Free for All.

• Author: Rimensnyder, Sara
• Position: Soundbite - Wendy Kaminer - Interview

For 20 years, social critic Wendy Kaminer has eloquently and ardently defended civil liberties. Post 9/11, that hasn't changed a bit, judging by the introduction to her new essay collection, Free for All: Defending Liberty in a Today (Beacon). Terror war or no, Kaminer writers, basic liberties face constant challenge. "We always seem to be engaged in a war on something," she has said.

Based in Boston, Kaminer is the author of seven previous books, including Sleeping with Extra-Terrestrials: The Rise of Irrotionalism and the Perils of Piety (2000). She prefers writing for magazines, and she appears regularly in The American Prospect, The Atlantic, and The Nation. "I don't write for the sheer pleasure of writing," she explains. "I want to communicate, and you can reach many, many more people with a magazine article than with most books."

Assistant Editor Sara Rimensnyder spoke with Kaminer by phone in September.

Q: Should we trade liberty for security?

A: When you ask people that, of course they're going to say yes. Nobody wants to be dead, and nobody can enjoy their civil liberties from the grave. But it's the wrong question. Every time we're confronted with a measure that would restrict our freedoms, what we should ask is, "How will this make us safe?" Then you can decide whether it's a reasonable tradeoff.

There were already many infringements on civil liberties before 9/11. It's important to keep saying that. It's not as if we've ever had a golden age for civil liberties. Now the most severe threats are...