A Matter of Identity

A conversation with a colleague yesterday brought up an issue which i had often wondered about over in the States - namely the matter of national identity cards and whether they would come into force. From what my friend told me, they had essentially been passed at the Federal level but some of the states (of which South Carolina is one) were fighting the introduction. It seems all but inevitable - the states can only apply for extensions as opposed to not introducing them at all - but they fight on never-the-less. Back in the UK, of course, the national identity card scheme is going ahead as the government had planned - and, as i understand it, once implemented (soon, i believe) whenever anyone renews their passport, they will be given the option of whether or not they want an identity card. Of course, they WON'T be given the choice of whether the 40 or so pieces of data about their person will be stored on the National Identity Database or whatever the hell its going to be called. And the fact that it's actually going to be three separate databases strung together is worrying to say the least.

Okay, so some European countries (and others for that matter) do have the identity cards in place. And they seem to work reasonably well, from what my colleagues from those countries tell me. After all, relying wholly on passports and drivers licences may not be enough if people don't actually drive or, indeed, intend on leaving their country. I'm not sure if this would be true over here - after all, everyone has a social security number - one that, originally, they were told NEVER to divulge but nowadays is required for almost everything when it comes to filling in forms. Is there really a necessity for such a card over here? These things aren't cheap to implement (although, naturally in the UK, the individual has to pay for the Government's idea - even though the majority are not enamoured with the idea another great one for democracy!). My main worry for all of these is that they are being touted as protecting the people from identity theft and such - yet surely having a single card with all that information will make it easier for people to get all required info? Also, given how administrations (all over the world) have such a great track record with keeping files confidential and not leaving them lying around or liable to get hacked, is it any wonder that we're not overly confident about it alll.