The Importance Of Government Spying

"When I was in seventh grade, I remember this boy in my class had a post-its covering his laptop camera. When I questioned why, he told me the government was watching him through the camera. I thought he was crazy and wrong at the time, but now, 5 years later, I’m not sure if he was either.

There is certainly a paranoia floating in the air regarding the issue of government spying on its citizens, considering that 7 out of 10 adult Americans say it is somewhat likely they are being monitored, according to Pew Research Center. This makes this a huge issue, and it can create divides between the government and the American people.

I believe the smaller governments, like state and local, do not have the authority to monitor daily internet usage. There is just no reason for it. It will instill too much panic, cause too much distrust, and waste too many taxpayer dollars. It is not logically possible for these small governments to track all the citizens.

However, the federal government is a different story. Because they have a little more power and authority, I feel that in certain cases it would be acceptable for them to have access to internet usage by citizens. These ‘certain cases’ must be strict so no one can abuse the system. There could be certain websites, like radical Islamic or illegal weapon sites, that should be flagged if accessed.

They claim free access to the internet without the fear of being watched should be protected with free speech. I think it’s illogical to drag the Constitution into this because when the internet wasn’t even a thought when the Constitution existed. Our Founding Fathers had no idea how much progress our country would make, and in no way could prepare for what was going to happen with technology. Because of this, we must make new rules that outline laws with freedom of speech in the 21st