Roundup: You Won’t BELIEVE What’s Going On with Government Spying on Americans

[Valhallakey]

31. Can we afford to live with the intent of the 4th amendment in the age of terror?

Why do you think the founders of this country put in the 4th amendment to the Constitution?

After the war for independence was fought the US Constitution was adopted with the very important 4th amendment. Certainly it would have benefited the founders of this country to be able to search everyone's homes and papers and shop keeper records to see whom was collaborating with or whose sympathies lay with the British after we had won our freedom from Britain. Even more so during the war of 1812 since this was a time with really serious enemies with troops on the ground in the US capable of taking over cities or whole states. So why was the 4th amendment so important? If people were not supporting the enemy then why would this amendment be so important? Are there fundamental elements to being free that cannot be encroached upon? Are we the "Land of the surveilled home of the scared or are we brave enough as a nation to truly live with the liberties defined in our Constitution and paid for many times over with the blood of our troops? Or is the 4th amendment an antiquated idea from another era and we cannot afford to live up to the intent of this ideal?