No Thumbprint, No Rental Car

Wired News ^ | 11/21/01 | Julia Scheeres

[Jean S]

When James Glave arrived at Oakland International Airport and went to retrieve the rental car he had reserved over the Internet, he was dismayed to learn that the agency not only required his driver's license and payment information, but also his thumbprint.

[justshutupandtakeit]

You are discussing the delusion of privacy. I am discussing the rights of the company to protect its property from thieves.

[freeeee]

the delusion of privacy

I can just imagine years ago, as some former freeee debated some historical justshutupandtakeit over privacy.

I can imagine my predecessor not wanting to take that first step down the slippery slope of total destruction of privacy. Maybe it was the SSN first being created or maybe it started long before that.

I can also imagine the old justshutupandtakeit telling him to 'put on the tin foil hat' or something like that when he stated that privacy will become a delusion if we aren't very careful not to take that fateful first step.

And now here we are, long after the fact, when privacy is all but gone, when what's left of it has one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel, when we are about to make '1984' no longer a work of fiction.

And now even the thought of privacy is delusional. Now, 50 or more years of destruction of privacy isn't warning of what happens when we allow small, incremental, seemingly harmless surveillance 'for our own good', when privacy is dead last in priorities, below safely, below money, below even convenience. No, now it has to seem as if it has always been this way. To want privacy is absurd, a crazy pipe dream.

Well, I won't have it. I'm not going to repeat the mistake of wanting more and more surveillance. It was wrong then, and its wrong now. Giving up fingerprints will lead to all kinds of unintended and other obvious consequences, just like the SSN did.

Today the argument is, "Why don't you want a national ID? Why don't you give fingerprints to whoever wants them? You already have a SSN and a drivers license."

Tomorrow it will be, "Why don't you want biometric cameras in every public place? You already have a national ID that tracks your every move."

I don't buy these arguments that deny that we are something other than flying down the slippery slope and trying to grab hold is dumb. Privacy is an essential part of Liberty and always will be.

[SusanUSA]

In the climate of fear following the Sept. 11 attack, the public has been more willing to forfeit privacy for the promise of greater security, without considering the long-term consequences, Weinstein said.

I agree with your comment, HighWheeler. A friend of mine complained the other day that he had gone to open a bank account and they were requiring thumbprinting. He walked right out. Unfortunately, he and the fellow in this article, are exceptions.
I find it so irritating to have my stand on privacy protection met with the response, "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about." As if THAT were the issue!

Thanks for the ping and hi! :)

[gunshy]

I can understand the need, and yes, people who have nothing to hide usually don't mind

You are right, lets see.

We don't need the first amendment because we don't have anything to say about anything.

And if we don't have anything to hide we certainly don't need the second amendment because we don't need to fear anyone.

We don't need the fourth amendment because if we don't have anything to hide, anyone can search our stuff because we don't have anything to hide.

We don't need the fifth amendment because if we have nothing to hide, we don't need to worry about due process.

And we don't need the sixth amendment because if we have noting to hide, we don't need to worry about a speedy trial.

And if we don't have anything to hide, we don't need the seventh amendment, who needs a trial by jury.

And we don't need the eighth amendment, because if we don't have anything to hide why do we need to worry about excessive bail? And if we don't have anything to hide, we don't need the ninth amendment because we don't have anything to hide.

You are so right, the bill of rights are just stupid. All we need is the third and the tenth amendments.

You are a very stupid person. You don't deserve any rights because you don't understand what they are all about.

[freebilly]

It sounds like a good business opportunity for some entrepenuer to set up a car rental across the street with a "NO THUMBPRINTS/No Hassle - CAR RENTAL" sign.

Lot's of folks are too busy complaining to take any ACTION. Don't like the current situation, then offer an alternative.

None of the complaining geniuses on this thread has the brains or guts to make themselves a multi-millionaire by setting up a "No Hassle" Car Rental Business.

I'm running three businesses now, and I just might have to start a 4th. Thanks for the idea Wm Bach.

[justshutupandtakeit]

Cute.

In days gone by where was the privacy when everyone knew your business who lived in the town or the neighborhood? Where was the privacy concern when laws were enacted regarding personal morality such as adultery, sodomy, being an atheist or a Baptist (in Virginia), or marrying a person of another color?

With regard to such (truly important matters) we have far more privacy than in the past. Thus it is a delusion that we have less privacy today than in times past. It is true that we have to IDENTIFY ourselves more because we live in a society wherein it is easy to maintain privacy and thus hide our identity. In earlier society there was not as much travel and people did not need more rigorous means of identification because everyone knew everyone. Cities themselves developed as a means of gaining privacy by escaping the social responsibilities placed upon individuals within a feudal order. Those often escaped to freedom. Now that would be somewhat more difficult.

National I.D. cards are just dumb since it would be as easy to forge them as all other means of identification.

In the past we didn't need biometric cameras since we had the old Lady down the block who monitored every move on the block voluntarily and reported all.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Might be hard to drive the rental without arms or legs.

Fortunately, the paraplegics in question are merely missing their arms or hands. How 'bout if he/she had prostheses? Could you get a thumbprint from an artificial hand? Do prosthetics manufacturers go into such fine detail?

[Ole Okie]

Tell us about the plan, Ole Okie.

Sorry Fred, my hard drive died and I've been out of Freeperdom for a week. Gives one the shakes.

The plan they 'splained to me was simple: "Put your damned fingers on the card or we'll let you become a dogface."

[Mikey]

How about this one. Mr. or Mrs. or miss thief hops over fence and steals car or just car jacks someone whilst they're at a red light or stop sign. Will thumb prints stop that?
How about this, while car is sitting at store, movie's, whatever, thief steals car and brings it to a chop shop. Will thumb prints stop that?

Thumb prints are just another way to get the people used to the idea of being tracked and prepare them for the eventual bio-chip implant.

[justshutupandtakeit]

Nor will thumbprints stop lightning from hitting the car but that is as irrelevent as your comment. Thumbprints or some form of conclusive identification will be required by rental agencies should collossal loss rates due to theft by fraud mount. This is not a political issue merely an example of creative private property owners attempting to safeguard their property.

[Mikey]

I can tell by you screen name that no matter what I say it won't matter. You "just shut up and take it' sound like a perfect NWO slave.

I can fake a thumb print (or any other finger print temporarily) so easily it ain't funny. There's an old saying; 'locks were made to keep honest people honest, but a thief will always find away around it'.
Do you honestly believe thumbprints will stop the theft of rental cars? If you do than your living in a fantasy world.

[justshutupandtakeit]

It appears you pay little attention to my words so I won't bother anymore other than to say that companies have a right to attempt to protect their property be it thumbprints, retinal scams, DNA, breathanalyzers or whatnot. That is their right just as it is your right to scream about "Big Brother" or "Tyranny" or "Communism" or whatnot.

As to your ability to fake fingerprints. Yeah, suuure you can.

[oldoverholt]

The sky is falling, the sky is falling!