Opinion: An optional national ID card deserves support

I am in favor of an optional national identity card for citizens with a chip that can match something on a holder's physical being such as a fingerprint, photograph or a combination. All aliens should be required to have a distinguishing but similar identity card issued by the United States or by his or her nation with which we have an agreement.

A national identity card would not prevent all threats of terrorism, but it would make it more difficult for potential terrorists to hide in open view, as many of the Sept. 11 hijackers apparently managed to do. It would also improve the productivity of our technological prowess and eliminate many human errors. A person would present a card that matched his or her print and that permitted the name to be checked instantly against the kind of computerized access list, credit report or criminal-history retrieval systems that are already in use.

Such a card could serve many purposes and by being standard could eliminate the need for many others. We already require photo identity cards for many activities, including flying, driving, drinking and check cashing. I personally have four; one from our state motor vehicle office, and one each from the U.S. Department of Defense, State and Veterans Affairs.

Anyone who had the card could be allowed to pass through airports or building security more expeditiously, and anyone who opted out could be examined much more closely. We would trade off a little less anonymity for a lot more security.

I urge your continued support of a national identification card system and thank you for the recent articles.
-- Frank W. Turner Jr., St. Petersburg

Nothing to hide but dust bunnies

Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. As Americans, we enjoy all of these benefits, so why are we so unwilling to accept a few minor inconveniences in our daily lives?

The police can stop me any time they like, with no apparent cause. I have great admiration for our law enforcement officers. If some agency wants to listen in on the phone as I wish my Aunt Matilda a happy birthday, that's okay with me. The more, the merrier!

The FBI can search my home without a search warrant. If they bring the donuts, I'll put the coffee on. They may find a little dust bunny under the bed, but that's about all we are hiding.

I guess I am just one of those politically incorrect conservatives who believes that national vigilance is not tantamount to a loss of freedom.

It's interesting to note that some of the "privacy at any cost" columnists are twisting their toes in the dirt, and admitting that the United States needs to reassess its immigration policies and to give broader powers to those who really want to preserve our liberties.

In some ways, America has been slumbering. Let's put some real teeth in our laws, and not the kind that come out when we go to sleep again!

God bless America.
-- Ralph Gilman, Largo

Refuse to live in fear

Re: Investigators consider new tactics, Oct. 22.

Please tell me I am not the only person who sees through this veil of national security. What a better time for the government to begin taking away our civil liberties than in the face of terrorism, and it has! Just take a look around our airports. What is next? Tanks rolling down the street, door-to-door searches, troops quartering in our homes?

This may sound far-fetched, and I understand that things have changed since Sept. 11, but what are we willing to give up for a sense of security and safety? The United States is one of the last great nations to have a war brought to its shores, but the citizens have always had the right to bear arms to defend it. Do not accept the retraction of our hard-won liberties for the sake of security and safety.

I refuse to live in fear, or in the new world order, and we as citizens need to keep our eyes on the local, state and federal governments just to keep them in check. I refuse to believe the great nation of the United States would allow such a travesty on our soil, just for the sake of safety and security.
-- Michael Dukes, St. Petersburg

New tactics inconsistent with freedom

Re: Investigators consider new tactics, Oct. 22.

Investigators consider new tactics? What madness is this? The FBI and Justice Department want to cast aside traditional civil liberties. So they are considering drugs, "pressure tactics" or sending people to some other country where torture is legal. If I recall a few examples in history, the Romans had some rather exotic methods to get folks to say what they wanted to hear. Then, of course, there was the Spanish Inquisition. More recently we hear the Taliban has used many of those old methods and added some more.

Attention citizens: This is the United States of America. This is a civilized country. Most important, this a country founded upon freedom. Drugs, "pressure" and torture are not what we are about. Get out your history books. Read the Constitution. Read about the lives and the writings of our Founding Fathers. Look at the history of prewar Germany and the Soviet Union. If fiction is your thing read 1984. We must be very careful not to allow government to take away our personal freedoms in the name of security. If this occurs, who will keep us secure from government?
-- Sarah A. Hanlon, Port Richey

A stable economy for children's future

Let us stay focused and determined. I urge all Americans to recognize that we are not under siege, only disrupted.

Our newfound vulnerability is an unfamiliar feeling. I feel now, more than ever, we must show fortitude and restrain ourselves from fear. We must show our children that they are safe and secure and, most important, loved. The economic setbacks we are enduring can turn around if we let go of fear.

