>Haven't the most egregious erosions of civil liberties (Patriot Act for example) been implemented using the same argument? Oh, definitely. I think those exces

>Haven't the most egregious erosions of civil liberties (Patriot Act for example) been implemented using the same argument? Oh, definitely. I think those excesses which have been justified under the pretense of national security have been quite terrible, and I think that they are bad for reasons particular to those cases and arguments. I don't take it to mean we should not have a concept of national security, or that we are so helpless that we can't meaningfully engage in case by case analysis of what to do in specific situations. It could be applied to anything if one isn't willing to distinguish between different cases based on their merits.