You haff your papers?

Ken Layne is concerned that airlines may be dropping the ID check at the gate. He calls it “one of the only sane security checks—is the guy with the boarding pass the same guy who cleared the first security gate?”
John Gilmore sees it the opposite way. He points out that “People in the US have a right to travel and associate without being monitored or stopped by their government, unless they are actually suspected or convicted of a crime, and unless that suspicion is reasonable.” He also thinks the ID checks yield a false sense of security, which he thinks in dangerous.
They both make good points. Who is right?


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One response to “You haff your papers?”

  1. Scot Hacker Avatar

    I hardly think that being asked to show ID qualifies as “being stopped by your government.” It’s not like we’re being considered guilty until proven innocent, or being searched and seized without warrant for goddsake. It’s an easy, quick thing. Not a big deal, IMO.