As you may know, President Obama has issued a memorandum to the Freedom of Inoformation Act (FOIA). Below is the memorandum, found at www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/news/20090121/2009_FOIA_memo.pdf

I am interested in your thoughts about a truly transparent government. What is meant by it? Is this really safe?

-Flyboy 155

A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires
transparency. As Justice Louis Brandeis wrote, "sunlight is
said to be the best of disinfectants." In our democracy, the
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which encourages
accountability through transparency, is the most prominent
expression of a profound national commitment to ensuring an
open Government. At the heart of that commitment is the idea
that accountability is in the interest of the Government and
the citizenry alike.
The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a
clear presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails.
The Government should not keep information confidential merely
because public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure,
because errors and failures might be revealed, or because
of speculative or abstract fears. Nondisclosure should never
be based on an effort to protect the personal interests of
Government officials at the expense of those they are supposed
to serve. In responding to requests under the FOIA, executive
branch agencies (agencies) should act promptly and in a spirit
of cooperation, recognizing that such agencies are servants of
the public.
All agencies should adopt a presumption in favor of disclosure,
in order to renew their commitment to the principles embodied
in FOIA, and to usher in a new era of open Government. The
presumption of disclosure should be applied to all decisions
involving FOIA.

The presumption of disclosure also means that agencies should
take affirmative steps to make information public. They should
not wait for specific requests from the public. All agencies
should use modern technology to inform citizens about what is
known and done by their Government. Disclosure should be
timely.
I direct the Attorney General to issue new guidelines
governing the FOIA to the heads of executive departments and
agencies, reaffirming the commitment to accountability and
transparency, and to publish such guidelines in the Federal
Register. In doing so, the Attorney General should review FOIA
reports produced by the agencies under Executive Order 13392
of December 14, 2005. I also direct the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget to update guidance to the agencies to
increase and improve information dissemination to the public,
including through the use of new technologies, and to publish
such guidance in the Federal Register.
This memorandum does not create any right or benefit,
substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by
any party against the United States, its departments, agencies,
or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other
person.
The Director of the Office of Management and Budget is hereby
authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the
Federal Register.

BARACK OBAMA

I think what we are seeing here is a continuation of the policies that Obama promised during the campaign; a more transparent, open government. We've seen civil liberties restricted in the last eight years, which is not so much a cause of the last administration (although certainly attributable) but the natural effects of what happens to civil liberties during times of war, and in our case two wars. Google Lincoln's war time power expansion and you'll see the same things happened. However, once a new administration moves in and the war drums stop beating you see what is called "snap-back"-- a return to post war liberties and even a little extra-- much like elastic that's been stretched too far, then when it "snaps back" and is actually a little looser than before, meaning rights are actually expanded further than pre-war conditions.

        "Is it safe?" That's an interesting question. I assert that regardless of safety, which I don't think transparency threatens, and if it did I would nonetheless choose transparency. The FOIA doesn't reveal state secrets of national security but it does ensure that we know the policies and directives our government follows behind closed doors and not necessarily with the vote of a legislative body. Furthermore, it ensures accountability. Finally, I recall the famouse words, "those who choose safety over freedom deserve neither." Good post Flyboy 155. 

Maybe it's because of my studies of Intelligence, but there are many things that ought not to be disclosed. This is arguably exemplified through the government intelligence budgets. During the Cold War, Soviet Russia did not disclose their defense budget, leaving US intelligences analyst in the dark. We have adopted the same technique by "hiding" our intelligence budget inside the defense budget. Some things need guarding.

Conversely, the government is known to "hide" controversial subjects (Operation Mongoose). A more transparent government would greatly help in producing a creditable and accountable government.

I find it interesting your application of the memorandum to civil rights. This undoubtedly surrounds President Obama's presidency (deliberatly or not). I don't really see how this FOIA memorandum help, though. I can see it through the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), but "Freedom of Information Act" (FOIA): I don't see a correlation. Good post Enderjeta.