Invasion of Privacy or Protection of a Nation?

     Over the past couple of years there have been some massive leaks from intelligence agencies around the world. This is mostly likely due in part to Julian Assange's WikiLeaks. Assange's website sparked a call for truthfulness among government agencies. Thus, the call for the darkness of our government system signaled an assortment of whistle-blowers to expose the United States. Edward Snowden, one of the most recent of the offenders, brought to light some of the darkest fears of the American public. He exposed the surveillance of millions of American citizens, along with distinct programs that were designed for the sole purpose of spying. The information he put on the table shattered our disbelief that there is a larger network of watchers at every waking moment; however, that is all the information accomplished. It only created a sickening feeling and mistrust towards our fundamental institution of policy. There are so many unknown tangents about the welfare of our national security, but is that a bad thing? Who knows what the NSA has uncovered using their methods monitoring? If a government agency really has been tracking our telephone conversations then their actions upon what they have heard has been minimal.

     The goal of the National Security Agency is not only to discover information but to protect it as well. The information these whistle-blowers leaked could have catastrophic effects on our national security.  Perhaps the next set of information to divulge is our perusing  around another nation. If or when this information unfolds to the public that nation will want to take up arms against the United States, and in a worst case scenario, start a war over this intelligence. The NSA  is after information that could detriment our nation. I have partaken in many phone conversations divulging illegal activities that have been committed; however, there has not been a single NSA agent at my doorstep. The goal of the institution is not to infringe on your right of privacy, but to protect it. Some view these minor phone tappings as a stepping stone towards much larger waves of intrusion in our lives. I reject this notion; everything the NSA strives for in mass-monitoring  is done in complete discretion. It was not until one rogue agent disclosed the true nature of their monitoring methods. Had Snowden not published his findings, we would still be oblivious towards the intrusion. I am not saying this a negative connotation but merely stating that ignorance is blissful. I highly doubt the public would truly want to hear of the distresses between nations. Such information could spark panic and further enhance any conflicts.

 

     The distress over our public information being disclosed to a private government agency is trivial in comparison to the direction in which this country is heading. Our deeper entanglement with social media has created a web of information that is easily accessible. This information can be obtained by virtually anyone and it basically explores every aspect of your life and personality. The government's obtainment of your phone calls pales in comparison to the data that can be collected by a simple click of a button. As our world gets more involved with social media, it will not be long before we completely reveal our entire personal collection of knowledge with the entire world. The government's involvement in our lives is inevitable but their purpose is to guard our freedoms. Moreover, our willingness to reveal so much about ourselves contradicts our complaints against the NSA.