Serious question: Are passports becoming imperative?

[AverageJoe]

Neither my wife nor I hold a passport and I am becoming more concerned each day that this is a major mistake on our part.

I realize that this question would have sounded completely insane just a few years ago, and many people might still think it reeks of paranoia, but I am completely serious: Do you believe we are actually approaching a moment when it will be too late to leave the United States in the same way it was eventually too late to leave Nazi Germany? Are people without passports being foolish?

I'm not trying to be alarmist--though alarm seems to be the only sane response--as the details of the NSA domestic spying program continue to leak out, each one worse than the one before. Couple that with Bush's plan to militarize our southern border, a national media whose job it is to shore up the administration and to undermine its enemies, the free-fall of the dollar, and the avalanche of reports of criminal activities finally being too great for even the corporate media to completely ignore--things we've known about or suspected here at DU for a very long time--and you find a horrible, entrenched pattern. I'm trying to objectively assess the situation and make a reasonable decision.

I know it's just a good thing, in general, to have a passport. But seriously, are we nearing the point where it becomes a matter of our freedom, or even our survival?

Feel free to tell me I'm nuts, but I truly hope to get some opinions on this.

[niyad]

1. No, I think you may be quite right to worry about this--the troops on the

border of mexico scenario is frightening for exactly that reason. quite frankly, I would not put anything past this bunch of thugs, including closing the borders and forbidding anyone to leave. they are that determined to control everything.
good luck, whatever you decide.

[tocqueville]

4. when they put troops at the Canadian border, it's too late

to worry....

[politicat]

2. The rest of the world uses passports as primary ID.

I think having one is useful, but I grew up near the border and was a military brat, so I've had a passport since I was a few months old.

If I needed one, though, I'd get it now, because a) they'll only get more expensive (They're $95 right now, plus the cost of copies, photos and any rush fees you might need) and because they don't yet have the RFID tracker in them (though this can be foiled with... tin foil. Literally.)

They're good for ten years, and they're always acceptable photo identification.

[tocqueville]

6. no, it's more ID cards or driving licenses, at least in Europe.

a passport is too "heavy" and valuable to carry around...

[politicat]

15. Phrased badly.

In the US, the "primary IDs" are a birth certificate and an SS card. You have to have those to get any of the other forms of ID.

In Eastern Europe (the only part of Europe I know well enough to state this) and in quite a bit of Asia and South America, the primary ID is the passport. You need a passport to get any of those other IDs.

Sorry, I worded that badly. It was Before Coffee.

[TAPat]

3. You're only nuts if I'm nuts too!

Been having the same conversation in my house just lately...

[GregD]

5. spychips (rfid)

Google "rfid passport", and have a look at www.spychips.org and this article:

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2004/12/13/some_fear_its_a_passport_to_identity_theft/

If I recall correctly, the time for unembedded passwords passed recently and they are now embedding RFID chips into all new passpords.

[politicat]

16. Starts in October, 2006.

Now is the time to get one, but when it expires in 10 years, we'll have to get the RFID ones.

Tin foil lined passport wallets render the RFID strip useless. So quite literally, making a :tinfoilhat: for your passport is not a bad idea.

[GregD]

17. thanks for the correction

I heard her interviewed, but apparently recalled incorrectly how much time we had until that went into effect.

[Freedom_Aflaim]

23. Just put your passport in the microwave for 20 seconds

That'll render the rfid inert.

Just shrug your shoulders when they can read it (and have to key it manually)

[Vidar]

27. But the wet cat will escape.

[bunkerbuster1]

7. I'd let mine lapse, always had one for many years

I don't think you're nuts at all. I think it's pretty cheap insurance if there's a shitstorm any time soon.

Obviously if we're in the midst of a full scale civil disruption it won't make much difference, but if past history is any guide these things tend to happen by degree.

Yeah, get a passport. It's on my short list of things to do as well.

[bmcatt]

8. Get 'em while they're hot...

I've had mine since 1987 and always kept it current. My wife naturalized as a US citizen a few years ago and we practically went directly from the INS office (yes, it was still INS then) after the naturalization ceremony to get her passport application in. My 3 year-old has had one since earlier this year and I've been thinking that I need to research whether I can reasonably get one for my 7-month old.

In any event, though, I think that having a passport now is a very good idea. All of ours are sitting together in a file (the same file that holds our birth certificates and my wife's naturalization document), ready for grabbing if I ever need it.

Oh, and to correct one thing - adult passports are good for 10 years; minor passports only get 5 years, though.

