Thought Patterns

From MyWay News:

2 Patriot Act Provisions Ruled Unlawful

By WILLIAM McCALL

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Two provisions of the USA Patriot Act are unconstitutional because they allow search warrants to be issued without a showing of probable cause, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken ruled that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, as amended by the Patriot Act, "now permits the executive branch of government to conduct surveillance and searches of American citizens without satisfying the probable cause requirements of the Fourth Amendment."

Portland attorney Brandon Mayfield sought the ruling in a lawsuit against the federal government after he was mistakenly linked by the FBI to the Madrid train bombings that killed 191 people in 2004.

(…)

Mayfield claimed that secret searches of his house and office under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act violated the Fourth Amendment's guarantee against unreasonable search and seizure. Aiken agreed with Mayfield, repeatedly criticizing the government.

"For over 200 years, this Nation has adhered to the rule of law - with unparalleled success. A shift to a Nation based on extra-constitutional authority is prohibited, as well as ill-advised," she wrote.

By asking her to dismiss Mayfield's lawsuit, the judge said, the U.S. attorney general's office was "asking this court to, in essence, amend the Bill of Rights, by giving it an interpretation that would deprive it of any real meaning. This court declines to do so."

(link to article)

By the way, the USA Patriot Act's official title is: Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act - what a mouthful! They must have shortened it to Patriot Act in order for Shrub to get it right.

Linkage:

Patriot Act Guide however, each time I try to view this guide, the bandwidth is exceeded and I cannot access it. Gee, if the money wasn't being funneled into an endless, needless war, the gov't might be able to afford more bandwidth.

Wikipedia | US Patriot Act

ACLU | US Patriot Act | "Reform the Patriot Act" action | Text of the US Patriot Act

WhiteHouse.gov | Patriot Act it is interesting to read their side of it. Sad, but interesting.

Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) | Patriot Act