Research Paper on:
The Patriot Act

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
are intended to safeguard the civil liberties of American citizens, the Patriot Act and its implementation continue to be a source of hot debate and contention. This raises numerous questions  about the Patriot Act. Is it effective in regards to issues national security? Does it unnecessarily violate citizens civil liberties? Is it being used as a convenient ruse that allows  the federal government to suppress its political opponents? Or is the Act being used within an ethical, focused manner that targets only national security threats? The following examination of literature  on the Patriot Act attempts to answer these questions and present the facts pertaining to this controversial legislation. History The original act was passed by Congress just six weeks  after the attacks of September 11, 2001 and this legislation was, at least in part, a response to deficits in intelligence that authorities believed contributed to the attacks (Pike 1).  In particular, Congress and the Bush administration were focused on the concern that legal statutes had not kept up with changes in the rapidly evolving telecommunications industry, specifically "cell phones,  electronic finance and banking and the Internet" (Pike 1). It was also recognized with concern that US intelligence and criminal intelligence agencies were wither unable or unwilling to exchange information  vital to national security (Pike 1). The 9/11 Commission even pinpointed several failure of communication that occurred within the framework of the FBI (Pike 1). For example three months  prior to 9/11, the FBI while investigating the attack on the USS Cole received information pertaining to a man that who was later revealed to be one of the hijackers  of 9/11 (Pike 1). However, this information was not shared even with other agents due to "real or perceived need to know barriers" (Pike 1). The intent of the