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SKU:69735146
Amitai Etzioni argues that societies must find a way to balance individual rights and the common good. This point of balance may change as new technologies develop, the natural and international environments change, and new social forces arise.Some believe the United States may be unduly short-changing individual rights that need to be better protected. Specifically, should the press be granted more protection? Or should its ability to publish state secrets be limited? Should surveillance of Americans and others be curtailed? Should American terrorists be treated differently from others? How one answers these questions, Etzioni shows, invites a larger fundamental question: Where is the proper point of balance between rights and security?Etzioni implements the social philosophy, "liberal communitarianism." Its key assumptions are that neither individual rights nor the common good should be privileged, that both are core values, and that a balance is necessary between them. Etzioni argues that we need to find a new balance between our desire for more goods, services, and affluence, particularly because economic growth may continue to be slow and jobs anemic. The key question is what makes a good life, especially for those whose basic needs are sated.
At first I found this book annoying but then I discovered that what troubled me is its unique contribution: it refuses to join those who view the government as endangering our rights in name of security—as well as those who argue that to face terrorists we must take tough new measures even if they dial back some of our rights. Instead Etzioni shows that we ought to start by assuming that we face two fully legitimate challenges: protecting our rights and—our security. He then asks how to tell when we are erring by going overboard in one direction or the other.He answers this by studying the surveillance programs of the NSA (revealing the importance of proper oversight, including by civilians!); the freedom of the press (a chapter that includes some stunning cases in which newspapers published state secrets—which causes great damage to national security, including the loss of ten submarines by the US); and by arguing that American terrorists do not deserve more rights than others.I was most surprised by his chapter on privacy merchants, those corporations that keep detailed dossiers on most Americans not only about what consumer goods they buy but also about their personal habits, mental health and much else. This is fairly widely known. What Etzioni though reveals is that these corporations sell this information to the FBI and IRS and other government agencies. This means that the government can in this way do all the spying the constitution prohibits!The rest of the book deals with the fact that the US is sliding toward a war with China, and what can be done to stop this looming catastrophe, and-- the secret behind the gridlock in Washington. These chapters alone, you will find, are well wroth the high price the publisher set on the book.
