Real American

A News and Opinion Journal ~ Published in Erie County, Pennsylvania

USA Patriot Act
Anonymous Student

Government definition
"Uniting and strengthening America by providing appropriate tools required to
intercept and obstruct terrorism."

In reality
The Patriot Act is quite simply a tactic by the US government to strip American civil
liberties under the guise of "protecting" us and using the fear of terrorism to make us
accept it, when in fact terrorism should be one of the least of fears on the minds of
Americans.

The cost (2005)
Fifty six Americans citizens died from the result of terrorism worldwide in 2005 while a
discretionary federal budget authority of $27,000,000,000 was alloted to defend
against it. In contrast, nearly 652,000 Americans died of cardiovascular disease with
$2,897,145,000 in funding, 559,000 dies of cancer with $4,770,519,000 in funding,
and 143,000 died of stroke with $1,510,776,000 in federal funds to help prevent it.

In summary, the U.S. Government allocated $482,142,857 each for the fifty six
Americans who died from terrorist acts in 2005.

Sources:
www.cdc.gov.nchs
www.gpoaccess.gov
www.cancer.gov
www.whitehouse.gov

Written by a high school student residing in Northwest PA. Name withheld by request.