Should the U.S. adopt a national ID card system? Many countries issue national ID cards. Post-9/11 security concerns have prompted a debate about whether the U.S. should too.YES Adopting a national ID card system would significantly increase our security with a negligible cost in freedom. Many people oppose this. But more than 100 nations have some kind of national ID card. And we're already moving toward a government ID system--using driver's licenses and Social Security numbers to prove who we are--but they neither protect our privacy nor stop terrorists. Instead, they promote identity theft. At least seven of the September 11 hijackers--some living in Maryland hotels--managed to get Virginia ID cards or driver's licenses, which can be used as identification when boarding planes. Americans routinely travel to and from Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean with just a driver's license. Some U.S. officials privately fret that security may depend on a harried immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. officer in Maine who is handed a forged North Dakota North Dakota, state in the N central United States. It is bordered by Minnesota, across the Red River of the North (E), South Dakota (S), Montana (W), and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (N). driver's license. A recent undercover federal study underscored the concern: Using off-the-shelf materials, investigators were able to forge documents that were then used to get driver's licenses in seven states and the District of Columbia District of Columbia, federal district (2000 pop. 572,059, a 5.7% decrease in population since the 1990 census), 69 sq mi (179 sq km), on the east bank of the Potomac River, coextensive with the city of Washington, D.C. (the capital of the United States). . The forgeries worked in each place where they were attempted. So why not plug this hole with a standardized, hard-to-forge national ID card/driver's license that would have a photo, a fingerprint, and a bar code that could be swiped to check whether the person is, for example, a terror suspect who should not be allowed onto a plane? We could simultaneously reduce identity theft and make life tougher for terrorists. Nicholas D. Kristof Nicholas Donabet Kristof (born April 27 1959 in Yamhill, Oregon) is an American political scientist, author, and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist specializing in East Asia. New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times columnist NO National ID cards would not protect Americans from terrorism, and would hurt our privacy. ID cards would not overcome the biggest obstacle to preventing attacks: identifying terrorists before they strike. Only two of the 19 September 11 attackers were on an FBI watch list; the rest probably would have been given IDs. Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (1990 pop. 444,719), state capital, and seat of Oklahoma co., central Okla., on the North Canadian River; inc. 1890. The state's largest city, it is an important livestock market, a wholesale, distribution, industrial, and financial center, and a farm bomber Timothy McVeigh Timothy James McVeigh (aka Oklahoma City bomber April 23, 1968 – June 11, 2001), was a former American soldier who was convicted of eleven federal offenses and ultimately executed as a result of his role on the April 19, 1995, Oklahoma City bombing. would have had an ID. The fact is, ID cards can't distinguish between good guys and bad guys. Bad guys will get false IDs. There are always counterfeiters who can fake documents and corrupt government workers who will sell real IDs for big bribes. And to get our new IDs, we will have to present other documents like birth certificates and Social Security cards, which are easily faked. National IDs could foster new forms of discrimination and harassment Ask a Lawyer Question Country: United States of America State: Nevada I recently moved to nev.from abut have been going back to ca. every 2 to 3 weeks for med. of anyone who looks or sounds foreign. They could be subjected to constant identity checks, and failure to carry their ID cards could become a reason for search, detention, or arrest. And while a national ID card system wouldn't make us safer, it would jeopardize our privacy. As more places incorporate the ID card into their security or payment systems, we might have to present our IDs at office buildings, gas stations, stores, highway tolls, and buses. And at each stop, we'll be recorded. The way to stop terrorism is investigating groups like Al Qaeda, not by trying to identify and track everyone in America. The government requires us to get a license to drive a car. That makes sense. But should we need a license to leave our home? Jay Stanley American Civil Liberties Union American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), nonpartisan organization devoted to the preservation and extension of the basic rights set forth in the U.S. Constitution. |
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