OT Re: [ale] Big Brother Wins, We lose... From /. Real-ID Passes U.S. Senate 100-0

[Sean Kilpatrick]

On Wednesday 11 May 2005 12:18 pm, James Baldwin wrote:
| It is hypocritical to demand that States be allowed to produce ?
| whatever identification they wish based on whatever requirements they ?
| defined and have these accepted everywhere while refusing the Federal ?
| government be allowed to require that specific identification meet ?
| its requirements. So, they are not requiring the States do anything ?
| more than they wish. It will require the citizens of that state to ?
| secure other forms of identification if they choose to elect ?
| officials who wish to not meet these _reasonable_ minimum requirements

I would suggest, gently, that the Constitution does not speak to
the issue of personal identification. The (mostly) forgotten Tenth
Amendment states, "The powers not delegated to the United States by
the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved
to the States respectively, or to the people."
The Founding Fathers deeply feared a too powerful Federal Government.
They very deliberately created a Republic of States, not a homogeneous
National identity. Yes, the republican form of government can be a
bit messy at times. But it serves as a strong check rein to unbridled
Federal power. And, yes, identification papers were the rule, not the
exception throughout Europe at the beginning of the 19th century, thanks
to Napoleon.

Sean



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