Organization: Penn State University
From: <DGS4@psuvm.psu.edu>
Subject: Re: Clinton wants National ID card, aka USSR-style "Internal Passport"
 <C5JIF8.I4n@boi.hp.com> <1993Apr16.022926.27270@ucsu.Colorado.EDU>
 <C5KsE0.5px.1@cs.cmu.edu> <1993Apr19.162137.1306@hsh.com>
Lines: 50

In article <1993Apr19.162137.1306@hsh.com>, paul@hsh.com (Paul Havemann) says:
>
>In article <C5KsE0.5px.1@cs.cmu.edu>, tsmith+@cs.cmu.edu (Tom Smith) writes:
>> In article <1993Apr16.022926.27270@ucsu.Colorado.EDU>                       U
>fcrary@ucsu.Colorado.ED
>(Frank Crary) writes:
>>>In article <C5JIF8.I4n@boi.hp.com> slack@boi.hp.com (David Slack) writes:
>>>>The idea of the card is bull in and of its self, but I'm curious to know,
>do
>>>>they plan on making it a requirement to *always* have it on you, or is it
>>>>only going to be required to be *presented* when trying to ge medical aid?
>>>
>>>This, at least, has already been determined: The Blue Cross medical
>>>coverage for all federal employees is a good model for a future
>>>national system. To get emergency medical care, anyone so insured
>>>must always carry their Blue Cross card. Before entering a hospital,
>>>you must notify Blue Cross, or they will refuse to pay your bills.
>>>In an emergency, where you must be treated before notifying them,
>>>you must inform them within 24 hours or (if you are unable to do
>>>so for medical reasons) the hospital must. Failing to do so within
>>>24 hours means they will not cover the hospitalization. In you need
>>>your card to notify them (and without the card, the hospital certainly
>>>wouldn't know they had to.) Therefore, you are required to carry
>>>the card at all times, or do without emergency medical coverage.
>>>
>> Which works fine until you end up in the hospital because you were hit on
>the
>> head and your wallet, with your insurance card, is stolen.  This happened to
>> me, and it took six months to sort the mess out.  These sorts of plans sound
>> nice at first, but in the end they just create a lot of paperwork and
>> bureaucracy to deal with all the checking and filing they involve.
>>
>>                               Tom the non hacker
>
>Whoa!  Have a care what you say, Tom.  The _obvious_ answer to that problem
>is to tatoo your National I.D. Number on you -- say, your forearm -- so you
>can never leave home without it.  Hell, it worked once before...
>
>And that brings us back to my original, sarcasm-laden post:  where's the
>outcry from the liberal sector over the National ID Card?  My God, if some
>conservative had proposed this -- plus Clinton's "National Police" proposal
>-- the liberals would be shrieking "Sieg Heil!" and "Police State"!
>
>You self-styled liberals ought to be ashamed of yourselves.  Hypocrites!

I don't know what you watch, but I saw a spokesman for the ACLU voice
opposition to this idea on NBC the very first night.



