Depletion of Privacy in America

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Recommended: Privacy and Amendments

Privacy is a fundamental right which many people expect to have; however, it is bizarre to find individuals who have complete privacy in today's world. Privacy is defined as "the state of being free from intrusion or disturbance in one's private life or affairs" ("Nowhere"). Governments around the world are fearful of giving citizens complete privacy as some are fearful of being overthrown by their citizens and others hoping to protect their citizens through invasion of privacy. George Orwell's acclaimed novel, 1984, eerily resembles today's society to a much more extreme level, yet many people are uncomfortable with the amount of power the government currently holds and its ability to intrude in the lives of others. The right to privacy is a cornerstone characteristic in America's democratic society; however, with government organizations such as the National Security Agency, rights to privacy and liberties are being stripped away from American citizens as it ironically promises to protect the freedoms of Americans.
Privacy is vital because it is fundamental in forming an identity rather than being an autonomous nation. Deborah Johnson states that if people were to have no privacy and all that they think is available to others, then the individual sense of self will diminish because it will become the sense of appearance rather than the inner sense of who a person is and who they want to be ("Why"). Furthermore, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayer even stated that "Awareness that the Government may be watching chills associational and expressive freedom" ("Nowhere"). As a result, a society will lose all sense of each person's individualism and the value of personal ideas and thoughts will decrease and be ridiculed for de...

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...eb. 6 May 2014.
“Nowhere to Hide: The Government's Massive Intrusion Into Our Lives.” Alternet. Birocreative. 22 Sept. 2013. Web. 6 May 2014.
Orwell, George, and Erich Fromm. 1984: a novel. New York, N.Y.: Signet Classic, 19611949. Print.
"The surveillance state and its discontents." Foreign Policy 203 (2013): 64+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 6 May 2014.
United States Department of Justice. "Whistleblower Thomas Drake Compromised Classified Information." Whistleblowers. Ed. Noah Berlatsky. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Former NSA Senior Executive Charged with Illegally Retaining Classified Information, Obstructing Justice and Making False Statements." 2010. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 6 May 2014.
“Why We Care about Privacy.” Markula Center for Applied Ethics. Santa Clara University. n.d. Web. 6 May 2014.

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