A strong idea being heavily lobbied right now in the usa is the <a href="http://www0.mercurycenter.com/local/center/id101701.htm">National ID Card</a>, which would hold data such as:
- Social Security number
- Detailed personal data
- Digital records of the person's thumbprint
- Digital records of the person's palm print
- Digital records of the person's face or eyes.
Of course, these cards cards would be voluntary for all U.S. citizens, just like the Drivers Liscenses are. And mandatory for all foreigners.
( Yeah, it'll be really cute when you can't fly on a plane, ride a train, get a credit card, open a bank account, or get a job without one... )
Of course, America is not like a police state country where it's police officer would just stop people looking suspicious and asking
"Zeigen Sie Ihre Papiere, Kameraden!". ( Right. )
This remionds me of one of the issues that comes up often in discussing firearms purchase controls, is how to provide a mechanism to deny access by prohibited persons, without inherently building a database of all the lawful purchases and purchasers?
The basic premise of 'National ID' systems is that if we build a database of all law-abiding trustworthy citizens, anybody who does not exist in this database must be a 'prohibited person'.
This premise is also one of the biggest dangers of a national ID, and the primary objection raised by civil libertarians and the ultra paranoid.
The 'Brady Bill' background check law was written with a safeguard- all records of 'successful' checks were to be deleted. In reality, the Clinton administration ignored this limitation, holding records indefinitely.
The same sort of behavior can be expected regarding any safeguards built into a 'National ID' system.
Later of course we could expand it for more specific information like your health records, financial status, political slant, religious affiliations and employment history. Of course you would not have to provide this to anyone else, but then again they would not have to hire you, provide products or services, and extend credit to you.
If this was in place on 9/11, would it have stopped the terrorists?" Ding-ding-ding, I am sorry, but at last count something like 14 of the hijackers were unknown to anyone. They would have had cards that allowed them to get on without an issue.
But what about the others? They would have been stopped? Ding-ding-ding, no, they would not have been on to begin with, or they would have paid someone to create or reprogram cards.
Anyways, I'll conclude with this quote, which is sad, but true:
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots & tyrants" --Thomas Jefferson
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wiZd0m
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[This message has been edited by wiZd0m (edited 10-17-2001).]