Be careful what you say or do — the Pentagon just might be watching you, especially if you're a member of an anti-war group.
There have been numerous cases of our government unwarrantedly spying on U.S. citizens — the latest of which came Tuesday.
In Sacramento, peace protesters became the subject of a widespread domestic spying operation that has been keeping tabs on anti-war groups across the country.
Documents released last week were obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU, and add significance to questions about how far domestic spying will go in the name of national security.
While not too surprising, considering the current administration, this unwarranted invasion of privacy goes far beyond the government's role to protect our freedom.
Many of the protests monitored by the Pentagon were peaceful, nonviolent demonstrations and such tracking is inappropriate to say the least. This latest example adds unnecessary fuel to an already raging fire, causing citizens to feel misled and intimidated by the government's spying and secret wiretapping.
The database where such information is stored is known as TALON and was designed to monitor possible terrorist activity and military intelligence.
This all points back at the Bush administration's weak stance that if you're not with them, you're against them. Just because someone is against war does not mean they are a fascist or a terrorist. And spying on people simply because they're a members of an anti-war organization goes against everything this country supposedly prides itself on — for example, our beloved (and ever decreasing) freedom of speech.
Following the release of these reports, many questions arise, including who monitored these anti-war organizations and specifically how they got their information. We all can be thankful for groups like the ACLU, which says it will push for a congressional investigation to specifically define and characterize domestic spying and answer these imperative questions.
We all should have the right to peacefully criticize our government's policies without fearing our privacy. Our country is in the midst of a tragic and unclear war, and wasting time, energy and resources to monitor peaceful groups is frighteningly irresponsible.
