The 4th Amendment: Are We Still Protected?

The Fourth Amendment (Amendment IV) to the United States Constitution prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures and requires any warrant to be judicially sanctioned and supported by probable cause.  Specifically, it says "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrant shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized."

Fear of terrorism has eroded our privacy.  Our phone conversations and our internet activities are both in jeopardy.  Should the government have the right to, without our knowledge, track our phone activity, our computer activity, and even our personal activity?  The 4th amendment says that the right to privacy shall not be violated without probable cause.  If you look at Supreme Court cases over the past century, you will see that what is and is not probable cause, has changed.  As early as 1923 and continuing through its recent decisions, the court has broadly read the "liberty" guarantee of the Fourteenth Amendment to guarantee a fairly broad right of privacy that has come to encompass decisions about child rearing, procreation, marriage, and termination of medical treatment.  Polls show most Americans support this broad reading of the Constitution.  I just read that the new park in Carlsbad, Alga Norte, open just two years ago, has turned off their 30 surveillance cameras  because of legal concerns. The cameras remain mounted in key areas, but they are no longer used for surveillance or storing digital data.  This is a perfect example of the balance between privacy and safety.  Are we ready to have big brother watching and recording our every move?

Recently it appears government agencies have been more and more invasive in our private lives.  How far should they be allowed to invade our privacy to find terrorists?  It's a tricky balance.  On the one hand, we don't want our homes searched, or phone conversations recorded, cameras watching us, and GPS tracking us.  On the other hand, we do want to remain safe, and if these methods will keep us safe, how much of our privacy are we willing to give up?  I think court decisions in the next year or two will tell us where we're going with this.  I hope that level heads prevail, and that we don't give up everything that the 4th Amendment allows.  To me, that would be the beginning of the end of our Democracy.