"...or else the terrorists win"

If you haven't read the anonymous article in the Washington Post regarding National Security Letters and what their effect is on law abiding citizens is, you really should.

from My National Security Letter Gag Order (login required):

Three years ago, I received a national security letter (NSL) in my capacity as the president of a small Internet access and consulting business. The letter ordered me to provide sensitive information about one of my clients. There was no indication that a judge had reviewed or approved the letter, and it turned out that none had. The letter came with a gag provision that prohibited me from telling anyone, including my client, that the FBI was seeking this information.

Living under the gag order has been stressful and surreal. Under the threat of criminal prosecution, I must hide all aspects of my involvement in the case -- including the mere fact that I received an NSL -- from my colleagues, my family and my friends. When I meet with my attorneys I cannot tell my girlfriend where I am going or where I have been. I hide any papers related to the case in a place where she will not look. When clients and friends ask me whether I am the one challenging the constitutionality of the NSL statute, I have no choice but to look them in the eye and lie.

To paraphrase Hans Gruber, "[the liberty and freedom the terrorists cannot destroy] is [destroyed] automatically in response to a terrorist incident. You ask for miracles, Theo? I give you the F. B. I."