--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The government can now delve into…" description: "\"The government can now delve into personal and private records of individuals even if they cannot be directly connected to a terrorist or foreign gover..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/333/molly-ivins-1296_al-qaeda_the-government-can-now-delve-into-person_3041572.jpg" --- # The government can now delve into personal and private… ![“The government can now delve into personal and private records of individuals even if they cannot be directly connected to a terrorist or foreign government. Bank records, e-mails, library records, even the track of discount cards at grocery stores can be obtained on individuals without…” quote by Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/333/molly-ivins-1296_al-qaeda_the-government-can-now-delve-into-person_3041572.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/333/molly-ivins-1296_al-qaeda_the-government-can-now-delve-into-person_3041572.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/333/molly-ivins-1296_al-qaeda_the-government-can-now-delve-into-person_3041572.jpg) > “The government can now delve into personal and private records of individuals even if they cannot be directly connected to a terrorist or foreign government. Bank records, e-mails, library records, even the track of discount cards at grocery stores can be obtained on individuals without establishing any connection to a terrorist before a judge. According to the Los Angeles Times, Al Qaeda uses sophisticated encryption devices freely available on the Internet that cannot be cracked. So the terrorists are safe from cyber-snooping, but we're not.” [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Government can access personal data without direct terrorist links, while terrorists use unbreakable encryption, creating an imbalance of privacy. **In simple terms:** Govt can spy on you; terrorists stay hidden. Key Takeaway Advocate for stronger privacy protections. Themes privacy surveillance terrorism law technology Mood concerned critical thoughtful Type political analytical When to use this quote - Legal reform - digital security - journalism - policy making Key Concepts Data collection encryption civil liberties Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards protect citizens’ data? - How can law keep pace with encryption? A Different Perspective Balancing security and privacy is complex. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Connections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/connections/) [Encryption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/encryption/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Grocery store](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grocery-store/) [Grocery stores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grocery-stores/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Los angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/los-angeles/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Snooping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snooping/) ## Related quotes > [The reality is that we can no longer sleep soundly at night thinking that if we keep the terrorists 'out there,' we are safe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-tancredo/the-reality-is-that-we-can-no-longer-sleep-soundly-at-night-thinking/) [Tom Tancredo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-tancredo/) > [Proliferation of fanatical religious terrorists with safe harbors in broken countries, and the means to obtain and the will to use nuclear, chemical and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-olson/proliferation-of-fanatical-religious-terrorists-with-safe-harbors-in/) [Pete Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-olson/) > [I think the War on Terror has succeeded in creating more terror, more terrorists, a less safe America, and a less safe world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-gaghan/i-think-the-war-on-terror-has-succeeded-in-creating-more-terror-more/) [Stephen Gaghan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-gaghan/) > [It would send an unbelievably terrible signal to reformers across the region. It would say we've abandoned our desire to change the conditions that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/it-would-send-an-unbelievably-terrible-signal-to-reformers-across-the/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [“Privacy is a protection from the unreasonable use of state and corporate power. But that is, in a sense, a secondary thing. In the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-harkaway/privacy-is-a-protection-from-the-unreasonable-use-of-state-and/) [Nick Harkaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-harkaway/) > [Capitalism is based on self-interest and self-esteem; it holds integrity and trustworthiness as cardinal virtues and makes them pay off in the marketplace, thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/capitalism-is-based-on-self-interest-and-self-esteem-it-holds/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [The first rule of snooping is to come at it sideways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ann-shaffer/the-first-rule-of-snooping-is-to-come-at-it-sideways/) [Mary Ann Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ann-shaffer/) > [“the summer of 2008, years before her private e-mail server became a campaign issue, Hillary learned about the power of digital snooping. At the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-allen/the-summer-of-2008-years-before-her-private-e-mail-server-became-a/) [Jonathan Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-allen/) > [“Are snoopers snooping on their own pain? Probably.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/are-snoopers-snooping-on-their-own-pain-probably/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“How did you know my size?" "While you were in the shower yesterday, I browsed around."... ..."Jason, that's not okay. You were snooping in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-c-brown/how-did-you-know-my-size-while-you-were-in-the-shower-yesterday-i/) [C.C. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-c-brown/) > [But films should be voyeuristic. What else is a film if you're not snooping into somebody else's lives?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-leigh/but-films-should-be-voyeuristic-what-else-is-a-film-if-you-re-not/) [Mike Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-leigh/) > [“So she forgave him. And instead she berated herself for her suspicion, for her snooping. For the things she promised herself she wouldn't do,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pavone/so-she-forgave-him-and-instead-she-berated-herself-for-her-suspicion/) [Chris Pavone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pavone/) > [A man is likely to mind his own business when it is worth minding. When it is not, he takes his mind off his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-man-is-likely-to-mind-his-own-business-when-it-is-worth-minding/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I have certain rules for snooping, under which anything out in the open is fair game. But I also think, in light of some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-lutz/i-have-certain-rules-for-snooping-under-which-anything-out-in-the/) [Lisa Lutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-lutz/) > [The first step in good reporting is good snooping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-drudge/the-first-step-in-good-reporting-is-good-snooping/) [Matt Drudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-drudge/) ## More by Molly Ivins > [Preemptive war is what Israel did in '67 with Arab armies on its borders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/preemptive-war-is-what-israel-did-in-67-with-arab-armies-on-its/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [The idols of one's adolescence tend to endure - you never forget how you worshipped them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/the-idols-of-one-s-adolescence-tend-to-endure-you-never-forget-how/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Having breast cancer is massive amounts of no fun,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/having-breast-cancer-is-massive-amounts-of-no-fun/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [How the American right managed to