Topic: Government Regulation
Ron Paul wakes up the sleeping giant. (Real ID) Meanwhile, Bush and the Department of Homeland Security quietly and unwittingly tries to pry the constitution from under our armby P Hedt
(Libertarian)
Thursday, January 24, 2008
"If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy."-James Madison
The Constitution of the United States of America grants us the right to take our country in any direction we choose. It gives us the right to be who we are, to believe what we believe and to strive for what we want. It does not come without sacrifice however. We alone must be responsible for our actions. We must also be on constant vigilant watch for anyone that might challenge to take away our liberties.
To ensure that it is a challenge to take away our liberties, the Constitution has safeguards built into it. The main safeguard is a system of checks and balances, which are designed to make sure that one branch can not become more powerful than the other two. One of the balances is that the president cannot declare war without permission from congress.
The Bush administration has brought us the Patriot Act and the Department of Homeland Security in order to help protect our lives but these actions have brought about a lot of controversy due to the fact that the safety it provides comes at a high cost- it leaves us vulnerable to loosing our freedoms from the inside out.
The reason the Department is such a risk is that it has no oversight. The reason the Patriot Act is so dangerous is that it allows the Department to pry into your personal life without a warrant or probable cause. We were warned that this act and the department put too much power into the hands of a few (unelected) people. That tree is beginning to bear fruit.
The people who brought you The Patriot Act and The Department of Homeland Security, would like to present: The Real ID act! This act was actually passed in 2005 and is designed to act as a national ID card. The reasoning behind the Real ID act is that it will be a "tamper proof" way of keeping out terrorists and illegal immigrants. The problem is that "tamper proof" means about the same as "water proof" or "unbreakable". The Real ID will replace your Drivers License and will be required for everything you do, from boarding a plane to opening a bank account. In addition each Real ID will be outfitted with an RFI chip which will hold all the personal information you gave in you application. The RFI chip will be used to make purchases and track your general movements. As I wrote in my last article, this act was actually delayed and is not due to manifest until 2011 and will complete fruition in 2017.
A major reason for this delay is that the states have been fighting the act on the grounds that it violates civil liberties and costs to much money we don’t have. Now if you thought the Department of Homeland Security was going to take that lying down you were wrong. The Department of Homeland Security is strong-arming the states that are fighting the legislation.
"'Come May 2008, [their] citizens . . . will feel the consequences' of the states' resistance, Homeland Security Department spokesman Russ Knocke said Friday. To board a plane or enter a federal building, those residents will have to use a passport or other form of accepted identification, he said." 12 Jan 08 ed. LA
An unelected official in the Department of Homeland Security has the power to push around the state governments? The Act was delayed but the Department of Homeland Security is officially unofficially enacting it? I guess they want to get us used to it, create a social norm, and codify that social norm into law. Slowly they pull the constitution from the sleeping giants grasp.
I think its time for the sleeping giant to awaken! Your run of the mill elected official is NOT going to stop this. They've been doing this for years and every time we start to stir they pause until we fall asleep again. Until that generation is complacent. Lately, they have been taking a lot, and people are noticing. The Department of Homeland Security continues to grab power unofficially but we still have time to stop this. This presidential election is going to be a pivotal moment in our history, that’s why so may are running at once. The executive branch has broken the system of checks and balances and our civil rights are in jeopardy.
I am a Ron Paul supporter but the most important thing is that the message gets out. Personally I think he is the only one who has been genuine and consistent. He stands against the Real ID. He is a politician who is dedicated to reducing government, which is what conservatism is supposed to be about.
Whomever you vote for, do your research and get involved, our liberties depend on it and your country needs you. I am a veteran who is willing to sacrifice my life for this country, for your freedom. Will you at least sacrifice a little time to maintain it?
"Rapidity is the essence of war; take advantage of the enemy's unreadiness, make your way by unexpected routes, and attack unguarded spots." - Sun Tzu "The Art of War" Chapter Eleven
Did you like this article? If you did, Thumb It! 33 thumbs so far
2008 P Hedt, all rights reserved.
Published: Thursday, January 24, 2008
Last modified: Thursday, January 24, 2008
The views expressed in this
article are those of P Hedt only and do not represent
the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. P Hedt is
solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an
employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
Can someone here please explain what is so horrifying about RealID?
It's an act that requires all ID to conform to a minimum standard and to pass requirements and be shared between states.
You are actually telling me you would rather have terrorists and illegal aliens walking around with counterfeit crap than have secure ID becuase it treads on your LIBERTIES?
I'm sorry, I can't fathom that. That sort of thinking doesn't seem to make logical sense. Please explain.
The REAL ID Act mandates that State motor vehicle department clerks collect and paper copy your most vital and personal identifying documentation. These paper copies are to be digitized and placed on massive State databases. The COPYING is the problem. These paper copies and the digitized copies are to be retained for many years. The copying and retention means a basic,yet expandable DOSSIER will be created on each of us like you might see in totalitarian regimes. Also, I feel additional data will be fed into these DOSSIERS as time passes. I also feel that these huge State databases will soon fall under Federal control and then we will have a National ID card-which I do not want! Another big problem with the REAL ID Act is the deliberate lack of any controls or limits on its usage. Just who may demand your card for the purpose of scanning it? Will we be required to "SCAN IN" whereever we may go? I don't want that. CHERTOFF has recently said that he envisions further new uses for the card. Think about that.
Ok so were talking logic, are we? I understand that you want some fullproof way to stop terrorists and sure this would be a step toward that. Nothing is foolproof, people have always found ways to bypass any system. Our ID's are constantly changing for this very same reason. I feel this will be no different. There's always a weekness in any potential enemy. Additonally there's always been terrorism, there's always going to be conflict. So you want a perfect world where it is safe. That will never happen. You make it sound as if our liberties don't matter at all. Is that being logical. Your talking about the very foundation that made this country what it is and it's no big deal as long as you feel like things are perfect. It's not right on so many levels that I don't feel like getting into at this moment. But truly ask yourself is this really going to be what makes this world safe or is it something that just makes you feel safe? All the while your movments are being tracked. Where you go, who you visit, you'll have no privacy again. To me using logic why would you want that to be our future? Our dollar has changed so much because of counterfiters. Has that stopped them, no they continue to find ways to make fake money. This is no different and the things I've fought for will be taken away. Think about that.
Want to comment on this
article? Leave your comment here. Your email address is
required to track your comment. However, we will neither
publish your email address nor distribute it to other
organizations or persons. The only reason we might use
it would be if we needed to contact you regarding your
comment. All comments are subject to our
terms of use policy.
2008 P Hedt, all rights reserved.