What is a Constitution Worth? Meaning of Snowden's Revalations

This article is inspired by a talk heard given at a meet up of a group of people who believe in liberty and the rights of individuals, I will not mention the speakers name .

 A lot has been made about constitutions, but are they really cut up to be what they are. Constitutions are written by those that found states, they are meant to be a guideline and in most cases are wonderful documents if people ever follow them as they are supposed to be.

 Edward Snowden has brought some concerns about constitutions on a world wide scale. Edward Snowden revealed that the USA is spying on the whole world including and especially its own citizens, Edward Snowden says he was compelled to reveal to American citizens and the world how the American government was betraying the constitution of these United States of America, the constitution considered the soul of America by many who are and those who claim to be freedom lovers. But what is a constitution really worth considering there are some human beings who are compelled to control other human beings in all societies. Constitutions were of course designed to limit these power hungry people, usually having no talent except the talent of backbiting, and hence need the power of the state and custom to hide their weaknesses.

The constitution of the USSR is a great document and inspired the whistle-blower laws in America and elsewhere, laws that should have protected Mr. Snowden. Article 58 of the constitution of the USSR read as follows, “Citizens of the USSR have the right to lodge a complaint against the actions of officials, state bodies and public bodies. Complaints shall be examined according to the procedure and within the time-limit established by law. Actions by officials that contravene the law or exceed their powers, and infringe the rights of citizens, may be appealed against in a court in the manner prescribed by law. Citizens of the USSR have the right to compensation for damage resulting from unlawful actions by state organizations and public organizations, or by officials in the performance of their duties.” Now was this law ever applied in the USSR, lodging such a complaint one truly would have put themselves in grave danger, just as Mr Snowden has put himself in great danger in the USA for telling the world that their rights are being infringed upon.

Been written at a later time than the constitution of the USA, the constitution of the USSR included Article 56, it read as follows, “The privacy of citizens, and of their correspondence, telephone conversations, and telegraphic communications is protected by law.” Now we all know everybody in the USSR was scared to say things against the state on the telephone or by telegraph, that would have just been suicide, and we all know it. The constitution of the USSR as constitutions come probably had the best wording, gave the greatest rights, but we all know that the words where empty because nobody cared about them especially the communist elite, they broke all the rules in the constitution to keep the general public in tow, and keep each other in tow.

 Take a look at section 8 of the Canadian Charter, it is inspired by the fourth amendment of the USA Bill of Rights. The Canadian charter states “Everyone has the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure.” This is supposed to be a guarantee of privacy, you cannot just search anybody without a reasonable reason. Listening to a phone conversation is an illegal search. You are searching for who I speak with, and what I say to them. Looking through somebody’s email is definitely a search, you are seeking something. I am not a legal mind, but I do have tools and resources available to me like a dictionary. I can look up in the dictionary the definition of search.

Dictionary.com defines search as: 1. to go or look through (a place, area, etc.) carefully in order to find something missing or lost: They searched the woods for the missing child. I searched the desk for the letter. 2. to look at or examine (a person, object, etc.) carefully in order to find something concealed: He searched the vase for signs of a crack. The police searched the suspect for weapons. 3. to explore or examine in order to discover: They searched the hills for gold. 4. to look at, read, or examine (a record, writing, collection, repository, etc.) for information: to search a property title; He searched the courthouse for a record of the deed to the land. 5. to look at or beneath the superficial aspects of to discover a motive, reaction, feeling, basic truth, etc.: He searched her face for a clue to her true feelings.

Clearly one can see from the definitions that going through peoples mail, be it paper or electronic encompasses a search.

One can make it legal by getting a warrant, but it definitely constitutes a search. Edward Snowden is from the USA, let us look at the 4th Amendment of the constitution of the USA, the fourth right in the bill of rights. 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 Warrants 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.

 This constitution of course is very old, so a fancy lawyer could argue that email is neither a house or paper. But an email is a personal effect sent from a personal email that theoretically only the owner knows the password. One sends an email as they feel safe against the email reaching unintended hands if they put the correct email address. Therefore to search my computer and my emails one needs a warrant, and they must have cause to get that warrant. Presumably this is understood by the government of the USA that is why they had judges sign the order, but the judges said no warrant is needed, logically if they are not breaking the constitution of the USA, that means they consider whatever it is that they signed a broad warrant covering every citizen of America, the question that then comes to mind is, is that a reasonable search. Can every citizen be held under reasonable suspicion for something that nobody knows about, what is being planned that every citizen must have their emails searched? I mean that is what comes to mind, what is being planned. A reasonable logical and rational person would ask, what is being planned. Whatever is being planned must be global, because the searches are global as long as a computer server is based in the USA.

 When one reads an article from vice.com, a survey showed 51% of the Americans do not mind that these intelligence branches can search their emails and listen to their phone calls without a warrant. This is how the last vestiges of freedom disappear, with who cares. Masterful stroke, you have to hand it over to the manipulators, they have pulled of a superb job. Few can counter them because they are united and have deep pockets to create all sorts of useless studies and put them to the public as science. Unless you are blind pattern is obvious.

In time anybody who says anything against them will be anti humanity, why not unsocial behavior? Again we must affirm the truth, an individual has the right to be, once the rights of an entire citizenry are robbed, there is no distinction made between criminal, innocent, guilty, reasonable, or unreasonable, it is the law. Nobody has a right to search anybodies emails.

Giving the bankers a trillion dollars and nobody demonstrated was a sign that the big move was coming, a world ruled by the untalented selling the world the lie that they are the most talented, it is in front of you, stop pretending to be blind. It is business as usual around the worlds major capitals, there can be no free market unless they are removed and individual rights restored, and equality before the law enshrined.

Snowden is a very brave men indeed, everybody has something to lose for saying the truth, it must be said. Those running the system don’t care of any fall-outs, in time you will forget, where is the Tea Party, where is the ghost army that made no demands but just sat as if warning of what could come, those who occupied wall street. What of Snowden’s revelations?

 Soon only knowledge from their fraternity will be considered “real”, to maintain the image of being smartest human beings, that is the end result. Your children will grow up believing, those are thinkers, far superior to me, total control of mind, great when done on somebody else, not so funny when it is done on you, it is already working, people say sure go ahead check up on me, I am not doing anything wrong.

 Bhekuzulu Khumalo