upi.com — Democrats plan to overhaul the controversial Real ID Act when they take control of Congress next year, and if long-awaited regulations from the Department of Homeland Security do not provide needed protections for privacy and civil liberties, lawmakers have pledged to repeal the law entirely.
Dec 14, 2006 View in Crawl 4
madatmuhamedDec 15, 2006
No such real people in the US. Can't really do anything without an ID.
Closed AccountDec 15, 2006
@EtherGnat:"Do you have to show your ID to buy a bus ticket or enter a court house?"Not on the bus, no. Not normally in couthouses either, but when entering restricted government buildings, yes; in the military I was even required to wear an ID card visible on my shirt when I was in secure buildings."Does your government have the authority to require fingerprints, retinal scans and the like encoded in your license?"Yes. Although I'm not sure the EU has ever managed to fully agree on what to enter into the RFID chip - there are concerns about identity theft. Not out of concern for the citizen, mind you, the privacy and security of private citizens is a non-issue in the EU, but because it can be used by e.g. terrorists against the state."Was your ID card legislation tacked on to critical legislation nobody would dare vote against at the last second, and did it give unelected officials the power to break any laws they like?"No, that sort of thing is peculiar to the US. I don't know of any country in the EU which allows that sort of thing."Did your national government saddle your local government with a lot of expensive requirements without providing any funding, all for something it insists is *NOT* a National ID card?"Well, apart from the insisting that it's not an ID card - yes. The EU drivers license is an ID card, that's the whole point of it: that it enables police to positively identify drivers, and it is considered secure enough that it is accepted as identification also in other contexts (e.g. when checking in at airports)."Do they encode all your personal information including biometric data on an RFID chip that may be secretly read by any government agent or hacker you happen to pass on the street?"Oh yes. I seem to recall a report that the RFID chip in the EU drivers license, supposedly "uncrackable", was cracked... um, I think about six moths ago?"One last question. If they had, would you be worried?"Like I said, an ID card doesn't really worry me. It's a means of proving identity, not a means of tracking movement or opinions. Like I said I am pretty paranoid about privacy: I do not have a cellphone and do not use credit cards, but even so I am far more worried about things like CCD camera tracking of vehicles, facial recognition software, and police monitoring of net activity (e.g. in the EU ISP's are required by law to keep all emails and surf logs for two years, and police has access to them without suspicion of crime; and the British police is allowed to monitor traffic on any website) than I am about ID cards.There must be people who live in the EU (except Britain, which still doesn't have a national ID card) here - do you guys find that the ID card is an infringement of your privacy?
bushliedDec 15, 2006
No true American will ever comply, and those that do...do this country a great disservice.This shouldn't even be an issue? Next you'll be required for you to wear dog collars and bark on command.
kuzotzDec 15, 2006
The intellectuals are losing, and chang eprobaly won't come to AMerican society once htis happens. I say this because the government hates those who think, and those who dissent, and love those who are docile consumers.
kuzotzDec 15, 2006
I swear republicans, and conservatives are bakas.
ethergnatDec 15, 2006
I'm not some paranoid nut job, but I do think it's important enough there ought to be a national debate to discuss the issues. There is no doubt privacy is eroding--both corporations and governments are increasingly tracking our lives. Not spies in black helicopters tracking, but financial information, phone records, buying habits, Internet searches, and other private information. RFID technology potentially allows them to track every person walking down the street. At least two states have considered legislation requiring GPS tracking devices in vehicles, ostensibly for taxation purposes. Technology is transforming our lives, but it also has massive privacy implications. I'm not saying it's all bad, but people need to be informed and we need to consider privacy implications. Where possible people should have the opportunity to opt-out of anything with privacy concerns.
edmcguirkDec 15, 2006
I just went through this deal in New Jersey. What they were primarily interested in was not my identity but my social security number. As a matter of fact I went out of my way to supply all the forms of ID on their list without supplying my social security number and the people at the DMV just went off the list and demanded proof of my social security number. (verbally - nothing in writing)In general when they want your social security number, they are looking for a link into your finances. It makes it easier for them to get money from you when they want it.
siszamDec 15, 2006
My mother was born in a country town in 1933. She NEVER had a birth certificate. I wonder what would be done with people like her. Maybe that's what the concentration camps all over the U.S. are for. I don't like any of this. It's too much like the Mark. Time is short.
bigkittyDec 18, 2006
NONE of this is for the purpose of protecting US. The scum on both sides of the aisle in Washington DC is concerned with protecting no one but themselves.
jake45Dec 21, 2006
We are all for the Real Id card, it would weed out Terrorists, Illegals , and stop Idenity Fraud, which would Protect Americans, Alll Congress wants to do Is Protect all Immigrants.