Do you know who I am? Okay, I know you know me the guy on the radio who believes in term limits and putting citizens in charge. What I mean is, do you know what I look like? Have you got a holo-image of my face? My social security number? My thumbprint? Do you have access to the video-cam sweeps being conducted at my most current location?
Well, I don’t really want you to have that information about me. And I don’t want that information about you, either. Not unless you’re a criminal.
Our country has just been attacked big-time, and it’s an awful lot to deal with. Some things we can and must do right away, to protect ourselves. But some proposals that sound good at first, probably won’t sound so good after we’ve had a chance to think them through. A number of people have said that to get a little more security they’d be willing to give up a little, or a lot, of their liberty. But I think any such trade-off will hurt more than it helps.
Consider the notion of a national ID card, which a certain ex-President tried to foist on us back in 1993, along with a national government-run health care plan. We decided against the plan and the card back then, and I think we should say no to the card now, too. It would put too much private information about us in too many hands and be too easy to abuse. Not good for personal security. President Bush seems to agree with me. I don’t want your Social Security number, but I do want your opinion. Let me know.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.