AUG 14, 2013 | HILITE.ORG | HILITE | PERSPECTIVES | PAGE 17
OPINION
Managing Editor Hafsa Razi
Graphic Perspective
Insecure. Americans must recognize privacy risks and protest arbitrary government surveillance.
Just so no one thinks I’m hysterical—this isn’t 1984. This Yes, there is legitimate need for surveillance of potential is 2013. This is the information era, in which our lives are threats. Yes, much of our personal information is already in increasingly recorded, traceable, digitized. And in this era, the hands of others, either because we publicize ourselves no one should be surprised by the dilemma America faces in online or because we grant it to a company in exchange for a light of recent revelations. service, like insurance (or, indeed, phone service) or because Leaked documents published in June in The Guardian it is necessary for a government process, like taxes. and The Washington Post reveal an ongoing National Security But this systematically unsystematic gathering of Agency (NSA) program titled Prism, under which the NSA information makes my skin crawl It exceeds rational has access to the servers of major Internet limitations and abuses the availability of corporations like Google, Microsoft and information to justify taking possession Apple, as well as users’ search histories, of it. To be clear, I’m not afraid of my emails, chats and file attachments. The government. I don’t believe that this NSA was also revealed to be collecting the sweeping surveillance will have much phone records of every Verizon customer. direct impact, positive or negative, on In the aftermath, White House most Americans’ lives. But we should not officials ran damage control, citing the forfeit our right to private information Time for some surveillance as constitutional under the without just cause. I’m not astounded thrilling heroics Patriot Act, as vital to national security that with such unprecedented amounts and infuriatingly, as completely normal of information at their fingertips, in the post-9/11 world. intelligence officials want all they can Americans should be far more get. But we have to draw a line and limit disturbed than they are now. The surveillance to what is necessary and NSA is not specifically or even effective. categorically targeting threats - it This isn’t the time to cry wolf on takes blanket access to every Internet America turning into a dystopian user, every Verizon customer’s police state. This is the time to urge a personal information. There is no reevaluation of surveillance methods method. There are unprecedentedly in the information age. It is the time few constraints. It is true that much of this collated be the “check” in checks and balances and exert our right of information goes unused - but that does not justify the petition. Send a letter to our Congressional representative, or policy of surveilling everyone and hoping to catch a break. more conveniently, sign the StopWatchingUs protest online White House claims of the programs’ indispensability are and a sample letter will automatically be sent to Congress, ill-substantiated and seem to rely on American apathy demanding greater transparency, intelligence policy reform rather than evidence. And they are succeeding. and investigation into the unnerving, unjustified and unH It is ironic to me that we, the nation paranoid of American actions of the NSA. government overreach, are so silent now. Yes, Americans can be hypersensitive when it comes to government interference in The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views private lives (I’m looking at you, healthcare and gun control). of the HiLite staff. Reach Hafsa Razi at hrazi@hilite.org.
This is the time to urge a reevaluation of surveillance methods
OPINION
Managing Editor Andrew Wang
Just do it. Take risks, find your passion, and pursue it. Here we are again: the beginning of a new school year. Each new year brings a fresh start, new people and new opportunities. Yet every year, it upsets me to see so many people continuing to float through life with apathetic, passive attitudes. I understand if you’re like me and still haven’t found something you are passionate about, but everyone can at least attempt to find something that they care about. Last year, I joined clubs, talked to a lot of new people and went out of my comfort zone. From only one year of exploring new things, I learned so much more about myself and my interests, and I look forward to expanding my horizons even more this year. It’s easy to take some time to do new things that you find interesting, and there are so many opportunities to take
advantage of at a school as diverse and as large as this one. And when you actually do find the passion in your life, pursue it. Take risks. Have fun. Don’t be afraid of failure; see it as another opportunity to improve yourself. Sometimes when you’re exploring what you like, you might end up doing things that you regret, but that happens to everyone. If you never go out of your comfort zone, you can’t expect to find much enjoyment out of life. While some new things might seem scary and daunting, you should still try to experience them and find out if they’re things you like. I’m little So take advantage of this new beginning, find something you enjoy and H take risks.
Take advantage of this new beginning
The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Andrew Wang at awang@hilite.org.
Explore new places. Go to concerts. Go paintballing. Tip a cow. Rope swing into water. Climb a massive tree. Have a tomato fight. Witness a lunar eclipse. Watch a meteor shower. Bike on the beach. Learn how to use a DSLR. Make homemade ice cream. Catch fireflies. Have a water balloon fight. Play messy twister. Learn how to play poker. Go to a drive-in movie. Throw a surprise party. Go camping and star-gazing. Watch the sunrise. Catch up on sleep.
CONNIE CHU / GRAPHIC