Earlier this week Apple shut down and removed those apps that warn people of where DUI checkpoints are. Apparently, this was in response to a letter written by four senators sent to Apple and Google (makers of the Android software for phones) requesting that they not allow individuals to obtain and share this information about what their government is up to. The makers of the Blackbery have already caved.
The senator’s argument is that this information just helps drunk drivers avoid checklanes. That would, of course, be bad. The makers of the app, however, have stated that the program actually deters drunk driving by raising consciousness of the issue and striking fear into those who might otherwise drive after drinking too much. This argument would seem to have some merit considering that, by law, the police are required to announce checklanes ahead of time and that if you ask any law enforcement officer why checklanes are worth the money and trouble, considering that usually around 98% of the people trapped in them are completely law abiding citizens, the officers will tell you that one of the main objectives of DUI checklanes is to put the word on the streets that the police are actively looking for intoxicated drivers, thus making people think twice before ever committing the act. Watch this video to hear more about this issue and law enforcement agencies that think working with these apps would be a great way to prevent drunk driving.
Setting all of that aside, this is really just more evidence that the United States has completely lost its way and we are no longer the country that we originally set out to be. Thomas Jefferson famously said, “When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty.” This case is a perfect example of the people, in this case corporations dependent on keeping senators happy so that laws don’t get written that might slow down profits, fearing the government. Four guys from the US Senate wrote a letter and these companies shut down our most precious civil right, free speech, and communication about this issue is blocked. Sorry, but we are supposed to be a government of the people, by the people and for the people. The government shouldn’t be telling us, and the corporations that serve us, what they can or can’t do to allow people to speak amongst themselves. I thought we were supposed to have a “free” market and to allow every voice into the marketplace of ideas. But, politics and money now determine to a large extent how and when people can speak and share information. These companies, like Apple and Blackberry, are scared that if they don’t do what the lawmakers say, the government will punish them somewhere down the road and cost them money. So, they cave into what the governors want and not what the people want. It sounds melodramatic, but this is tyranny. These senators knew exactly what message they were sending, and the companies heard it loud and clear and decided to play ball. No, the senators didn’t make a law banning apps that would provide this information. Fortunately, our Constitution still has enough legs to make that impossible. But, the message was clear and was duly heeded.
Checklanes are about fear, and banning the checklane apps, at least according to the senators, is about preserving the fear. Nevermind that the apps actually enhance this desired fear by promoting that idea that law enforcement is out on the streets enforcing drunk driving laws, the precise message that the police want to send to people. Checklanes are a demonstration that the government is in charge and that they can stop every single person without cause and shake them down to see whether their papers are in order and they are within the limits set by the government. So, the people are silenced and capitalism is given a backseat to the governmental whim. When people fear the government there is tyranny. When the government fears the people there is liberty. So much for liberty.