If you and your loved ones don't already have a passport, I urge you to get one NOW! Much of the rest of the world is astounded to hear that most Americans don't own a passport. America is such a huge, diverse and beautiful country, that there has been little need to leave it... until recently. Today, not having a passport is like living in a building without a fire escape. Even if you have no immediate travel plans, it's too important to be without one.
I became convinced of this fact in the mid-1990s. My daughter's best friend (then 8 yrs old) had spent the previous 3 years living in a bomb shelter with her family. They escaped Bosnia and were able to immigrate to American only because they already had passports before the war started. The father told me that since the war began, the price for a passport was $10,000 each.
That woke me up. After 9/11, I got passports for everyone in my family.
If you're still dragging your heals, please take heed... The rules for obtaining a US passport could get a lot tougher. A proposed new application form would require disclosure of information so tediously detailed, that few people will be able to complete it. ~ Noa
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";}
Proposed Biological Passport questionnaire http://www.sovereignman.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/ds5513-proposed.pdf
Recently, the State Department quietly proposed a new 'biographical questionnaire' in lieu of the traditional passport application. The new form requires you to provide things like:
- names, birth places, and birth dates of your extended family members
- your mother's place of employment at the time of your birth
- whether or not your mother received pre-natal or post natal care
- the address of your mother's physician and dates of appointments
- the address of every place you have ever lived in your entire life
- the name and address of every school you have ever attended
Most people would find it impossible to provide such information, yet the form requires that the responses 'are true and correct' under penalty of imprisonment.
Naturally, the privacy statement on the application also acknowledges that the responses can be shared with other departments in the government, including Homeland Security.
If this proposal passes, then US citizens will have a nearly insurmountable hurdle to obtain a passport and be able to leave the country at will. Even if it doesn't pass, it's a clear demonstration of what the people who run the country are thinking. ~ Simon Black
That's a great point Noa. As an aside - the last time I applied for a passport - and this is especially important if you are applying for the first time - I filled out the ap WITHOUT a Social Security number and sent it in with some supporting documentation. Lo and behold - I got the passport. I got a copy of the approved application back via the freedom of information act - and can now use that as evidence that I am a "real" person and not just a corporate fiction of the State.
Even better is to apply for a passport from the Republic. I understand they DO exist - and are red. Again - especially if you have never applied before - start researching this and ask the Feds how to apply for it. I know one person who tried this and sent in an affidavit stating that she was not "an enemy of the UINTED STATES" (see the 14th amendment - all corporate fictions are considered enemies of the state), and she was told that she would need to fly to Los Angeles to pick it up personally (I assume she was asked some questions as well). She went and got the passport! It wasn't a red one though...
I had got my old one right before 9/11. From what I understand,even though the push for chip laden national id s was shot down, the chips were put in passports since 2001..I haven t heard anything about this,but my new one does have a rigid cover,which is supposedly the "shield" they had to add when it was publicized that anyone walking around with one could have their identity stolen by someone merely pointing a little chip reader at them..That was one of the arguements used to squash the national id campaign early on..so am I carryiong around a chip? I am not sure,and frankly,I really don t care..But, I am glad that i am covered for another 10 years. Good point about the enormous price increases Noa. It cost me twice as much as 10 years ago. I also paid extra to speed it up, but it still took as long..
Tscout: In answer to your question, the old passport is pictured on the left. The new passport, with the biometric chip is on the right. Note the insignia at the bottom. Airports with RFID readers will display this same symbol. Thankfully, many airports do not have the readers yet.
One of the problems with a biometric passport is that your personal ID information - social security, date of birth, etc. can be read from a distance by anyone with an RFID reader. These readers can be purchased by anyone online for minimal cost, so identity theft is a legitimate concern.
Of course, potentially, there are enormous risks associated with such technology in the hands of anyone who has little regard for individual sovereignty.
Sorry, my computer keeps freezing when I try to paste the photo, so here's the link to it: http://eu.ixquick-proxy.com/do/spg/show_picture.pl?l=english&cat=pics&c=...
It's such a long URL. If the link doesn't work, google RFID passports.
the picture. But I guess all you have to do is go to the back page to find out... It says, and i quote,"This document contains sensitive electronics. for best performance,do not bend, perforate, or expose to extreme temperatures". no doubt there. But, I doubt that that picture is the chip facing outward on the cover. That is why they supposedly added the hard covers. You will see the difference in the pictures. This cover is supposed to shield the chip from being read without opening the passport..does it work ? i don t know. but, that was the way they got them past the groups that have been fighting these types of intrusions on our privacy for years.If you remember the post here a few months ago about the death of the man who invented these chips, or helped invent them, their original intent was to be able to track kidnapped American citizens and employees around the world following the Iran hostage fiasco..So, the passport idea is harder to fight in court than a national id system. I don t worry about it too much, as they don t really need a chip to find anyone if they want to,they are kind of outdated..by the way, if you have a new passport,check out the picture on the inside of the back cover. I thought it was kind of odd. It is a black and white of the Earth, the moon, and what appears to be a satellite,but looks like a little moon with satellite type legs coming out of it..there is something strange about it,I just haven t figured out exactly what yet.....