50 facts

I think my 50 facts presentation went well. Most people had things to say about the subject and their opinions were well thought out. I was disappointed that there was not more time to discuss the issue. This is not to say that the discussion on studying abroad was not both useful and informative, but just that I had more to talk about. Along with talking about the Patriot act, I also wanted to discuss the Identity Cards Act (2006) that was passed in Britain. Here are acouple of facts: The act calls for all British citizens to have a national ID card. There would be a database known as the national ID register. The information would include fifty different categories of information on each citizen, including up to ten fignerprints and an iris scan. Additionally, there would be current and past places of residence. Each citizen must enter the database when applying or renewing their passport and a failure to report a lost card or a change in address results in a maximum fine of 1000 pounds. In 2003, 61% of Britons were in favor of the act. This statistic dropped in 2006 to 46%. To me, this seems like obtaining information for the sake of having it. So, it's important to look at the big picture. When you're driving, you're only scared of the stop-light camera if you risk driving under the yellow light. What's scary is the 1984- notion that "big brother is watching." Or, that you can go anywhere and always be indentified. We like to think that, on some level, the world is a big place and, if we want to, we can remain anonymous. Are we drifting towards a police-state thats keeping track of our every move or is it still far off? Is it acceptable to ignore privacy rights in place of security? To what extenet? Just food for thought.
- Steven