The Left And Security

Can the left be trusted to protect America against terrorism?

The left generally believes that measures taken in the name of security should be subject to an unforgiving form of Constitutional analysis. The left places rights over security and believes that a free society should be subject to firm limits on what can and what cannot be done to assure the protection of its citizens.

The right often takes a more realistic view. While conservatives believe in the sacredness of our God-given rights, we understand that these rights can be abused. When they are, the safety and very foundation of our entire society are imperiled. Conservatives therefore understand the need to eschew an absolutist view of individual rights when there is reason to suspect that this abuse may take place and call for a nuanced balancing of private rights with public security.

The latest attack on security measures has come from the New York American Civil Liberties Union, which alleges that random searches of citizens in New York subways violate the right to be secure in one's person. However, the ACLU does not explain why the courts can, and have, consistently permitted random checks of vehicles at checkpoints aimed at deterring drunk driving.

For more information on the dichotomy between realism and leftist idealism and the views of a prominent liberal political scientist that warns against leftist pre-occupation with ideology, see this article by John Leo.