Security at the Cost of Liberty and Justice

In 2011 U.S. soldiers shot Osama bin Laden dead. The order was given by the president of the United States. When word got back of the infamous terrorist’s death, shouts of joy were heard throughout the country. Barack Obama declared proudly, “Justice has been done.”

However, distinguished German lawyer Ferdinand von Schirach asks in an article in Der Speigel, can just one person or government act as prosecutor, defendant and judge all at once and decide who lives and dies? Bin Laden didn’t die in war combat; he was executed without a trial.

When he took control, Obama declared that the United States would continue the fight against violence and terrorism but “in a way that respects our values and ideals.” He said he’d close the prison in Guantanamo, but it’s still open for business, humiliating and torturing humans without rights.

And we’ve all witnessed the National Security Agency (NSA)’s massive espionage operation, in which millions of pieces of personal, confidential data were taken from the citizens of various countries without their consent.

When it comes to fighting terrorists, infringing on the law has become the norm. The incredible reach of phone taps and email surveillance by the NSA infringes on the very ethics of our constitutions as well as international law. We must defend ourselves against this.