4 ms·
This is long overdue. In France, the privacy watchog CNIL was founded in 1978 when the idea of using the social security number for all sorts of other purposes
by athenot 9y ago
This is long overdue.
In France, the privacy watchog CNIL was founded in 1978 when the idea of using the social security number for all sorts of other purposes got proposed (and rejected), prompting for some safeguards.
In the US, we've been so allergic to a "national ID card" that we just re-purposed the SSN into the very same thing. But then we decided to make it both a unique ID and a password, despite it being a terrible way to perform authentication (and an even worse way to do authorization).
- adventured 9y agoIt's a rare circumstance where there's an allergy to national ID cards on both sides of the political aisle. On the Republican side they (supposedly) fear greater Federal Government power, tracking, etc. On the Democrat side, they're afraid of national ID cards being required at voting locations.
- vacri 9y agoThe two parties in the US are on the same side of the political aisle. The Democrats are 'sane conservatives', actually trying to make policy and govern, and the Republicans are the 'insane conservatives', preferring to resort to sloganeering and worshipping a fantasy ideal rather than making policy.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- kmicklas 9y agoWhy would Democrats be afraid of IDs being required for voting if everyone got one? I thought the whole Republican opposition to voting rights stuff from the Democrats was because they know there's a bunch of poor would-be-Democrats who don't currently have the required IDs.
- srdev 9y agoWe’re not. The problem is with the “everyone got one” part. Every time I’ve discussed this issue personally with a republican they act indignant when I assert that the ids need to be free and trivially obtainable. Usually grousing about the cost and “laziness”.
- Camillo 9y agoI have personally spoken to a Democratic voter who told me about committing voter fraud. It does happen. Of course, because there is no voter ID there is no accurate way to measure voter fraud. Because there is no way to measure it, it can be truthfully claimed that there is no evidence that it is significant. Because there is no evidence that voter fraud is significant, there is no need to introduce voter ID.