more on U.S. to Mandate Fingerprinting and Photos of More Foreigners [here we go... djf]

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

From: Nathan COCHRANE <NCOCHRANE () theage com au>

I travelled through the US recently and I was pleasantly surprised at how 
unobtrusive the new measures were. Then again, I was on the old Visa Waiver 
system and did not have to submit to fingerprinting and so on. The DHS 
staff were outright apologetic at the extra delays and inconveniences 
caused, however minor.

But I can envisage no circumstance where I would travel to the US under the 
proposed biometric plan. Especially as it is a betrayal of the US standing 
agreements with Australian citizens. It is a slap in the face to fellow 
"Coalition of the Willing" participants.

As to trading fingerprints and photos, much of this can be done using 
existing intel-signals information infrastructure. But it raises the 
spectre of a de facto national identity card as people who travel to the US 
will have their information taken and transmitted to Australian security 
services. This is a gross violation of our native rights, with our federal 
government a passive accessory.

It is a national identity system by the backdoor for countries such as 
Australia, which handily explains why they have not kicked up a ruckus 
about the profiling of their citizens by a foreign power. 

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