Every September 11th, I watch the 0th episode of the third season of the political drama The West Wing. I call this episode, titled “Isaac and Ishmael”, the 0th episode because it doesn’t fit into The West Wing canon. The episode was written and produced in less than two weeks in September of 2001 in direct response to the terrorist attacks on my home state of New York. Fans of the show generally ignore the episode, and it is often dismissed as writer Aaron Sorkin’s sentimental nature translating into across-the-board preachy television. I think it’s good writing, and at the time (and still today) serves as a reminder of who and what the real enemies are in the war on terrorism.
One of my favorite scenes from the episode involves one of the more typically liberal and idealistic characters speaking out in favor of extreme measures taken by intelligence agencies. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to find a clip of it to embed from Youtube, but the point of the monologue is that, historically, Americans haven’t enjoyed relative safety because there have been no terrorists until now; Americans have been safe because intelligence and national defense agencies have taken measures such as these to protect the American people.
The FBI wants to acquire knowledge about the shooter’s contacts and help their investigation to keep Americans safe. However, their only way to do this is to get Apple to help them break into the shooter’s phone, which sets a dangerous precedent. If Apple helps with a backdoor into one phone, then they have opened the floodgates for future cases in which the FBI will simply request backdoor access from Apple for other smaller infractions. And so now it becomes a public debate on the extent we want to let the FBI use extreme measures in the name of our protection.
There is another scene from the episode that always sticks with me. One of the characters quotes Benjamin Franklin: “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.” This quote recalls the very nature of our country and the reason for its founding, and it highlights why I largely side with Apple in this case. If Apple were to give the FBI a backdoor into a phone, even just temporarily, it would be selling liberty for safety. We would no longer be assured of our privacy, and there are no assurances for our safety, either. Ultimately, the San Bernardino case is a pivotal opportunity for public debate over safety and privacy, but I find myself siding pretty squarely with Apple and privacy.
Jack thoughts 