Sunday, July 17, 2005

Australia Card Is On The Cards

The Howard Government has put a National Identity Card back on the agenda. The last time this was an issue in Australia was in 1987. The then Hawke Labor Government tried to intoduce the Australia Card and it was howled down. It was not popular with the masses. I'm sure than John Howard and his cronies have been thinking about it ever since and looking for an occasion for its introduction when it wouldn't be so unpopular.

What have we had lately that could possibly necessitate the introduction of the cessation of our civil liberties? Well, little Johnny is arguing that the Cornelia Rau affair could have been avoided if Australia had a national identity card. Bullshit, pardon my French. Cornelia Rau pretended to be a German and hid her identity. No wonder she was locked away in detention. If you can't, or won't, show that you are an Australian or resident of Australia then the fact is that you are bound to be locked up.

What about Vivian Alvarez Solon? The authorities couldn't wait to deport her even though she was an Australian citizen. She had told enough people her name and apparently she was only a keystroke away from being correctly identified. Why would a national identity card make any difference when the Department of Immigration is full of incompetent personnel?

So far the government hasn't made the argument that terrorism constitutes a need to have a national identity card but it can't be far away. Surely if Australia has heaps of terrorists the authorities can keep a check on them. They don't need a card in their back pocket to identify them.

It's not as if I need another card in my wallet either. It is reasonably full of discount pizza and fuel vouchers, multi-rider public transport tickets, gelato VIP card, chicken buyer vouchers, Chemist Club, Frequent Pie-r Card amongst all the other cards that identify me. Perhaps if I carried amonium nitrate around in my backpack that would identify me as a terrorist without the need of a national identity card.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, what more can I say? You have once again hit the nail on the head. It was reported in the paper today, that these ID cards should have our finger prints embedded in them some how. What is to stop potential terrorists from giving false Ids when being finger printed? If they are so adept at fooling their families of their intentions and warped beliefs, why would they not be able to fool the autourities? They are not exactly going to have, I am a trrorist, stamped on their foreheads, are they?
The Id card would indeed be the end of free choice etc, in all we do.

Anonymous said...

In France, because they have ID card it is a frequent practice for police to ask for Id there. Has there been any recent terrorist attack there?

How would Australia be, if police would be regularly asking for your id at train stations, in cafes, in shopping centres, roadblocks?

Well why not have a law that allows the government to read our mails and emails? The Nazi did it.

To be absolutely safe, we would need to use our id to get on the train or bus, we need our id to park our car anywhere, need our id to enter a government building. People would be ban from using backpacks in public transport. People will need to register their weight with the government weekly, and have their weight check before they enter anywhere. If they are heavier, they could be body searched. This will stop suicide bombers

Furthermore we could have the government have our fingerprints, DNA sample etc.
As far as I know to get Australian residence I had to give a blood sample for medical analysis. Is my DNA kept somewhere in a Gov database? I don't know.

Yet with all the surveillance camera around authorities can't find those who do graffiti on our public transports.

Anonymous said...

I will add, everyone will need to have a bar code tattooed on his or her forehead, without this you can’t use any public transport, enter any public area. There would be scanners everywhere to check your id, and your weight.

Parking your car would be centrally controlled, you won’t be allowed to park anywhere without requesting for a parking permission. Needless to say, you have to use your id when requesting for a parking spot.

People who won’t comply to this will have to move overseas.

Anonymous said...

Those who think this will never happen will change their mind if/when attacks become more frequent and more destructive.

lori said...

i think i'll move overseas if they start getting too fascist. bad enough now!

Anonymous said...

And anyone caught without his or her id card will be considered as illegal immigrant and will be detained and/or deported. This will solve our immigration problem.

Hammy said...

Ben,

You have really put some thought and effort into your responses. Thank you.

The Nazis had everyone living in fear and I'm sure it wasn't good for the emotional wellbeing of their compatriots as you were scared that you would be dobbed into the Nazis if you did anything suspicious. How could you live in harmony with your neighbours? Was the police state that nice to live in?

France - isn't that a beautiful example of a bureaucracy gone mad. The pollies run the place, people don't want to work 35 hrs a week, racism is obvious, etc, etc. Not a very nice place to live. Who wants to live in a police state anyway? France probably has one of the highest populations of terrorists anyway - they just don't commit acts of terrorism in France.

If/when terrorist activities become more frequent and more destructive then we should make sure that our police can shoot straight. I don't wish to see my civilised way of life disappear down the toilet because of a few terrorists.

How would Australian police check for ID on everybody acting suspiciously anyway? We can't even stop drivers going through red lights, pull over cars with crook headlights, stop people pissing in the street, etc? Our police actually have little power in addressing lawbreakers as it is.

Graffiti is a good point. It shouldn't be too difficult to catch the perpetrators.

Once our personal details are collected in the one place, e.g. Medicare No., drivers licence, D.O.B. etc, what is to stop all of our information being misused and our identities being stolen?

The government doesn't need to read my emails - they could read my blog instead.

Hammy said...

Lori,

Whatever happens I still think that Australia will be one of the best places to live. I can't imagine it becoming too third world or fascist. Dictatorship yes, fascist no. Maybe.

Hammy said...

If every person who failed to carry their ID card was deported we would have a trade deficit increase due to the number of one way tickets being purchased. And who is to say that any other country will take them?

Anonymous said...

Have you seen the first 3 Star Wars episodes?
I really like the idea of how a petty senator manages to make himself become the all powerful emperor through deceit and manipulation by being behind both side of a war.

Could the same be happening to us?

Furthermore, it is beside me that the Germans population (embodied in their army) were fighting for the Nazi: what were they fighting for: Freedom, their country, their pride, their way of life, their safety?

Just like the German population strongly supported their Nazi government, history could repeat itself, our government may become like the Nazi, and we would be gladly supporting that Government if the “right” events happens.

For the sake of security, it is not impossible to see a majority of people giving up their freedom.