Alas, poor US, I knew you well

[mandragora]

Prompted by today's news that apparently all visitors to the US will shortly have to submit to having their fingerprints and mugshot taken upon entry to the US's fair *cough* shores.

Oh sure, the US is hitting the poor and non-white countries first (racist? Much!). But apparently the exempted countries from this outrageous invasion of civil liberties will lose their exemption by the end of 2004.

And, if so, bye bye US. I won't be visiting you any more.

This saddens me more than I can say. I've been to the US several times from my first visit in 1981 to my most recent last October. And it now looks like it may well be my last.

No more fannish cons in the US. No more (and this saddens me deeply) visits to friends I've made there. But, please, do come to Europe, where we don't make you have you fucking fingerprints taken!

But. Jesus. To photograph and fingerprint everyone who visits the country. What is this? The Stalinist Soviet Union mark II?

ETA: I'd be pretty reluctant to visit the US even if the exempted countries remain free from the mugshots and fingerprints. Because to target all citizens of any country in this way is utterly abhorrent. Shame on you home of the 'free', shame on you. Shame on your fucking Government, anyway.

Comments

[yonmei.livejournal.com]

I wonder if they're planning to do it even at the Canadian border?

When I crossed from Canada to the US by car - in a car driven by a Canadian citizen - I was asked for my passport, but the driver took it from me and passed it to the officer in the cubbyhole, who never actually got a look at me to see if I corresponded in any way to my photo.

Are they seriously planning to set up these mugshot/fingerprint deals at every road that crosses from Canada into the US? Because if not, I can see that it would still be possible - if necessary - to visit the US by getting a direct flight to Canada, then getting a lift in a car driven by a Canadian citizen down into the US via a quiet road.

I can't imagine that they're seriously planning extensive border controls on the US/Canada roads, because unless they're also planning minefields/barbed wire etc, there is a vast deal of border across which anyone can simply walk, assuming minimal (and I do mean minimal) woodcraft.

Of course, doing pointless stuff to make it look as if they're doing a lot when in fact they're doing nothing is perfectly typical of the Bush government, so it's possible they're planning to institute fingerprint/mugshot stops at the US/Canada border...

[mandragora1.livejournal.com]

i>I wonder if they're planning to do it even at the Canadian border?

Good point. According to the Beeb they're going to institute it at 50 border posts later on in the year, so it seems likely.

But as you wrote, without an actual, physical border between the US and Canada the easy way for terrorists to enter would be via Canada.

Thanks for the info on your post as to the year of implementation being 2005. I renewed my passport in 2003, so I guess I won't be biometrically 'got' until 2013. Can't really renew it next year, as I won't be able to use any of the reasons for renewing such as a changed appearance.