... in response to Am I the only one?, posted by KenC on Dec 18, 2001

Yes we have here in Dearborn MI. (Home of Henry Ford) the largest population of Arab people in the United States.  The government sent out over 900 notices asking these Arab people for help in any information they might have about 911 not even half replied to the notice.  We have let all immigrants get away with way too much it is time we took a stand.  In my farming town here Arab speaking people own all the party stores.  When I lived in Florida it was the Chinese.  How are they able to do this?  I was told they get tax breaks for a certain amount of years then they have another family member come from their country and run the store to continue on with the tax breaks.

... in response to Re: Re: I like the idea of a National ID..., posted by wsbill on Dec 18, 2001

idea.  Certainly is smacks of Big Brother.  Big time.  Now,  Immigration,  I could be persuaded on that count.  Most of us born in America should value our freedoms...one is not to be on 1 Big brother database with all the info completely digitized.  Surely,  we have a big immigrant problem and leaky borders and all that stuff....but,  me,  I don't want any part of a national ID card.  And I far more liberal,  than right wing in my politics.  But,  once they get their little foot in the door,  their little toe,  we will be catalogued beyond beleif.  All of us USA citizens deserve a little privacy...which is incessantly eroded.  The card,  is the complete end of any vestige of your personal privacy.  People here on student visa's or whatever...maybe a card is a good idea.  I do not think that the rights of a US Citizen should be conferred upon anyone who can squeeze through a porous border or to those who overstay their visa.  That is a seperate category.  Forget the politics,  'cuz far too many before us have fought and died to preserve the freedoms we American Citizens enjoy.  I do not think that I or any current American Citizen really need some Attorney General sponsored card for me to prove that I am an American.  I am an American,  don't need no card to prove it.

... in response to Universal identification scheme Worldwid..., posted by Ryan on Dec 18, 2001

Soumds great.  I wish our authorities would just go in to those Muslim communities and separate out the good with from the bad.  Then, they should find any other Muslims in the US and check their papers.  It is not discrimination, it is protection.  If I was a Muslim I would want it because all my neighbors would know I am ok.  Then we could work on the rest of the country.

... in response to You guys really want this?, posted by DR on Dec 18, 2001

The BYS id system appears to cost the gov't even more money than a simple microchip or retina facial scan....

as who is going to be able to produce these yellow stars to put on your all your clothes.  

... in response to You guys really want this?, posted by DR on Dec 18, 2001

This will be the exact fight, many people will be yelling.  "Discrimination!"

Don't forget these issues:
1) the identification system could be easily expanded to include other purposes beyond deterring illegal immigration, such as implementation of a Clinton- style health security card, conducting background checks on individuals, and enforcing affirmative action laws and other government regulations.

2) the system would cost the federal government between $3 billion and $6 billion per year to administer.

3) error rates that are commonplace for government databases would lead to hundreds of thousands of Americans being denied legal access to the workforce.

Big Brother does not stop there
The ID system would serve as a means of tracking undocumented workers, 'deadbeat' parents and to maintain information pertaining to health insurance

I still think someday we will have one especially if Europe does it first...
Ryan

... in response to And here we go..., posted by Ryan on Dec 18, 2001

Imagine if you made americans buy these id card on the front end and allow them to write it off on their taxes on the back end.

I do like the micro chip idea, imagine you lose your mind and you forgot where you lived at.... do a quick scan and they'll know in an instant.

... in response to Not sure, but I think you have lost your..., posted by Lynn on Dec 18, 2001

It will happen and the system will be on a voluntary basis as it is in many countries around the world today.  Then the people who don't voluntear will start to lose rights...  Argentina (A requirement by 8 years of age) Honduras, Spain, and Nine European Union (EU) countries have state-run identity card systems (Britain, Ireland and Denmark being the exceptions).  In Africa The Kenyan national government introduced national identity cards this year. Unfortunately, the cards have given rise to fears that the government will attempt to manipulate the 1997 elections. According to the constitution, Kenyans over the age of 18 are eligible for a national ID card. The ID card is essential to adult life because it is required to get a job, get married, purchase or sell land, or register to vote.

Related Issues:
In 1986, Congress passed legislation making it illegal to knowingly employ aliens lacking work authorization [Fis93]. The United States is experiencing an overwhelming increase in the number of illegal aliens entering the country each year. It is estimated that the number of illegal immigrants is nearly 300,000 people each year. A 1995 USA Today/CNN/Gallup Poll of legal immigrants showed that 61% favor a national ID card to distinguish citizens and legal residents from illegal immigrants. According to the poll, just over half of the general public also favors an ID card [Pue95].
In 1995 the Senate considered several proposals to create a national identity database for all Americans. The three bills are center around the concept of a national "worker verification" systems and have been brought before the Subcommittee on Immigration of the Judiciary Committee