Our state is experiencing an all-time low in tourism. Now is the time for us to support our state. Let us pull together and help revitalize our tourism. Let us write letters to our friends and family, inviting them to come visit our beautiful beaches. Let us dine out and remember to tip the server generously. Let us frequent our favorite shops and give support and thanks to our merchants.

Let us thank our Canadian and European friends for visiting our state.

Let us also purchase U.S. savings bonds for our children and grandchildren.

Let us go ahead and purchase that new car or truck. You know what they say: "You can't take it with you."

Let us remember that a stabilized economy will keep our children's future secure.

Let us never forget that we are still the greatest nation on Earth.
-- Joan Atkins, Palm Harbor

Don't follow the way of death

Isn't it too easy to forget what a precious gift life is?

Why do our fears lead us to an almost pathological love of death, so soon after the continuous bombing of Iraq, the devastation of Bosnia, Belgrade and Kosovo and after the continued dismantling of welfare, health and food assistance in the United States in order to feed some of our hatred and hostilities on the killing words of generals and their toys of destruction?

What have we done to ourselves as we block or neutralize our creative energies for the good?

So many of our leaders have made themselves irrelevant or indifferent and hardened to life. If we follow, there is no longer any hope that any good will come of our actions.

As Erich Fromm said almost 40 years ago, "The greatest evil is striving for the love of death, a kind of narcissistic immolation which makes man an enemy of life because he cannot leave the prison of his own ego."
-- Shirley J. Parsons-Reiner, St. Petersburg

Now is no time for soul-searching

I appreciate the letter of Oct. 25, Taking Jesus seriously.

How many of us really pray for our enemies?

On the other hand, I am very glad that we as a nation have not been paralyzed by self-analysis since the Sept. 11 attacks. We have acted. The audacity of these "in your face" attacks calls for us to stand up against such evil.

There will be plenty of time for soul-searching and sensitivity once we establish for our foes the fact that we will not succumb to such tactics. We have a right to our way of life. We will stand our ground.

Once that becomes clear to our foes, then we will get back to the task of rebuilding relationships with them, with mutual respect and dignity.
-- Jay Schneider, Seffner

Driving 55 can help save fuel

Re: Why fuel efficiency matters, editorial, Oct. 6.

Your points were well-taken regarding the manufacture of gas-guzzling automobiles by the automakers and the gullibility of auto buyers to purchase them.

No mention was made in your editorial -- or by any politician, for that matter -- that if the driving population would drive 55 miles per hour, it would save at least 20 percent on fuel consumption. My wife and I drive extensively around America to visit our children and grandkids, and we use the interstate system. The 70-mile-per-hour speed limit on that system -- plus the drivers who are going over the speed limit, plus the truck population doing the same thing -- is a complete waste of fuel.

Remember that a gallon of fuel burned in one mile or in 10 or 30 miles is a gallon of fuel burned, polluting the atmosphere. Vehicle manufacturers might be able to attain a 10 or 15 percent increase in fuel mileage, but when you have a 10 or 12 percent increase in the driving population, you are losing ground at 70 mph. People voiced opinions that the 55-mph speed limit caused accidents. Not so! It was the drivers who were breaking the law by going in excess of the speed limit who were causing the accidents.

Politicians are cowards and do not touch this argument because they want the votes of the driving population and, of course, automakers are great contributors to the re-election funds of candidates.
-- Walter E. Benjamin, Brooksville

Let's stand together as individuals

When are we going to stop judging each other for either showing our patriotism or keeping it to ourselves? Why is there even such a debate as to which is right? Isn't it our right as American citizens to express ourselves in whichever way we choose?

Personally, I have never been accused of being a trend follower, in fact, quite the opposite. Sometimes, we need to be careful that it doesn't prevent us from expressing ourselves, just because everyone else is. My family has been flying our flag for special occasions for years. Now, every day, I'm wearing the flag pin I bought and wore when my nephew was in the Gulf War. I will continue to wear it until our men and women come home from this nightmare.

Let's not assume to guess why people are or are not flying the flag. I recently took mine down for a couple of weeks until I was able to replace it. I decided it was getting too worn to fly. I will take it to the American Legion where the people there will retire it properly.

We're all in this together. Let's stand together as individuals and accept each other for our differences. That's what it's all about.
-- Tish Prestage, Clearwater

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