Phone Ruling

The Supreme Court decision regarding the tapping of cordless phones (Part A, Jan. 9) should outrage every American citizen! This is clearly a violation of our rights. The logic used in this case is dubious at best. How could the court rule in the past that party lines and public phones are off limits to government intrusion and then suggest that cordless phones in private homes are not?

While it may be true that one occasionally picks up another’s conversation from a cordless phone, it is also true that the same thing happens frequently from regular phones. This should not lessen the “reasonable expectation” that our conversations are still private.

The possibilities for abuse are staggering. Remember, it is not simply the one in four Americans with cordless phones who risk arbitrary phone tapping. Anyone who speaks to anyone who is using a cordless phone also risks being tapped. That means everyone.

SCOTT DAVIS JONES

Redondo Beach