In defense of civil liberties

Here's the problem with the Jack Bauer approach to public safety: the average citizen has to rely in the good faith of their government officials to protect their individual interests in safety. History has taught us that this faith is often misplaced. The only way to protect safety and freedom is to ensure equal protection to individuals. Any time you put unreserved power into the hands of government it has the potential to be misused against innocent parties.
The other issue with allowing the government to invade the privacy of individuals is that often times these invasions are not equally distributed throughout the population. Instead, racial or religious profiling is used to determine who's rights are worthy of protection and whose are not. This is in itself unjust and breeds racial tension and anger toward the government and society that allows this to happen.
I question whether or not the government really needs to invade our privacy to protect us. There are tons of other things that can be done to improve national security that require no government invasions: a tightening of the border, efficient and consistent airport security, a change in foreign policy, for examples--Why don't we start there instead of jumping to the conclusion that the only way to ensure greater safety is to violate our fundamental values.

The Fraulein

Debating is Fun

Even though we don't agree with each other, we respect each other. Fraulein is much smarter than me and well versed in law and justice. I must say though my passion is justice for all, and I am fervently against injustice. However, I feel conflicted in situations where the balance seems wrong. Are civil liberties more important than the nation's safety? If it was a choice between protecting an individual's rights and saving the nation, what would you do? Are we members of the Jack Bauer school, or perhaps the "kill them all let God sort them out" mentality, or the "even if it harms us as a whole we'll protect each individual's civil liberty?"
I am ashamed to say that sometimes I drift between the three. Which is the proper course. What would my Rabbi do? I'm supposed to be like him, and imitate him. I've been following him for 23 years now. Have I learned anything?