Papiere Bitte! Evils of Real ID

It's in the news again. Another step toward the brave new world. It is the REAL ID card and it is creepy. Virtually uncovered in the mainstream media, the Senate will be voting on another REAL ID Bill and its time to let them know that we don't want every facet of our personal lives in one centrally located government database. REAL ID as with many unconstitutional power grabs mad during the Bush Administration, has been touted as a way to prevent terrorism. Its funny that we are told that we need to fight the terrorists to defend our freedom while at the same time the people who are supposed to be defending our freedoms are tearing up the bill of rights. The REAL ID card would require at minimum your name, birth date, sex, ID number, a digital photograph, address, and a "common machine-readable technology" most likely RFID. Others have speculated that this card could be used to store medical, social security, financial and and marketing information. These cards may need to be shown when buying certain items at the store or when you are pulled over for speeding. You will also need it to drive, fly or buy a house, PAPERS PLEASE! I'm not one to jump to wild religious conclusions but even the Biblical mark of the beast has been compared to the REAL ID card by some.

Revelation 13:16-17

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

This holds a sobering reality because the government would be requiring us to have the ID, we would need it to buy and sell homes airline tickets and possibly other items, and RFID technology has been tested in the form of an under skin capsule embedded under the wrist.

Armageddon doomsday theories aside, the inherent problem with this is that not only would every government official have access to all of your information but this data would also be a gold mine of data if one of these officials sold the information to marketers. Do you really want to risk having all of your personal information available to anyone who was willing to pay for it? We must stand up to this legislation, now is pretty much our last chance, the bill, if passed could go into effect in May. At that point not only would all your info be in a government database but with the recent wiretapping bill it could be combined with audio and public video surveillance. This would be an awful and new low state of affairs for the new American police state. This is what presidential candidate and congressman Ron Paul had to say about REAL ID on his website...

"The US House of Representatives passed a spending bill last week that contains provisions establishing a national ID card, and the Senate is poised to approve the measure in the next few days. This week marks the American public’s last chance to convince their Senators they don’t want to live in a nation that demands papers from its citizens as they go about their lives.

Absent a political miracle in the Senate, within two years every American will need a conforming national ID card to participate in ordinary activities. This REAL ID Act establishes a massive, centrally-coordinated database of highly personal information about American citizens: at a minimum their name, date of birth, place of residence, Social Security number, and physical characteristics. The legislation also grants open-ended authority to the Secretary of Homeland Security to require biometric information on IDs in the future. This means your harmless looking driver’s license could contain a retina scan, fingerprints, DNA information, or radio frequency technology.

Think this sounds far fetched? Read the REAL ID Act, HR 418, for yourself. Its text is available on the Library of Congress website. A careful reading also reveals that states will be required to participate in the “Drivers License Agreement,” which was crafted by DMV lobbyists years ago. This agreement creates a massive database of sensitive information on American citizens that can be shared with Canada and Mexico!

Terrorism is the excuse given for virtually every new power grab by the federal government, and the national ID is no exception. But federal agencies have tried to create a national ID for years, long before the 9-11 attacks. In fact, a 1996 bill sought to do exactly what the REAL ID Act does: transform state drivers’ licenses into de facto national ID cards. At the time, Congress was flooded with calls by angry constituents and the bill ultimately died.

Proponents of the REAL ID Act continue to make the preposterous claim that the bill does not establish a national ID card. This is dangerous and insulting nonsense. Let’s get the facts straight: The REAL ID Act transforms state motor vehicle departments into agents of the federal government. Nationalizing standards for driver's licenses and birth certificates in a federal bill creates a national ID system, pure and simple. Having the name of your particular state on the ID is meaningless window dressing.

Federally imposed standards for drivers' license and birth certificates make a mockery of federalism and the 10th amendment. While states technically are not forced to accept the federal standards, any refusal to comply would mean their residents could not get a job, receive Social Security, or travel by plane. So rather than imposing a direct mandate on the states, the federal government is blackmailing them into complying with federal dictates.

One overriding point has been forgotten: Criminals don’t obey laws! As with gun control, national ID cards will only affect law-abiding citizens. Do we really believe a terrorist bent on murder is going to dutifully obtain a federal ID card? Do we believe that people who openly flout our immigration laws will nonetheless respect our ID requirements? Any ID card can be forged; any federal agency or state DMV is susceptible to corruption. Criminals can and will obtain national ID cards, or operate without them. National ID cards will be used to track the law-abiding masses, not criminals."

Please contact your congressmen and ask them why they decided it was ok for the government to track all of your personal information.



Some links for more info
CNET: How REAL ID will effect you
ACLU: Real nightmare
NCLS Countdown to REAL ID
Electronic Frontier Foundation
Privacy Coalition