For a number of years, there have been discussions regarding the idea of a federal ID, with most citizens showing little enthusiasm for the idea. Nonetheless, Congress has just voted favorably on a bill that will establish such an ID effective in about three years.

Of course, there will be a lot of opposition to this; some of it quite vociferous. But, given time, probably most Americans will just accept it. "After all," they’ll say with a shrug, "what’s the big deal? It’s just another piece of paper to carry around." It’s true that, at least in the beginning, that’s all it will be: just a minor nuisance at times, otherwise it’s insignificant. After all, isn’t a little inconvenience worth the fight against terrorism? Carrying an ID is a small price to pay to make America safer, isn’t it? And how can anyone argue with that! And it won’t take too long for anyone in opposition to a national ID to be branded as anti-American extremists!

But what makes a national ID a big deal is not nearly as dramatic or inflammatory as airliners crashing into skyscrapers, or people being blown up by suicide bombers. Just consider human nature.

Does anyone really believe that a new government bureaucracy that will be put in charge of the ID program will just issue the ID’s, which are in the form of a driver’s license, then sit back and do nothing? In theory, that would be sufficient. Each person will have their own ID, with a picture and relevant data encoded. All they have to do is make sure that they have it available to show to any officious person who demands to see it. It would be no different from the present driver’s license; it’s seldom seen and little thought is given to it.

However, a bureaucracy doesn’t work that way. In government, you don’t make a name for yourself by sitting back and doing nothing. You have to enlarge your power and influence. This is also true of private business, but the main difference is that the good or service that is produced privately is one you can either accept or reject. But, when the government produces a Yugo, you’d better buy it – or else!

Any ambitious bureaucrat who is put in charge of federal IDs will find plenty to do. The memory capacity of today’s computer chips is amazing. All the bureaucrat would have to do is decide what data to include in the ID. But, since so much data can be stored there, why not add more? It will be like the modern cellular phone: making calls is almost incidental. With today’s cell phones, you can take pictures, listen to music, and read your email. So your personal ID may also include information about the radio stations you listen to, the magazines you subscribe to, the people that you see frequently, the phone calls you’ve made, etc. Now, to get this information may involve some prying and snooping, but remember this: it’s for fighting the war on terrorism.

Once the information is obtained and stored, what should be done with it? Who will be authorized access to it? That’s enough to keep a bureaucrat busy for months on end. No questions regarding the constitutionality of gathering such information will not be considered, because the idea of a federal ID is unconstitutional to begin with. Anyway, the Constitution is just a scrap of paper. It can’t be allowed to stand in the way of protecting our great nation from the likes of Osama bin Laden, or the villain of the week is. On the other hand, there’s no need to alarm citizens needlessly, so some of the ID information, without a lot of fuss or bother (or publicity), could be incorporated into credit cards so that, in the absence of any person qualified to examine your official ID, your whereabouts could be instantly determined when you use your credit card. That information is available anyway, but it takes time for law-enforcement officials to obtain it. Why shouldn't there be instantaneous recording of your location? A camera at the cash register might unobtrusively snap your picture. Just as precaution. After all, there are people have been known to dye their hair, or grow a beard. Perhaps the government should know that!

In whatever form the ID is, it’s merely the camel’s nose under the tent. It doesn’t take long for people to realize that there isn’t any need to burden folks with any special sort of document. The worst case scenario would be that, in the future, all important ID information will be kept on a chip implanted under the skin. A lively black market might arise among surgeons who would be willing to remove such chip, and then replace it with another. Failure to not having a chip will be made a serious felony, along with any attempts to hack into the chip and change the data. Needless to say, administering these new laws and regulations, as well as enforcing them, will create thousands of new jobs. This would mean that a portion of the public will be very enthusiastic about ID chips, just as some now heartily support the income tax (especially if they pay little or nothing). Chip contractors will vie with defense contractors for federal funding.

Ultimately it’s merely a question of timing. The personal federal ID will signal, to those of any perception, the final collapse of individual freedom in the United States. If the government can get away with it, then there is no limit to the expansion of government activity.

What’s the big deal? It’s one word: Liberty. If this word makes you feel uncomfortable, or it sounds a little old-fashioned, then step right up and get right in line for one of those new IDs.

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