Posted on 01/14/2002 10:21:20 AM PST by gopusa.com
Unfortunately, it appears that we are inexorably moving toward a National Identification Card system, an Orwellian nightmare that would permit easy tracking and surveillance of individuals on a level once considered unimaginable. It's not happening in a blatant power grab by government, but in small, incremental steps that nonetheless will have the same deleterious outcome. Our society is "slipping and sliding" toward "Big Brother" snoopery with plans for embedding crucial identification data into microchips on our drivers' licenses. And, clearly, widespread encroachment upon our privacy is being significantly abetted by advancing technologies. Understandably, civil libertarians are sounding the clarion call to alert the general public to the inherent dangers of a centralized identification system.
According to a recent Associated Press report, the federal government is "working with the states to develop a new generation of drivers' licenses that could be checked anywhere and would contain electronically stored information such as fingerprints for the country's 184 million licensed drivers. Privacy experts fear the effort may lead to national identification cards that would allow authorities to track citizens electronically, a backdoor way to establish federal ID cards, (1/8/02, AP reporter Ted Bridis).
Read the complete article at http://www.gopusa.com/caroldevinemolin/cdm_0114.shtml
Not necessarily. A magnetic strip is just a storage medium, so a smallish amount of anything could be put there. They were talking about starting with basic data, then expanding that to retinal scans or fingerprints.
Better that than a barcode, I suppose. You can probably mess up a magnetic strip pretty easily, but I'd have a hard time explaining why I kept spilling stuff on my barcode :)
National ID system sought
STATE MOTOR VEHICLES OFFICIALS TO ASK CONGRESS FOR $100 MILLION
BY ROBERT O'HARROW JR.
Washington Post WASHINGTON -- State motor vehicle officials plan to ask Congress today for up to $100 million to create a national identification system that would include high-tech driver's licenses and a network of tightly linked databases of driver information.
The appeal by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators represents the most concerted push for a national identification system since authorities determined that some Sept. 11 hijackers used false identities and obtained driver's licenses illegally.
Shortly after the attacks, association officials floated the idea of adopting cards containing fingerprints, computer chips or other unique identifiers to improve security, saying that driver's licenses have already become the ``de facto national identification card.''
Standardization sought
Today, an association task force created to study the issue plans to issue a report that calls on states to standardize their licensing procedures, improve their authentication of drivers and otherwise close gaps that might be used by terrorists and fraud artists, officials said.
The report also recommends closer scrutiny of license applications from foreign visitors, in part to prevent people with expired travel visas from maintaining valid driver's licenses, officials said.
Key to their initiative will be financial and legislative support from Congress and the states. Association officials estimate it will cost $70 million to $100 million to link all state databases, overhaul licensing procedures and switch to high-tech cards.
``The whole issue comes down to improving public safety, protecting national security and preventing identity fraud,'' Jason King, an association spokesman, said in an interview. ``It will take changes in federal legislation. It will take changes in state legislation, and it most certainly will require funding.''
On Sept. 21, Oracle Chairman and CEO Larry Ellison also urged creation of such a card and national database, and he offered to provide the enabling software for no charge.
Ellison's company, Oracle, based in Redwood Shores, is the world's leading maker of database software. It was not clear Sunday whether the association would enlist Ellison's help.
The association's proposals have contributed to debate over national identification and the proper balance between civil liberties and security. In recent surveys, a majority of Americans expressed support for such cards as a way to improve security -- a turnabout in sentiment from before the terror attacks.
Some federal support
While President Bush has said he does not think a card is necessary, officials at the Justice Department and at least one other government agency have begun working on a national standard for a system.
Civil-liberties activists said they believe such a system, even one created from a driver's license, would open the way to unwanted government scrutiny.
David Sobel, general counsel at the Electronic Privacy Information Center, urged people to oppose the association's initiative. He said that this ``type of system would be a radical departure for this country. . . . It will be subject to abuse.''
While the association acknowledges it could take years to fully implement such a system, the idea is gaining some support in Congress. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., is drafting legislation that would, among other things, create uniform standards for licensing and the cards.
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