Sylvia,
Its very alarming. Here are some commentaries on this:
http://qwstnevrythg.blog-city.com/universities_move_to_hide_work_from_us_eyes.htm
http://archives.msu.edu/icasuv/papers/JackieEsposito.pdf
The Patriot Act,
Terrorism & the Bill of Rights
By Alan Shapiro
To the Teacher:
The Patriot Act is a hotly debated law very few have read and about which there is a good deal of ignorance and misunderstanding. Many questions have been raised about the new law. Among them: Does it violate the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution? And if it does, should the gravity of the terrorist threat require such extra-constitutional measures?
The opening exercise offers students an opportunity to learn something about the Patriot Act and to grapple with some of its controversial provisions. Two readings and the questions that follow aim to explore those and other provisions and a values conflict. Most Americans value the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. Most Americans also want to combat terrorist threats effectively. Can the latter be done without damage to the Bill of Rights and the Constitution?
http://www.teachablemoment.org/high/patriotact.html
Websites
American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, “USA Patriot Act
Issues for Campuses,”
www.aacrao.orgAmerican Bar Association, “USA Patriot Act: The Good, the Bad, and the Sunset,” John
Podesta,
www.abanet.org/irr/hr/winter02/podesta.htmlAmerican Civil Liberties Union, “Freedom under Fire: Dissent in Post-9/11 America,”
www.aclu.org
“Insatiable Appetite: The Government’s Demand for New and Unnecessary Powers after
September 11.”
“Unpatriotic Acts: The FBI’s Power to Rifle through your Records and Personal
belongings without telling you.”
American Libraries Association,
www.ala.orgCongressional Research Service, The Library of Congress,
www.crs.govCouncil on Law in Higher Education,
http://clhe.orgElectronic Privacy Information Center,
http://www.epic.orgFamily Educational Rights and Privacy Act,
FERPA@Ed.Gov andhttp://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html
USA Patriot Act,
http://www.epic.org/privacy/terrorism/hr3162.html