One of the greatest freedoms is the freedom to be let alone. The Clipper chip public relations fiasco has put a spotlight on these issues. That's a good thing. What's not such a good thing is some of the things that have been uncovered. Here's a little deduction for you.
Email certainly falls under their umbrella.
But that doesn't matter to you - you're sending Internet email from Kansas to Colorado. There's no way of knowing the route of that mail. It could pass through India or Germany. And the NSA will scan it for suspect words. You can't assume that any email will not be read by other eyes than the intended recipient.