I remember hearing or seeing a documentary or something a “long” time ago, likely in the early 2000s, about how a lot of Americans (USAians) refused to show an “id” even when voting, where it might possibly be justified to demand some form of identification in order to prevent duplicate votes (if you believe in the concept of democracy in the first place, which is not on-topic for this question).
I also know for a fact that they never had to show IDs to board cruise ships and stuff, for the longest time.
Nowadays, you have to scan and send a photo id to many sites or services online, you can’t as much as collect a package at the post office (pre-paid, with the notification number with you) where I live (Europe), and you’d never be allowed to board any kind of ship or airplane or anything like that without them “verifying” exactly who you are. This seems to very much go for Americans as well.
They even have “facial recognition” and hi-tech x-rays showing you fully naked to the personnel and whoever gets access to their computer systems (massive leaks happen every day).
I wonder: how did this happen without anyone putting up any kind of fight? I could really, really use a vacation for the first time in my life, and it would be interesting to go on one of those huge cruise ships, but given that they not only charge through the nose for it, but demand that I show them photo id to board it (not just my ticket), it’s an impossibility to me.
I literally don’t own a photo id, and getting one would involve having to go to some government building and all kinds of scary (to me) stuff. It’s way more than not wanting to be tracked, which in itself should be enough as a reason for not playing along with this. I feel fundamentally violated having to “prove who I am”. I just have zero interest in doing so. I’m violently disinterested in being tracked by anyone, for any reason, anywhere.
So how did Americans, who traditionally have been extremely “freedom-loving”, just go along with this? I’m furious and steaming from just thinking about this, and I live in the “merry old oppressive Europe”… I can only imagine how many Americans must feel completely “trapped” wherever they live because everything requires you to have these photo ids.