No Internet Terms of Service

With the recent light that has been shed upon the practices of the NSA, the public has become more aware of their activity when using the Internet. We now have this idea that the government is watching our every move, so we live with an increased level of awareness, at least while browsing the Internet. The Internet Terms of Service would take this slight fear that we all have and validate it. Our suspicions about the practices of the government will be plain in black and white for all of us to see. And worst of all, we would have to legally agree to be watched in this way. As citizens of a free country, this is not the way it should be.

As mentioned by Snowden in his interview, innocent people with "nothing to hide" could be made to look like criminals if their Internet browsing history is organized and presented a certain way. I remember reading a story about a family that was scrutinized by the government for suspected terrorist activity. One member of the family was looking up pressure cookers, presumably for the family kitchen. At the same time, another member was looking up backpacks to start a new year of school. These things combined gave the government idea that this family could be gearing up to repeat the events at the Boston marathon. This is just one example of how information can be misused against innocent citizens.

With that said, why would an "Internet Terms of Service" be a bad thing? In my opinion, it would be another way for the government to shoehorn their way into our private information. It would undoubtedly be lengthy, dry, and creatively worded in such a way that most people would not understand the freedoms that they would be surrendering by clicking "Accept." In all honesty, how many people really read the terms of service on any program or service they use? My guess is not very many. So many people would click "Accept" without even a second thought, allowing the government complete access to all of their online activity.

In addition, the Internet is all about freedom of speech and information. When you open your Internet browser and are confronted with a wall of text explaining all of the things you agree to surrender by using the service, what is the value of the Internet anymore. It is literally the government saying "Sure, you can do whatever you want on here, but it's going to be on our terms." I don't think this is something Americans should or would agree to.

I think it would also lead people to further lose trust in the government. People already are weary of the government's intensions after the allegations made by Snowden. How would the TOS further affect people's views? In order for the country to be successful, people have to have a trust and respect for the government. In order for this to happen, the government needs to start trusting and respecting its citizens. It was mentioned in the first article that we are experiencing all of these invasions in privacy without seeing any security benefit from them. The government cannot continue to take away freedoms while not visibly improving security. Alternatively, we shouldn't, as Americans, have to make a sacrifice such as the Internet TOS in the name of increased security.