What No One Told You About The Real ID Act
The ‘common machine-readable technology’ required by the Real ID Act converts state-issued identification cards into tracking devices.
It’s been so long since 9/11 it’s hard to remember what an all out state of emergency felt like. There were yellow, orange, and red threat levels that fluctuated every other day. There was anthrax at the malls, various white powders in the mail, shoe bombs, and the constant feeling that we were under attack by people who hated us. Fast forward to 2020, it’s been 19 years and all we have to show for it is a bunch of wars, the loss of innocent lives, and legislation that paved the way for the lack of privacy we have today.
The Patriot Act seemed like a good idea at the time. In the moment it was framed as a reasonable response to the 9/11 attacks. We were terrified! So relinquishing our privacy and a couple of rights in the name of national security seemed like something most Americans agreed would keep us safe us in the long run. You know? Because terrorism. Unfortunately, at no point were we ever told how we would get those freedoms back and if you look around, we never did.
This ended up being a kind of expectation versus reality situation. Because what the law actually did was expand the government’s authority to reduce judicial oversight. They also reduced public accountability and…