As it was in the beginning......

I wrote this post once already (Blogger died when I tried to post – aargh).

I s'pose it is time for another political rant. It is amazing that the horse is not yet dead from all the beating but the subject is the National ID.

I know, good Lord, not again.

There are two aspects to the ID that stir up the most controversy: Immigration and Privacy. I don't want to get into the immigration argument. I know people have their reasons for wanting it either way when regarding immigration. Personally, I don't know why we would legally recognize someone who is in our country illegally.

Okay, privacy it is then.

When applying for your Real ID brand Drivers License you need to produce documentation: Proof of Citizenship, Birth Certificate, Proof of Address, etc. These documents are taken by your friendly Real ID brand DMV and scanned permanently into the database. Ominous word there – permanently.

Let's consider one of those documents, the Birth Certificate. You Mother, heavy with child, enters the Hospital (I understand that people are born other places than hospitals but lets keep this simple) where she is greeted by her friendly Physician, a fleet of Nursing Staff and the machine that goes 'ping'. After the jovial act of childbirth, you have entered this world now devoid of a constantly connected life-support system (aka 'Mom').

The paperwork begins.

The hospital fills out this little form that has your Name, Gender, Parents Names, Doctors Name, Place of Birth, footprint, a blood sample, audio bites, etc. You now legally exist. This little piece of paper is the basis for each identifying piece of paper that follows.

So, what if you need to change it? Birth Certificates are changed all the time. When children are adopted, for instance, the adoptive parents are often listed as parents on the Birth Certificate.

But what if you need it changed later? Some of us are lucky, we come from places that allow the BC to be changed and the work is already done. But what if I tried to do it after my Real ID license. Scan it in? There is already something there. Must be fraud, right? The system has two choices: Replace the BC scan or add an additional one. Replacing it is limited in effectiveness. Databases get backed up so somewhere, that original document is still tied to you. Add an additional one? Why don't you just tattoo Transsexual on your forehead? Out of the two, the replacement option is better, but it isn't perfect.

Some states do not allow updates of gender on BC's. The basic thought is

"You are forever marked by the chromosomes we assume you have but don't really want to check."

Some states do not allow updates even on the Drivers License. So, if you have this grand system of standardization, which set of rules do you take?

Do you make some states relax their standards? Or do you impose greater restrictions on the lax states? My guess is that the stricter standards will prevail.

Enough whining, Anne. How would you fix it?

I don't think it can be stopped completely. Enough groups are raising concerns (I even think the NRA will chime in). The best we can hope for is to get our concerns in early and into the INITIAL DESIGN OF THE SYSTEM.

Perfect world? Supplant the original data with the new data. Update all backups to reflect this. Allow the gender marker to be updated. No 'Gender Change' flag on the system. The old life is erased, the new is all that exists.

That ain't gonna happen.

Next best? Find out who is designing this system and GET INVOLVED. Design the system with these concerns in mind. Allow the overwrite of data and allow for the backups to exist unaltered.

Add a transaction tracking system for any delving into the data beyond simple identity verification. Enforce HIPAA standards on BC (medical record privacy) info that is in the system. Enforce harsh punishments for invasion into private data. The supporting documents are there, take that part for granted if the card exists and the ID matches the body, DO NOT LET ANYONE SEE THEM UNLESS VERY, VERY NECESSARY or explicit permission is given.

Do not allow a designation field for 'Changed Gender' to exist.

Politically, transitioners are very weak. We don't have a lot of pull. We are the token sacrifice. But if we can nudge things in a better direction at the beginning, we have a chance of surviving this with some of our privacy intact.

And for my 3 readers, thank for listening to my tirade.