Give it 10 more years

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to renew the USA PATRIOT Act in a 257-171 vote and it now sits ready for a Senate vote. This time, however, the House voted to make 14 of the Act's 16 provisions permanent, while the more controversial ones dealing with roving wiretaps and secret searches of library and medical records will expire and be reviewed again in 10 years.\nThe Senate is expected to pass the Act as well, but we would prefer to see the entire Patriot Act renewed after 10 years, rather than only two provisions. Though current circumstances do make most, if not all, of the Act's provisions necessary and relevant, allowing the government more leeway in dealing with terror suspects, we cannot say what the Act's broader implications will be in the future.\nAlso, if the act is permanently passed into law, then any abolition must go through the long and difficult process by which any other law is made. If the entire Act were up for review in 10 years, then Congress could simply scrap all of the provisions it deems no longer necessary at that future time, which is much easier.\nMaking any law permanent requires foresight and consideration of consequences. One with such serious repercussions as the USA PATRIOT Act ought not to lightly be made permanent without consideration of how such provisions will affect us 10, 20 and many more years from now.