National ID cards on the way?
Recent congressional vote on standardized, electronically readable driver's licenses raises fears about imminence of national IDs.
(http://news.com.com/National%2BID%2Bcards%2Bon%2Bthe%2Bway/2100-1028_3-5573414.html)
By Declan McCullagh
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
Published: February 14, 2005, 4:00 AM PST
A recent vote in Congress endorsing standardized, electronically readable driver's licenses has raised fears about whether the proposal would usher in what amounts to a national ID card.
In a vote that largely divided along party lines, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a Republican-backed measure that would compel states to design their driver's licenses by 2008 to comply with federal antiterrorist standards. Federal employees would reject licenses or identity cards that don't comply, which could curb Americans' access to everything from airplanes to national parks and some courthouses.
The congressional maneuvering takes place as governments are growing more interested in implanting technology in ID cards to make them smarter and more secure. The U.S. State Department soon will begin issuing passports with radio frequency identification, or RFID, chips embedded in them, and Virginia may become the first state to glue RFID tags into all its driver's licenses.
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I remember hearing about this story two years ago and wondering then if this would actually work in the way it is intended to work. Would it really lower our risk of terrorist attacks? Would they be more secure? Or would it leave us at even more risk of being victimized by hackers?
Controversy is sprouting up all over the Internet about this National ID card. But is it really such a bad idea? I mean, look at all the information that can be scanned just from your current, state... When my husband had his scanned, just to look, it showed every citation he'd ever had, his parents jobs (because they signed for his permit when he was 16) and every citation his parents had ever received, social security numbers - all kinds of information.
It seems to me as though this fight has already been fought before, during the 1930s, when opposers of Social Security cards made the same arguments. And the only thing a Social Security card is good for now is proof of eligibility to work within the United States.
For more information on these cards, reasons for support, and reasons for opposition, here is a website I found with links to several articles... http://www.prisonplanet.com/archives/realid/index.html.
So, I would like to know, are you in a state that is willing to comply with this new Real ID? If so, will you comply? Will it make you feel more secure or less secure in the whole realm of things? Do you think these cards will cause more problems than results? Will they work the way they are intended?