[corbett]

18. If * Presses The Panic Button, Condi Will Close The Floodgates

and no one will be able to apply for a passport. Apply today! I did.

[AnnieBW]

19. You Can

My friend who's working in Japan got one for his son almost immediately after he was born. All the kid needs is an SSN and a current picture. Check with your local State Department consulate or the State Department's website.

[bmcatt]

22. Thanks

Looks like I've got stuff to do next week (passport pictures of the baby and going to get the application in). That's, of course, presuming that I'll be able to tear myself away from the TV waiting for the Fitzgerald press conference. :)

[AverageJoe]

9. Thank you for these replies

They are helpful.

Of course, we also need to think of where we might go, how we might support ourselves once we get there, and so forth. I can't believe that I'm even thinking this way. Damn it.

[kestrel91316]

10. IMHO, everyone who opposes this regime needs to get their passports

or get them renewed ASAP, while they still can. If he starts WWIII, you can bet able-bodied people will find their ability to leave drastically reduced. He will need to re-institute the draft, including a "skills draft" for everybody under, say, 75. We need to be able to flee abroad on very short notice.

[Warpy]

11. A passport is just a peace of mind thing at this point

because if things get truly horrible, there will always be ways to leave the country via Canada or Mexico or even via boat without one. It will just be risky and cost a lot. Plus, there is nothing magic about a passport. If your name is on some fascist list, they will prevent your leaving.

However, a passport will facilitate leaving if you don't want to lose everything you have to do it and if you are able to fly under government radar. I would definitely get passports for all my children if I had any.

[Richard D]

12. I'm Jewish . . .

. . . and trust me, always have a passport and enough cash on hand to GTFO fast. You never really know when things will turn. (Plus, world travel is awesome).

[flyarm]

13. get one...seriously...

first of all it can take some time to get one depending on the time of year...call it an insurance policy to get a flight to ..wherever!!

but without it you can go no where out of the country!!

would you leave your car or home uninsured???

why would you not have this insurance card for your family??

and its good for 10 years..what insurance can you get so cheap??

from a retired flt attend...fly

[demobabe]

14. Well, you may be correct...

More signs point towards what you're saying. Did you know that after December of this year, a passport is REQUIRED to get back into the United States when coming back from Mexico?

[treestar]

20. Do it before it becomes a burdensome procedure and takes

a long time. As the years go by, each and every application to the US government (besides taxes) gets more and more burdensome. When they are just giving you something you have a right to, doesn't mean there won't be forms and requirements for documentation that get increasingly burdensome.

Right now a certified copy of your birth certificate will do. But I can see in the future the requirements getting heavier and creating far more work. It is that way with everything that can be connected at all to "security" and identity. And them taking longer. When they increase the requirements, it doesn't mean they will hire new bureacrats to work in the office. Government workers kick off af 4:30 p.m. regardless of the amount of work.

[sweetheart]

21. mistake, get it yesterday

It is a critical document if emergency demands you act quickly.

[SoCalDem]

24. A passport is your best friend

No one can deny your voting privilege
You can come and go with the best of 'em
and if a free trip to Tahiti comes your way, you are good to go (that happend to us in 03)
A passport is valid longer than a DL, and can be renewed easily

Hint:

When you travel abroad, photocopy it before you leave and give the copy to a close relative HERE and keep a copy separate from the passport (in case you lose it)..same goes for travelers' checks, and airline tickets..

[sleipnir]

25. You're nuts, if it comes to freedom and survival, it's too late.

You aren't going to get out of the country on a piece of paper. You're not going to get anywhere, maybe not even across State lines at that point.

That said, I think in spite, it's a good thing to have and it's a big rule with me. "Always have a current passport." You never know when you might need it. A vacation may come up, you may need to confirm your ID after you've been mugged, and a million of other reasons. It's good for 10 years and is less than 100 bucks.

No, a passport won't let you out in case of emergency, you're plain screwed. But it's a good resource and is worth it, at least in my book.

[Spider Jerusalem]

26. I'd say that having a passport is a good thing.

Come December of this year, you'll need one to travel to Canada or Mexico by plane, and starting in December of 2007 US citizens will need a passport to cross the border even by car. And they may change the application requirements to include a mandatory interview when applying (this is already the case in several countries). Right now, the process is very easy; as long as you're a US citizen who is not currently on parole and has no outstanding felony warrants, you'll get your passport within six weeks (within two weeks if you opt for expedited service for immediate travel; in most cases this can actually take less than a week).