Mike Flynn, apparently a newcomer to this stuff, writes:
For starters, a national identification card. How dumb an idea is that? Giving the US government — does anybody remember Waco or Ruby Ridge? J. Edgar Hoover? Nixon’s enemies list? — a weapon by which to maintain a database of our photos and important information is just scary, and I’m one of the six Americans left who still thinks government is capable of doing more good than evil.
. . .
And remember, kids: Next time someone who won’t have to report your income to the IRS asks for your Social Security number DON’T GIVE IT OUT!
Right on, but I’m still in the market for good ways to avoid it when shopping for medical insurance, telephone service or a credit-card.
(I’ve lived without credit-cards for eight years now, with a Mastercard attached to my checking account; but the last time I tried to rent a car — at a shop where I had done so several times before — they had a new policy: no debit-cards. Why? Because if I totalled their car they might not be able to get $Nk out of my checking account. But – er – so why am I paying for a “collision damage waiver”?)