convince itself that the programs to alleviate poverty are responsible for the consequences of poverty will someday be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/how-the-american-right-managed-to-convince-itself-that-the-programs/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [To mistake Midland for the volk heartland is the West Texas equivalent of assuming that Greenwich, Connecticut, is Levittown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/to-mistake-midland-for-the-volk-heartland-is-the-west-texas/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [I only aim at the powerful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/i-only-aim-at-the-powerful/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Even for southerners, Arkansans are amazingly friendly and extend hospitality to all strangers with astonishing openness. You couldn't find a pretension in that state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/even-for-southerners-arkansans-are-amazingly-friendly-and-extend/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [It's hard to convince people that you're killing them for their own good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/it-s-hard-to-convince-people-that-you-re-killing-them-for-their-own/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [the pyramids were built for pharaohs on the happy theory that they could take their stuff with them. Versailles was built for kings on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/the-pyramids-were-built-for-pharaohs-on-the-happy-theory-that-they/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Any nation that can survive what we have lately in the way of government, is on the high road to permanent glory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/any-nation-that-can-survive-what-we-have-lately-in-the-way-of/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [I think provincialism is an endemic characteristic with mankind, I think everybody everywhere is provincial, but it is particularly striking with Texans, and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/i-think-provincialism-is-an-endemic-characteristic-with-mankind-i/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [During a recent panel on the numerous failures of American journalism, I proposed that almost all stories about government should begin: “Look out! They're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/during-a-recent-panel-on-the-numerous-failures-of-american-journalism/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Naturally, when it comes to voting, we in Texas are accustomed to discerning that fine hair’s-breadth worth of difference that makes one hopeless dipstick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/naturally-when-it-comes-to-voting-we-in-texas-are-accustomed-to/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/be-outrageous-ridicule-the-fraidy-cats-rejoice-in-all-the-oddities/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Texas is not a civilized place. Texans shoot one another a lot. They also knife, razor, and stomp one another to death with some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/texas-is-not-a-civilized-place-texans-shoot-one-another-a-lot-they/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) [Explore all 260 Molly Ivins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) ## More Al qaeda quotes > [There's overwhelming evidence... circumstantial and otherwise, to suggest a connection between Iraq and al Qaeda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pence/there-s-overwhelming-evidence-circumstantial-and-otherwise-to-suggest/) [Mike Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pence/) > [Critics have stepped up their attacks on the President for authorizing the National Security Agency to listen to international communications of known al Qaeda…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mcclellan/critics-have-stepped-up-their-attacks-on-the-president-for/) [Scott McClellan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mcclellan/) > [“I do not go to church. I don’t go to Christian church or Jew church or any other church. I don’t go to church…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ian-black/i-do-not-go-to-church-i-don-t-go-to-christian-church-or-jew-church-or/) [Michael Ian Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ian-black/) > [ This war \[in Syria\] is going to support Al-Qaeda and the same people that killed Americans in the 11th of September. The second thing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bashar-al-assad/this-war-in-syria-is-going-to-support-al-qaeda-and-the-same-people/) [Bashar al-Assad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bashar-al-assad/) > [The people who illegally cross into the country are from countries that have very close ties to al Qaeda, whether it's Yemen or Afghanistan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perry/the-people-who-illegally-cross-into-the-country-are-from-countries/) [Rick Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perry/) > [The White House was signaling that the threat posed by Saddam Hussein was of such urgency that it had priority over the crushing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-graham/the-white-house-was-signaling-that-the-threat-posed-by-saddam-hussein/) [Bob Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-graham/) > [I was on the front lines in the Cold War, and I was on the front lines in the fight against Al Qaeda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-haspel/i-was-on-the-front-lines-in-the-cold-war-and-i-was-on-the-front-lines/) [Gina Haspel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-haspel/) > [If you don't understand what al Qaeda was trying to do on 9/11, if you don't have a sense of who Osama bin Laden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/if-you-don-t-understand-what-al-qaeda-was-trying-to-do-on-9-11-if-you/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [Some have argued that the President is required to get permission from a federal court before taking action against a United States citizen who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-holder/some-have-argued-that-the-president-is-required-to-get-permission/) [Eric Holder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-holder/) > [Iraq, for the first time, gives al Qaeda and its allies contiguous safe-haven territory to train and launch attacks into the Levant. First into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-and-its-allies-contiguous-safe/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [The idea the president of the United States was warned that Al-Qaeda was going to attack the United States and did nothing about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/condoleezza-rice/the-idea-the-president-of-the-united-states-was-warned-that-al-qaeda/) [Condoleezza Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/condoleezza-rice/) > [There's more evil in the charts than an Al-Qaeda suggestion box.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bailey/there-s-more-evil-in-the-charts-than-an-al-qaeda-suggestion-box/) [Bill Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bailey/) > [Muslim leaders around the globe have to continue working with us to decisively and unequivocally reject the hateful ideology that groups like ISIL and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/muslim-leaders-around-the-globe-have-to-continue-working-with-us-to/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Mistreatment of al Qaeda members and their friends and hangers-on is something I number among my moral concerns. But it's number 1,000,000,001.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/mistreatment-of-al-qaeda-members-and-their-friends-and-hangers-on-is/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [(The United States) is the same as al-Qaeda, under a different color flag, calling on the name a different God to sanction and approve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremiah-wright/the-united-states-is-the-same-as-al-qaeda-under-a-different-color/) [Jeremiah Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremiah-wright/) Browse all 360 Al qaeda quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The government can now delve into personal and private records of individuals even if they cannot be directly connected to a terrorist or foreign government. 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