You might want to ask your friendly neighborhood politician about this one

By The Iowa Statesman

 

“Show me your papers” was a phrase popularized in many motion pictures featuring life in Nazi Germany or the former Soviet Union. In fact, the freedom to roam in the United States was a major fixture of the Soviet-defection film “The Hunt for Red October.”

But that freedom to roam — starting with air travel — may soon be replaced by “Show me your papers.” In a report published last week by Wendy McElroy at SaveHaven.com, it seems there is an effort to move to an “internal passport system” called Real ID. Many states, like Iowa, have adapted their driver’s licenses and non-driver ID cards to comply with Real ID requirements, but some have not.

“An internal passport refers to an identity document that people must produce to move from place to place within national borders,” the report states. “It allows a government to monitor the movement of its own people and to control that movement by granting or denying ID. In the past, governments have used internal passports to isolate ‘undesirables’, to regulate economic opportunities, to reap personal data, to intimidate and command obedience, and to segregate categories of people (like Jews) for political purposes. It allows a government to bind anyone it chooses to his or her place of birth.”

According the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, using Real ID for airline travel is supposed to be the endgame for the program, but if history is a guide, it may not be. This is an issue of personal liberty you need to familiarize yourself with, and start asking serious questions about whenever you have a chance to talk with your elected representatives, or those who are seeking your vote for federal office.