M8A1: Public Safety v. Civil Liberty Paper
• Due Mar 6 by 11:59pm
• Points 100
• Submitting an external tool
• Available after Jan 10 at 12:01am
Photograph of the U.S. Supreme Court building with a guard posted on the steps. Watson, J. (2017, June 15). Getty Images [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://www.gettyimages.com/license/696332426
This activity addresses module outcomes 1, 2, and 3. Upon completion of this activity, you will be able to:
• Module Outcome 1: Discuss the future of terrorism and its effects on American civil liberties. (CO1)
• Module Outcome 2: Describe the tactics used to address new terrorism challenges. (CO2)
• Module Outcome 3: Explain the use of surveillance technology in preventing terrorism in the United States. (CO1, 3)
The future of terrorism presents many challenges. One of the most evident challenges is that terrorists can adapt and change methodologies, sometimes faster than government agencies can respond. The U.S. PATRIOT Act (Module 7) gave leeway to government agencies to be able to adapt quickly as well, but faced many critics due to the infringement of civil liberties. Additionally, some populations of Americans may have been incorrectly profiled not only by authorities, but also by a societal culture shift within the United States. In this module, you learned about how terrorist trends can be studied to project future patterns, and possibly discern target predictions.
In an essay of approximately 5 pages in length (at least 1,250 words), respond to the questions below. Each response must be at least 250 words. Your essay should follow APA format and your responses should be supported with citations and references.
• Describe how technologies can be leveraged to track and monitor terrorist activities.
• Remember from earlier modules that domestic terrorism accounts for over 60% of terrorist activity in the United States, even if the ideals are spillover from abroad. Then, consider counterterrorism efforts that include the use of force, financial operations surveillance, and global surveillance. Is it possible to distinguish between American civil liberties and the rest of the world? Should the same legal, and some would argue ethical, considerations be provided to all types of surveillance?
• What implications might new surveillance technologies have on the civil liberties of all Americans?
• Do you think new surveillance technologies might be used as tools of repression by authoritarian, or even democratic, regimes in the future? Why or why not?
Compose your work in a .doc or .docx file type using a word processor (such as Microsoft Word, etc.) and save it frequently to your computer. For those assignments that are not written essays and require uploading images or PowerPoint slides, please follow uploading guidelines provided by your instructor.
Check your work and correct any spelling or grammatical errors. When you are ready to submit your work, click “Upload Submission.” Enter the submission title and then click on “Select a file to upload.” Browse your computer, and select your file. Click “Open” and verify the correct file name has appeared next to Submission File. Click on “Continue.” Confirm submission is correct and then click on “Accept Submission & Save.”
Turnitin®
This course has Turnitin® fully integrated into the course dropbox. This means that you should only submit your assignments to the dropbox below. Please do not submit your assignment directly to Turnitin.com.
Once submitted, your assignment will be evaluated by Turnitin® automatically. You will be able to view an Originality Report within minutes of your first submission that will show how much of your work has been identified as similar to other sources such as websites, textbooks, or other student papers. Use your Originality Report as a learning tool to identify areas of your assignment that you may not have cited appropriately. You may resubmit your assignment through this dropbox as many times as you need to check to see if you have made improvements, until the due date of the assignment. However, once you have made your first submission, you will need to wait 24 hours after each subsequent submission to receive a new Originality Report. Plan accordingly as you draft your assignment. Once the due date has passed, your assignment submission will be considered final.
Assessment
This assignment will be graded using the SPS Default Undergraduate Writing rubric displayed below. Please review this rubric prior to beginning your work. You can also access the rubric on the Course Rubrics page within the Start Here module. This assignment is worth 35% of your final course grade.
