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Quote by William O. Douglas

“We are rapidly entering the age of no privacy, where everyone is open to surveillance at all times; where there are no secrets from government." [Osborn v. United States, 385 U.S. 323, 341 (1966) (dissenting)]”

Quote by William O. Douglas

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William O. Douglas
William O. Douglas

William O. Douglas was a former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Born on October 16, 1898, and passing away on January 19, 1980, he is renowned for his contributions to constitutional interpretation. During his tenure on the Supreme Court, Douglas advocated for liberal judgments, particularly in the areas of the First and Fifth Amendments, and had a profound impact on the American legal and judicial system. more

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“These examples and many others demonstrate an alarming trend whereby the privacy and dignity of our citizens is being whittled away by sometimes imperceptible steps. Taken individually, each step may be of little consequence. But when viewed as a whole, there begins to emerge a society quite unlike any we have seen -- a society in which government may intrude into the secret regions of man's life at will." [Osborn v. United States, 385 U.S. 323, 343 (1966) (dissenting)]”

GovernmentFreedomLibertyCivil RightsPrivacySurveillanceEncroachment
Author:William O. Douglas
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“To many people I have no doubt that it appears merely silly. I once found it expressed in a rather amusing way in a Russian Book called Dal Zoviet, which means the lure of far horizons. The author is Galinischev Kutuzoff [Golenischev-Kutuzov], and he tells of a man in Northern Mongolia who goes out of his yurt every morning to breathe the free air of the steppes and enjoy the immensity and the solitude. But one day he feels an uncomfortable sense of oppression, almost as if he could not breathe. He looks about to find the reason. And there, across the undulating grasslands, is a line of telegraph poles. And after the place never the same to him again.”

CivilizationEncroachmentKingdom ComeGolenischev Kutuzov
Book:The Maker of Heavenly Trousers
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“If He were just a theory, just a doctrine, with no experience of Him woven into us, I doubt that faith in Him would ever last long. . Of course, it can't be proved that what happened to me was more than psychological...Once you believe God and He becomes real, the doubts of the intellect, while difficult and persistent and demanding answers, lose some of their power, because you have the sense that the part of you that doubts and mocks and postures as heroic for doing so is only the blind part, and that this part is not to be given as much credence as you gave it before you had an experience of God. I was not convinced by rational argument of things I had not believed before—instead, I saw them through another faculty entirely, and my reason has followed along in the wake of that experience, examining the evidence, sifting the facts, analyzing the possibilities of deception or contradiction … but always knowing itself to be in the presence of something greater than itself, something that it dare not try to mock or erase or entirely belittle. Reason has been eager to investigate whether my experience can be evaluated in an intellectual way and yet stand. But reason comes along behind, it cannot have the last word; it is mute even when it occasionally has the impulse to mock or to challenge, and speaks mostly when it has rational insight into the thing greater than itself (faith)—or into some aspect of it, since reason is unable to completely understand or explain … My inner life has become more real to me than my intellectual life, if I may distinguish them. Light simply explains itself—or doesn't explain, just shines. Once I had seen this sort of light pouring down on everything, my interest in intellectual things was to probe this mystery from the intellectual angle—not so much to prove that it could be true (although that is always interesting!) as to support by reason, if it's possible, why it is true. I was willing to assent to things that could not be proven on an intellectual basis because the results of believing that they were true had a power that surpassed comprehension.”

GodReligionFaithRationality
Book:The Tenacity of Unreasonable Beliefs: Fundamentalism and the Fear of Truth
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“The encroachment of government surveillance is a blatant transgression of our right to privacy, with ramifications that extend far beyond the legal framework. The emotional toll inflicted by the constant awareness of being monitored is a corrosive force that undermines the very foundation of trust between citizens and their government. Instances of surveillance excess, whether historical or contemporary, underscore the potential for abuse, showcasing the urgent need to curb such practices to preserve the emotional well-being of individuals and the societal trust essential for a thriving democracy. Unlawful surveillance is not just a breach of legality; it is a betrayal of the principles that define a free and open society.”

GovernmentDemocracyAwarenessEmotionalAbusePrivacyRightSurveillanceTransgressionEncroachment
Author:James William Steven Parker
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“This is from me. For all the thousands of bad guys in your life." She gave a meaningful look to Ezra. Then she smugly held up a case. Montgomery popped the catches and opened the top. Oh, my gosh," she said. Inside was a single piece of sharpened wood. MR POINTY!" she screamed in delight. You gave Buffy's weapon...her stake...to the cheerleader," David said with a whistle. "Sheer genius.”

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Book:Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd
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