a potential terrorist by checking into their privacy, and potential terrorist have been stopped by invasion of their privacy. In order for individuals to feel somewhat safe from terrorist, privacy may need to be invaded. First, giving up some privacy can help the government in finding potential terrorists and at the same time help citizens feel safer about terrorist attacks. The USA Patriot Act 2001 gives government officials permission to search and investigate (with cause) privacies of potential terrorists. Some of the privacies that can be searched or investigated according to the USA Patriot Act 2001(if there is suspicion of being a potential terrorist, someone involved with a potential terrorist, or helping (or hiding) a potential terrorist) are government officials can investigate (with cause) voice mail, phone records, e-mails, disclosure of electronic communications, and phone tapping and/or tracing. (Patriot Act, 2001) It can go even further than just electronics; bank records, credit card use, internet use, and more. (Patriot Act, 2001) The government can investigate these privacies, if there is any reason for the government to believe, a person is a possible terrorist or a person is involved with helping a potential terrorist. It is even possible to be tracked down by cell phones. Most cell phones are equipped with a Global Positioning System (GPS) now (parents even use GPS to track their children with cell phones), but that is not the only way a person can be tracked with a cell phone. Cell phones use signals that transfer from cell tower to cell tower. A cell phone company can see which towers are being used for a call and almost pin point a location from where the cell phone is being used. The phone companies also keep these records stored. The records indicate which towers are being used or were used, what day, and what time. Government officials can have access to these records (with cause) and the customer using the cell phone does not have to be notified of the investigation or that the customer is being investigated. (Patriot Act, 2001) Additionally, potential terrorist have been stopped by investigating their privacy. Colleen "Jihad Jane" LaRose was caught and pleaded guilty to four counts against her in terrorism conspiracy. LaRose is a U.S. citizen and is from Pennsylvania, with only a sixth-grade education, and used her computer to try and recruit people to help wage a violent jihad in Europe and South Asia. (Winsberg-Brin, 2011) A jihad is a holy war or fight that Muslims take part in to defend Islam. LaRose is a convert to Islam, she pleaded guilty to conspiracy to kill in a foreign country; she agreed to murder a Swedish cartoonist whose drawing of the Prophet Muhammad had offended some Muslims, and planned to use her Western appearance to blend in and carry out her terrorism in Europe and South Asia. (Winsberg-Brin, 2011) A different news article by Jason Trahn describes how the FBI spoiled a potential terrorist's plans. A 20-year old Saudi Arabia native, Khalid Ali-M Aldawsari was arrested February 23, 2011 and charged with attempted