->
-> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
->
-> > Monitoring Americans by I.D. and
-> > Federal Database
-> >
-> > July 15, 1998 by: Phyllis Schlafly
-> >
-> > Two of the principal mechanisms by which the rulers of 20th century
-> > police states maintained their control over their people were the File
-> > and the Internal Passport. The government kept a cumulative file
-> > (called the Dangan in Communist China) on every individual's
-> > performance and attitudes from school years through adult
-> > employment, and the internal passport was an identification that had
-> > to be presented to authorities for permission to travel within the
-> > country, even a few miles away from home or job.
-> >
-> > These two methods of personal surveillance -- efficient watchdogs
-> > that prevented any emergence of freedom -- required an army of
-> > bureaucrats fortified by a Gestapo, a Stasi or a KGB, plus the ability
-> > to commandeer an unlimited supply of paper and file folders.
-> > Technology has now made the task of building personal files on every
-> > citizen, and tracking our actions and movements, just as easy as
-> > logging onto the Internet.
-> >
-> > Unknown to most Americans, coordinated plans are well underway to
-> > give the Federal Government the power to input personal information
-> > on all Americans onto a government database. The computer will
-> > record our school, business, medical, financial, and personal
-> > activities, and track our movements as we travel about the United
-> > States.
-> >
-> > These plans were authorized by the so-called conservative Congress
-> > and are eagerly implemented and expanded by the Clinton
-> > Administration liberals. They plan to force all Americans to carry an
-> > I.D. card linked to a federal database, without which we will not be
-> > able to drive a car, get a job, board a plane, enter a hospital
-> > emergency room or school, have a bank account, cash a check, buy
-> > a gun, or have access to government benefits such as Social
-> > Security, Medicare, or Medicaid.
-> >
-> > Of course, all that information on a government database means the
-> > end of privacy as we know it. Daily actions we all take for granted will
-> > henceforth be recorded, monitored, tracked, and contingent on
-> > showing The Card.
-> >
-> > Legislative authority for these dramatic changes in what we
-> > endearingly call the American way of life was buried in several bills
-> > passed by Republicans and signed by Clinton, including the 1996
-> > Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act
-> > (especially Section 656(b)), the 1996 Personal Responsibility and
-> > Work Opportunity Reform Act (known as Welfare reform), the 1998
-> > Child Support Performance and Incentive Act (known as Deadbeat
-> > Dads), and the 1993 Brady Bill.
-> >
-> > The Immigration Act prohibits the use of state driver's licenses after
-> > Oct. 1, 2000 unless they contain Social Security numbers as the
-> > unique numeric identifier "that can be read visually or by electronic
-> > means." The act requires all driver's licenses to conform to
-> > regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Transportation.
-> >
-> > The Immigration Act orders the development of a smart card that
-> > "shall employ technologies that provide security features, such as
-> > magnetic stripes, holograms, and integrated circuits." This magnetic
-> > stripe is expected soon to contain a digitized fingerprint, retina scan,
-> > voice print, and other biometric identifiers, and it will leave an
-> > electronic trail every time you use it.
-> >
-> > It's significant that the law orders "consultation" with the American
-> > Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. AAMVA has long urged
-> > using driver's licenses, with Social Security numbers and digital
-> > fingerprinting, as a de facto national ID card that would enable the
-> > government to track everyone's movements throughout North
-> > America.
-> >
-> > The welfare reform act requires that, in order to receive federal welfare
-> > funds, states must collect Social Security numbers from
-> > "commercial driver's license" applicants. The Balanced Budget Act of
-> > 1997, under the pretense of making "technical corrections" to the
-> > welfare act, deleted the word "commercial," thereby applying the
-> > requirement to all driver's license applicants.
-> >
-> > The Deadbeat Dads act established a federal "instant check" New
-> > Hires Directory. Employers are now required to "screen" every new
-> > employee or job applicant against the new government database of
-> > child support order obligees.
-> >
-> > Under the Brady Act, starting Dec. 1, no one will be allowed to buy a
-> > gun without an "instant background check" with various government
-> > databases.
-> >
-> > The New Jersey Legislature gave up last week trying to pass
-> > Governor Christine Whitman's new driver's license called "Access
-> > New Jersey" containing a computer chip capable of storing large
-> > amounts of personal data. The bill was derailed by a left-right
-> > coalition complaining that Big Mother was trying to play the role of
-> > Big Brother.
-> >
-> > On June 17, the Department of Transportation announced proposed
-> > regulations for the Immigration Act that will start the process of
-> > requiring all drivers' licenses to display a Social Security number by
-> > Oct. 1, 2000. These regulations will overturn the Privacy Act, which
-> > provides that "It shall be unlawful for any Federal, State or local
-> > government agency to deny to any individual any right, benefit, or
-> > privilege provided by law because of such individual's refusal to
-> > disclose his Social Security account number."
-> >
-> > If you don't want the Federal Government to convert driver's licenses
-> > into a national I.D. card that will allow Big Brother to build a
-> > computerized dossier on every American, rush your comments by
-> > August 3 to Docket Management, Room PL-401, National Highway
-> > Traffic Safety Administration, Nassif Building, 400 Seventh St., S.W.,
-> > Washington, D.C. 20590 marked Docket No. NHTSA-98-3945.
-> >
-> > Phyllis Schlafly column 7-15-98
->
<< end of forwarded material >>
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