06 Nov 2006
US Citizens to Require ''Clearance'' to Leave?

The Slashdot poster is wrong: a passport isn't required by the government to leave, it's required by the carrier to insure that it's passengers can enter the country to which they're bound.

This is just incredible. How long before "Your papers, please!" can be demanded of anyone, anytime? We've got to get rid of the government that thinks like this while we still can - like tomorrow. I'm not a big fan of voting, or as Lysander Spooner phrased it "joining the nameless gang of robbers and murderers", but I'll hold my nose long enough to try and throw this particular gang of thugs out of office.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has proposed a system which will in essence make it mandatory for you to have permission before leaving or entering the country, effectively putting everyone on a no-fly list unless the government says otherwise. Interestingly, the proposal does not seem to cover personal travel, only that on some sort of carrier like an airline or cruise vessel. While this certainly is concerning, it isn't exactly new, as a passport is already required for circumstances covered under the proposal.

(link) [Slashdot]

08:27 /Politics | 1 comment | permanent link