[Rhodes22-list] Real ID and Montana

[Brad Haslett]

Robert,

While the Governor of Montana's statement makes for good political theater,
not only is the "camels nose in the tent" but it has already bred with the
other livestock.  The Drivers License Compact has been on the books for
several years and all but a few states participate (I know way too much
about this because of the 'talent' you get in the construction business).
Everyone worries about the federal government spying on them.  They need not
bother, your local police can find everything they want to know about you
within the current law and with the existing technology and database. I'm
all for resisting anymore intrusions into privacy by the federal government
or by state governments sharing information with each other, and especially
the local yokels, but the time for alarm for most of this has long passed.
Now as to travel on the airlines, let everyone get fingerprinted and go
through a criminal background check as I have done twice since 9/11, and
then you get a "fast pass".  If you're unwilling or you have "issues" in
your past, go through the slow line.  El Al defined the state of the art
airline security decades ago with profiling.  We check every three year old
and grey haired grandmother whether they need to be or not.  The last time I
checked, 99% of all terrorists were Muslim males between the age of 16 and
40. But what the hell do I know?

Brad

On Wed, Aug 6, 2008 at 8:55 PM, Robert Skinner <Robert at squirrelhaven.com>wrote:

> ..Quote of the Day:..
>
> "Do you want our government to have the ability to track where you
> went, how you went, how you got there and when you got home? It would
> be naïve for someone to think this information will not be abused in
> the future. Virtually every decade these kinds of files have been used
> to violate people's privacy.."
>
> – Brian Schweitzer, Governor of Montana
>
> Subject: Chertoff threatens governor, governor threatens Chertoff
>
> We knew that the state of Montana was resisting the REAL ID Act, but
> we just learned some of the details of that resistance. The story is
> so good we had to share it, in case you hadn't heard . . ..
>
> Brian Schweitzer, the governor of Montana, wrote a letter to Homeland
> Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. The letter informed Chertoff that
> Montana would not be complying with the REAL ID Act. Our quote of the
> day supplies one of the reasons for Governor Schweitzer's rebellion.
> In response to the letter . . ..
>
> Secretary Chertoff called Governor Schweitzer and threatened him.
> Chertoff told Schweitzer that Montana residents would be banned from
> airplanes, or subjected to severe, time-consuming inspections at
> airports..
>
> The Governor countered with his own threat, "How about we both go on
> 60 Minutes a few days after the DHS starts patting down Montana
> driver's license-holders who are trying to get on the planes and both
> of us can tell our side of the story.."
>
> Chertoff didn't like that suggestion. He said, "I see the problem. We
> need to get this fixed.."
>
>
>
> So far, the "fix" involves granting Montana and all other rebellious
> states an extension of the deadline for complying with the REAL ID
> Act. But the real fix is to repeal REAL ID..
>
> Have you protested to your elected representatives that the Secretary
> of Homeland Security has been threatening the citizens of states that
> don't comply with REAL ID? If not, please do so. You can mention the
> Chertoff-Schweitzer exchange in your personal comments. Ask Congress
> to repeal the REAL ID Act.. You can send your message here..
>
> If you've sent a REAL ID Act message recently, consider sending
> another "I am not afraid" message. We have a lot of new people who
> probably aren't familiar with our "I am not afraid" campaign.. You can
> check it out here..
>
> Please also consider making a donation to further our work.. You can
> do so here..
>
> Thank you for being a part of the growing Downsize DC army..
>
> Jim Babka
>
> President
>
> DownsizeDC. org, Inc
>
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