Not a Suicide Pact Not a Suicide Pact
Inalienable Rights

Not a Suicide Pact

The Constitution in a Time of National Emergency

    • $32.99
    • $32.99

Publisher Description

Eavesdropping on the phone calls of U.S. citizens; demands by the FBI for records of library borrowings; establishment of military tribunals to try suspected terrorists, including U.S. citizens--many of the measures taken by the Bush administration since 9/11 have sparked heated protests. In Not a Suicide Pact, Judge Richard A. Posner offers a cogent and elegant response to these protests, arguing that personal liberty must be balanced with public safety in the face of grave national danger.

Critical of civil libertarians who balk at any curtailment of their rights, even in the face of an unprecedented terrorist threat in an era of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, Posner takes a fresh look at the most important constitutional issues that have arisen since 9/11. These issues include the constitutional rights of terrorist suspects (whether American citizens or not) to habeas corpus and due process, and their rights against brutal interrogation (including torture) and searches based on less than probable cause. Posner argues that terrorist activity is sui generis--it is neither "war" nor "crime"--and it demands a tailored response, one that gives terror suspects fewer constitutional rights than persons suspected of ordinary criminal activity. Constitutional law must remain fluid, protean, and responsive to the pressure of contemporary events. Posner stresses the limits of law in regulating national security measures and underscores the paradoxical need to recognize a category of government conduct that is at once illegal and morally obligatory.

One of America's top legal thinkers, Posner does not pull punches. He offers readers a short, sharp book with a strong point of view that is certain to generate much debate.

OXFORD'S NEW INALIENABLE RIGHTS SERIES

This is inaugural volume in Oxford's new fourteen-book Inalienable Rights Series. Each book will be a short, analytically sharp exploration of a particular right--to bear arms, to religious freedom, to free speech--clarifying the issues swirling around these rights and challenging us to rethink our most cherished freedoms.

GENRE
Professional & Technical
RELEASED
2006
September 1
LANGUAGE
EN
English
LENGTH
208
Pages
PUBLISHER
Oxford University Press
SELLER
The Chancellor, Masters and Scholars of the University of Oxford trading as Oxford University Press
SIZE
910.1
KB

More Books by Richard A. Posner

Shylock on Trial Shylock on Trial
2013
The Little Book of Plagiarism The Little Book of Plagiarism
2007
Uncommon Sense Uncommon Sense
2009
Antitrust Law, Second Edition Antitrust Law, Second Edition
2009
Divergent Paths Divergent Paths
2016
Uncertain Shield Uncertain Shield
2013

Other Books in This Series

HATE HATE
2018
Saving the News Saving the News
2021
The Living Constitution The Living Constitution
2010
The Invisible Constitution The Invisible Constitution
2008
The Twilight of Human Rights Law The Twilight of Human Rights Law
2014
Cosmic Constitutional Theory Cosmic Constitutional Theory
2012