Interesting essay by GWU Constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley, in which he puts forth the argument that technological advancements are enabling the creation of an Orwellian state:
In some ways, [the recently-appointed head of the DARPA "Information Awareness Office," Ret. Vice Adm. and former National Security Advisor John M.] Poindexter is the perfect Orwellian figure for the perfect Orwellian project. As a man convicted of falsifying and destroying information, he will now be put in charge of gathering information on every citizen. To add insult to injury, the citizens will fund the very system that will reduce their lives to a transparent fishbowl.
What is most astonishing is the utter lack of public debate over this project.Over the last year, the public has yielded large tracts of constitutional territory that had been jealously guarded for generations. Now we face the ultimate act of acquiescence in the face of government demands.
For more than 200 years, our liberties have been protected primarily by practical barriers rather than constitutional barriers to government abuse. Because of the sheer size of the nation and its population, the government could not practically abuse a great number of citizens at any given time. In the last decade, however, these practical barriers have fallen to technology.
