The Cost of liberty is less than the price of repression. W.E. Dubois, American Social Reformer and Political Activist (1868-1963) The day the war officially started on Iraq, thousands of people gathered at the Texas Capitol to protest the U.S. involvement in the war. That morning, as a government employee working at the Courthouse, I was notified via email of the impending protest. The email urged supervisors to let "non-essential personnel" leave early …showed first 75 words of 652 total…

…showed last 75 words of 652 total…enough to allow the government to spy on American citizens, invade their privacy, and imprison people without due process. This power, which was granted to our government under the USA Patriot Act, tramples on our constitutional rights. While it is necessary to protect the blessings of liberty that we as Americans have a right to, this increased security cannot be done at the price of our fundamental rights, or at the restriction of our liberties.