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“Where they have burned books, they will end in burning human beings.”


Thursday, August 4, 2005

The Right to Privacy is Primary

Amanda over at Pandagon has a great post about the right to privacy, which some politicians (and potential supreme court judges) claim doesn't exist. She makes the point that privacy isn't just about abortion, birth control, or other sex issues. It isn't just about being strip searched at the airport. It isn't just about what books you check out of the library. It's about something even more fundamental to the way this nation works:

Our most important decisions should be made with a cover of privacy because of the principle that observing something changes what is observed--the unfortunate truth of human nature is that we can and often have to tailor our behavior because others are watching us.

[snip]

We have a secret ballot because we know that if people had to publicize who they voted for, they would often have to change from voting their conscience to voting for who their boss told them. Or their church. Or their parents. It's a formula for fascism.

So the right to privacy, contrary to what conservatives often contend, doesn't protect one's right to do the wrong thing so much as your right to do the right thing.

Exactly. It's about being free. Privacy ultimately is about freedom. The freedom to vote your conscience.

It's amazing--I honestly mean this--that we have to defend the right to privacy. I'm not against walking through metal detectors. I have no problem with ordinary measures of inspecting people at the airport--hell, it's even not that big a deal that I have to take off my shoes, since I get to put them on again. But the idea that we have to defend our right to privacy--whether that be what medical procedures we have, to what medications we're on, to what books we read, what thoughts we think...

I never believed we'd have to argue against totalitarianism. I honestly didn't. But here it is: a very powerful sect of conservatives honestly doesn't believe we have a right to privacy. But they have nothing to worry about--no one will be investigating John Roberts' or Rick Santorum's sex life. Hell, even Bolton's rumored trips to swingers' clubs ultimately didn't hurt him--you know why? Because they have power and we don't.

All we have is the Bill of Rights. And that won't mean anything in a court that trashes it.

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posted by Tlachtga, 1:55 PM