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Maine Protests Real ID

By TChris, Section Legislation
Posted on Thu Jan 25, 2007 at 08:45:19 PM EST
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The Real ID law is a real disaster.

Maine lawmakers passed a resolution urging repeal of the Real ID Act, which would create a national digital identification system by 2008. The lawmakers said it would cost Maine about $185 million, fail to boost security and put people at greater risk of identity theft.

Maine is the first state to lodge an official protest against the unfunded mandate, but other states are joining the chorus. A Senate bill to repeal the ill-conceived law deserves prompt attention.

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    Maine Protests Real ID | 1 comment (1 topical)

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    No National ID (none / 0) (#1)
    by squeaky on Thu Jan 25, 2007 at 09:52:06 PM EST
    They tried to pull that off in Japan and there were riots. The people prevailed. There courts have ruled that the national ID that went into effect in 2003 violates civil rights.

    Part of the "problem", I'm sure, is the money to be made by the profiteers. 11 billion in contracts, and that is sure to at least double. Plenty of money to hire top lobbyists to  spread the fear.

     ID cards are established for a variety of reasons. Race, politics and religion were often at the heart of older ID systems. The threat of insurgents or political extremists, and the exercise of religious discrimination have been all too common as motivation for the establishment of ID systems which would force enemies of the State into registration, or make them vulnerable in the open without proper documents. In Pakistan, the cards are used to enforce a quota system, In China, they are used as a tool of social engineering....

    .....At the heart of such plans is a parallel increase in police powers. Even in democratic nations, police retain the right to demand ID on pain of detention.  

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    Maine Protests Real ID | 1 comment (1 topical)

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