"Real ID Act: Showdown Between Feds, State", as Reported by Jay Levine, CBS2 Chicago

Critics are calling it a "costly mistake". The Feds are hoping to keep the terrorists from blowing up any more planes. They call it a Real ID. I'd call it: prudent. To a point.

Yes, I'd agree that it can, indeed, be seen as an invasion of privacy. But, as I am constantly saying, if you have nothing to hide, why would you be worried about the government being able to confirm who you are. I really don't blame the Feds for wanting a more secure ID card. One of the men who helped attack our country on Sept. 11^th, 2001 had four driver's licenses, and ID cards from three states. This is one of the main motivations for the changes.

Apparently, too, there are states who are not going to participate in following along with the new legislation. Illinois is one of them. Secretary of State, Jesse White, argues that since it is the Government's "brainchild", they should provide the money. All $150 Million of it. I can definitely see his point. Why should taxpayers have to come up with another $150 Million? It's also about the time it's going to take to compile of the of the necessary information needed for the more secure ID's to be given out.

According to the report, Homeland Security and others are saying that the only way to ensure an ID is safe is to check it against secure data. On the other side of the coin, critics, like ACLU say that this would create a system that is more likely to be infiltrated and have the personal data of millions pilfered.

Here are some other details of the Real ID plan, as listed in the report:

--The traditional driver's license photograph would be taken at the beginning of the application instead of the end so that if someone is rejected for failure to prove identity and citizenship, the applicant's photo would be kept on file and checked if that person tried to con the system again.

--The cards will have three layers of security measures but will not contain microchips as some had expected. States will be able to choose from a menu which security measures they will put in their cards.

--After Social Security and immigration status checks become nationwide practice, officials plan to move on to more expansive security checks. State DMV offices would be required to verify birth certificates; check with other states to ensure an applicant doesn't have more than one license; and check with the State Department to verify applicants who use passports to get a driver's license.

I am thinking that it might not be such a bad thing to have these security measures in place. I for one would feel better about getting on a plane knowing that everyone is who they are supposed to be. It would be harder to falsify these ID's I think. It would also be harder for people to have more than one card, so criminals would have a harder time with alias', hopefully. Just my thoughts. If it could keep us from being attacked again, wouldn't it be worth it?

Source: http://cbs2chicago.com/local/Real.ID.act.2.628190.html