The Sept. 11 attacks have transformed certain aspects of American life, from perceptions of national security to air travel and civil liberties. Anyone who has traveled by plane recently knows that air travel has changed. Increased security comforts some travelers, whereas long lines and new security measures annoy others.

The Federal Aviation Administration increased its security after Sept. 11. Now, people cannot go past security checkpoints without a ticket, carry pocketknives in the plane cabin, or check bags at a site other than the airport. Additional law enforcement patrols airports, and federal air marshals travel anonymously on some flights.

Some pilot unions and lawmakers want pilots to carry guns for defense against future terrorist attacks. On April 23, 2002, CNN reported that United Airlines pilots began training with stun guns. An Oct. 13, 2002, CNN report said, “Senate approved an amendment that authorizes the Federal Aviation Administration to permit pilots to carry guns.” President Bush has not yet approved the legislation.

If terrorists are as common as the U.S. government suspects, then it makes sense to strengthen security measures. To protect America from the threat of terrorism, the government has increased its power while it has restricted some of our civil liberties.

Congress passed the USA Patriot Act into law Oct. 26, 2001, nearly a year ago. They created the law to assist the executive branch and the Attorney General, John Ashcroft, in tracking and capturing suspected terrorists.

The Patriot Act enhances the government’s ability to incarcerate immigrants, extends executive power to spy on both citizens and non-citizens, and labels some acts of dissent as “domestic terrorism.”

Some see these changes as dangerous to our civil liberties. Ashcroft has unprecedented authority to detain non-citizens that he considers a threat to national security. However, the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights outlines some safeguards included in the act. The Attorney General must charge a detainee with a crime or begin the deportation process within seven days after incarceration. Also, an individual’s status as a suspected terrorist must be reviewed every six months and either renewed or revoked.

Amnesty International believes that the government denies the basic rights of some immigrant detainees. The human rights group concluded, six months after the attacks, that detainees had been held for months without being told why and without access to lawyers.

Sophomore Sarah Carpenter said, “There are so many people that come to this country every year because we have certain expressed rights in our Constitution, and I think an act like this works against everything our country stands for and stood for.”

The Patriot Act allows the executive branch more surveillance capabilities. These include tapping one’s computer or phone line without probable cause, according to the organization Truthout.

Federal agents can now enter and search a citizen’s home or office without informing the person, according to the ACLU. The Patriot Act extends the FBI’s power to spy on religious and political organizations to ensure that they do not support any terrorist activities.

According to the ACLU, the Patriot Act gives the FBI power to spy on groups that participate in civil disobedience, such as Greenpeace. Ashcroft believes that these groups diminish national resolve and unity.

The Patriot Act affects student privacy. The Attorney General can now collect information about foreign students from selected countries, according to First Monday. This includes names, addresses, visa classification, academic status, disciplinary actions, or criminal involvement.

Junior Phill Brantley said, “It seems like a paranoid response to Sept. 11 as well as an invasion of privacy. I do not think it is necessary to interfere with the civil liberties of individuals in order to increase the security of the country.”

It seems clear that Americans enjoy fewer civil liberties than in the past. However, each individual has his or her own opinion on whether safety must take precedence.