-how the government is portrayed in the film
In this film the government is portrayed as the bad guys. They seem like "the nosey old lady that lives on the corner of the block." They didn't respect privacy and they did what they wanted how they wanted whenever they wanted. They were kind of like the "Stone Cold Steve Austin" of the WWF.
-how individual citizens' privacy is respected
There is no such thing as privacy in this movie. Just like the old lady in the corner house the government had its nose in everything. They didn't give a damn about individual privacy.
-your opinion on level of access the govt should have to your personal info
I think if you are a criminal that causes harm to the country multiple times ou should not have no type of privacy. If you a regular good citizen I think the government should be able to swoop in on you at least 2 times a year just to check on you. The government has to keep us all safe. They shouldn't be in our daily business everyday. They should not be able to give me a list of things that I have done everyday.
-when individual freedoms can/should be restricted for safety of community
Whenever the individual has caused harm to the country multiple times, their freedom should be restricted. We can't have people out here planning stuff to hurt the whole country or President Obama. If they try to do something to President Obama then they should no longer have freedom. The same goes if it was President Romney (which it won't be.). If someone put his life in danger and he's our president they should no longer have freedom. #ObamaBiden2012

This movie pretty much puts the government in a bad way. Or at least a team of rogue NSA agents. They could do just about anything they wanted or get anything they wanted. Their SSN, finical records, credit cards, address etc, seemed to be easy access with out needing a warrant. There is no privacy for citizens in this movie, or respect for it because if these people want to do it they can. The government shouldn't have this so easy access to all this information, there should be some balance to their power. There is some law maker that is trying to get this bill passed, and the scary thing is its recent. Privacies should be respected until suspicious circumstances. Just like warrants to search your house, etc, they don't have that for a lot of things online.

After watching Enemy of the State, I must admit I am a scared of what the government is actually capable of.  In the movie the government had absolutely all the power in regards to its citizens. The people had no privacy in their home, work, and etc. If there was a top secret government issue anything would be done to handle it without a disturbance. When the NSA officials raided actor, Will Smith's home they had no consideration for him or his family. Clearly, they can care less as to who gets hurt in the process of solving the problem. They killed innocent people and along with disturbing the peaceful environment. I believe if Will Smith would have gave them the tape in the beginning they would have still most likely killed him anyway. As innocent as he was, it didn't matter to National Security. They wouldn't have trusted his word anyway. 

Personally, I think how the government invaded the people's privacy was unnecessary. I believe their should be a balance but to an extent. Similar to crime shows, they hack your phone records, cross referencing people, and bank statement. I think that is okay but when you go beyond those boundaries it becomes a problem. I rather the government see who I've been talking to versus them tapping into my phone call. I find that to be so drastic. We as citizens should have the right to live privately. 

Now if someone is seen as threatening its hard to say what the right thing to do is. Do you invade their privacy to get answers or do you respect it?  That is a very difficult question. I have no idea how to answer it. Part of me is saying check them! Then other part is saying but what happen to respecting ones' privacy? I don't exactly now what I would do to even handle that situation because its such a contradiction. We want to catch the bad guys but we also want to respect our people. I learned that you can please everyone so we have to compromise somehow. 

Lianna Jordan

Public Enemy of the State Reflection

 

      Everything started with a video of a murder and fights for possession. This movie made me realize the importance of the government all together. I learned that not only congressman but people will do what ever it takes to make it through. An example from the movie is when Reynolds kills Hammersley because of his firm opposition for the passing of new legislation that would expand the power of intelligence. The movie was good and I learned that the people on the inside have a lot of power and are able to access a lot of powerful information, which again makes them powerful. They killed Roberts girlfriend and frames him for her murder.

Watching the film made me concerned about the power that is held by the government and politicians. That power can be very dangerous because it can fall into the wrong hands, and be used by a person with their own agenda. The power of such surveillance methods can really be useful for monitoring and capturing criminals and terrorists, but the film portrayed how it could also be used to ruin an innocent persons life. If there is any lesson from the film it is that the surveillance technology should be monitored and restricted to trusted officials.   

Im disgusted of the fact the government is tapping our phones. I understand certain things need to be done but theres a certain amount they got to do. The fact they search the guy house and put spy equipment in my point of view was over board. I feels although as a citizen we should have our privacy and rights. I believed that they went over board with the tracking down.