Ok, Now What?

So Real ID got passed, snuck into a must-pass military funding bill that nobody dared vote against lest the next opponent’s campaign flog the idea however false that they voted against our troops! It was put there specifically to avoid debate and ensure passage. Now what?

If you are not sure why Real ID is bad, you can start with this nice summary from UnrealID.com. Here’s security expert Bruce Schneier on why it won’t actually make anybody more secure (and might even make us less secure). Here’s Declan McCullagh on what Real ID means to you (short version, getting your license renewed becomes a multi-day DMV odyssey, or plan on never getting on a plane or into a Federal office ever again for anything. How quickly can you lay hands on 4 pieces of easily verified documentation of your name, birthday, citizenship, gender, picture, and street address? What about your 16 year old kid/grandkid?). If that is not enough, here’s what the ACLU has to say. The bit about the Homeland Security Secretary having the authority to ignore any laws he doesn’t like to secure the border is confirmed here by the Washington Post. The whole thing may even be a violation of international law. Of course you should feel free to read the actual text of the legislation.

But none of this answers the question of what to do now. I propose a three-front assault:

Contact your Representative and Senator. They passed this thing, and they can pass a bill that cancels it. Remind them of that whole getting re-elected thing.

Support the groups that are leading the legal fight against it. The required changes in ID rules need to be in place by 2008. There is still hope, and plenty of people fighting this thing. Give money, give time, write letters, write your local newspaper, blog.

Apply heat to State officials. State officials already don’t like this thing. It’s expensive to implement, imposes not a huge but rather a freaking huge bureaucracy, will multiply the amount of time certain basic state services take to deliver, and if that weren’t enough will decrease public safety. How? Remember that the original purpose of a drivers license is to say you can drive? Because drivers licenses will be harder to get, more people will drive without them — perhaps badly, definitely without insurance. Go ahead and use a multi-pronged approach and write your state representatives, senator, and governor. Contact information is easily googled.

Carry on. Nobody can fight for your rights better than you can.