<p>Can anyone grade my essay/give me some feedback?</p>
<p>Prompt: Should people make more of an effort to keep some things private?</p>
<pre><code> Technology has become an enormous part of our lives today. Everywhere we go, we see technology, manifesting itself in one form or another. A few weeks ago I had gone to see my cousins in New York and rode the subway to get there-- every single person was plugged in and typing away on some sort of device. This technology boom has created a wealth of privacy issues. Many in the current day do not realize what privacy is--the last defense in a world full of horros. The power to change the world. The greatest gift given to mankind. People need to realize the benefits of keeping things privat; a culture bent on telling the truth leads to fear and hurt feelings.
45 days after the horrendous acts of 9/11 occurred, a bill nicknamed the Patriot Act was passed in Congress. This bill essentially was a knee-jerk reaction to lawmaker's fears after the attack and gave the government power to spy on all modicums of communication-- a clear violation of the Fourth Amendment. In a culture bent on being confessional and completely open, there was not enough outrage to warrant repealing the bill. Quite the opposite in fact-- just a few years later the bill was renewed. This bill was meant to thwart future terrorist attacks and while it did play a role as one factor in stopping some attacks, the number of people who have been wrongfully accused, questioned, or detained because of it rises into the thousands. Our culture has come to value privacy as a meaningless commodity and this needs to stop.
Privacy is an important issue too because people have been known to end up with hurt feelings because of it. At our school some students started a facebook page called McGee Insults. People are told to send in their true feelings for others and the page will post it-- usually only the negative or insulting ones. A common saying is "honesty is key to success"-- but is this really true? What would have happened if you had not been able to express your true feelings on this page about people? Sometimes keeping things private can have a much better affect than being completely honest about everything.
Clearly, privacy is a very important issue in today's day and age. While being honest and self-expressive are certainly good qualities, they shouldn't come at the cost of privacy. Sometimes keeping things private can be the best route forward for both others as well as yourself.
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