Celebrate Freedom in North America

As I have the family up for Canada and Independence Days, I likely won't be blogging over the weekend. Tomorrow, Canada marks 139 years of Confederation and on Tuesday, the United States turns 230. All North Americans should take this weekend to celebrate (responsibly please; DWI isn't cool) the freedoms we are blessed to enjoy.

While we're on the subject of freedom, I can't resist commenting on the publication of the New York Times story on the financial surveillance and tracking systems the U. S. Government are using as tools in prosecuting the War on Terror. Many on the right have decried the revelation of this information as tantamount to treason. For the record, I fully support monitoring enemy transactions in a constitutionally-sound manner. As terrorists need money to plan and execute their murderous deeds, it is simply a common sense thing to do. As a citizen and a stockholder in the U. S. Government, I expect the same to exercise such common sense in fighting the scourge of terrorism.

In this light, the response of the right is quite baffling. If the leadership of the terrorist networks do not have the wherewithal to suspect that their finances might be carefully examined, I would be highly suspicious of their competency in other matters. After 2001-09-11, these doubts are clearly unfounded. Therefore, if the terrorists understand their accounts are being watched, what national security threat is posed by letting the American people know that the government is doing what it should be doing anyway? While I clearly condemn the revelation of any specific methods (computer algorithms, detailed protocols, etc.), reporting the existence of the same does not meet the basic requirements for treason. As a taxpayer, I expect the government to focus its energies on real national security threats. At the same time, those whose sensibilities are offended can do what any traditional conservative worth their salt would: use the free-market to express their opinion and don't subscribe to or read the New York Times.

NOTE: U. S. and Canadian flags extracted from the U. S. Coast Guard's CANUSLANT Joint Response Team's website at http://www.uscg.mil/d1/staff/m/jrt/.