Goodbye, freedom
Yesterday, I posted an essay expressing my ambivalence about New York City's decision to conduct random searches at subway stations. You'll find no equivocating in these excellent essays from the ultraliberal Counterpunch and the libertarian Reason. Their point: These random searches are a flagrant violation of the Fourth Amendment and an ineffective and possibly counterproductive means to prevent terrorism. Freedom-loving people should not stand for them.
Thanks, boys, for reminding me where I stand.
posted by Jonathan Potts at
5:42 PM
4 Comments:
Jonathan, your essay nails it. I suspected the ACLU had something to do with this concern, and, sure enough, it does.
7:11 PM
Well, I happen to be against the searches, so I guess I agree with them. Although I'm not placated that they will be random. They shouldn't be done, period.
7:51 PM
You raise an interesting point on your blog, as to whether riding transit is a right. It is a necessity in cities like New York, and as the authors of the two articles point out, refusing to submit to a search could very well brand you a suspect. I would certainly not object to airport-like security on Amtrak, for example.
7:56 PM
Regarding the subway searches, be sure and check out The Citizen's Guide to Refusing New York Subway Searches put out by the Flex Your Rights Foundation. It teaches subway riders exactly what they need to know in order to assert their rights when they encounter a subway search.
8:04 PM
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