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Strictly speaking, Lemkin invented the word "genocide" to describe the Nazi's mass killings of Jews.
The killing of Armenians was "merely" used as an example of another genocide.
http://www.etymonline.com/inde...
http://www.preventgenocide.org...

http://www.preventgenocide.org/ua/edu/biblio/

Hi, I'm an Israeli. ...

We're used to armed guards at every publicly accessible building, which includes malls, theaters, larger apartment complexes, and of course any government-run institutions. A big part of the police's job here is patrolling in search of signs of terrorism, not crime. We've sat in too many shelters, heard too many missile alarms go off, and seen too many scorched remains of explosions to give a damn about a photo and a fingerprint.
 

Hi.

Your country was founded in part as citizens of a country in Europe were previously used to late night knocks on the door from government soldiers intent on killing anyone of a certain ethnicity, disability, or sexual orientation. The German regime relied extensively on government records, the census, and modern technology to select their victims and make the genocide as "efficient" as possible. ID cards and government records have been used elsewhere to aid criminals, terrorists, and murderers.

In short, you seem to be very comfortable with the collection and storage of very personal details by governments. Once this data is in one place, it can be sold, hacked, or otherwise abused. Historically speaking, the class most likely to use this data for abuse is your government.

What if the Third Reich had a database which included not only the names of Jews, but their fingerprints. How many Jews, gypsies, and others branded "life unworthy of life" would have been caught if border police checked fingerprints against a database? False papers would have been next to impossible. What if hospital records were digitised and held on a government database which could, if desired, be cross referenced against the identity register? How difficult would it have been to pinpoint those "genetic undesirables" then.

Think what Hitler did with early 1930s IBM technology, then imagine how much easier it would be for the Hitler of tomorrow. Mandatory national ID cards? Simple - the arab terrorist in the cafe simply makes everyone produce their ID at gunpoint and shoots those with a Hebrew date of birth....

Why trust any government to that extent with your life? What other information will be recorded en masse and used to aid persecution? It has happened all over the world at various times - to blacks, gays, Jews, the handicapped....

I think you will understand where I am coming from due to your terrorism issue. People will accept a lot to be made safe from an ever present threat of being blown up by a terrorist, but just imagine these modern databases and tools in the hands of your enemies - think how much more difficult it would be to resist and escape an oppressive regime. Should we really develop and promote this technology to make us feel safer, and then allow it to be used by the governments of Iran, North Korea, and China?

Larry Ellison prominently offered to donate Oracle licences to the US government to be used in anti-terrorist databases. Just think what Hitler or Stalin could have done with that technology....

According to Prevent Genocide International, No other factor [than ID cards] was more significant in facilitating the speed and magnitude of the 100 days of mass killing in Rwanda. About 1 million people butchered.

From the same page:

In Nazi Germany in July 1938, only a few months before Kristallnacht, the infamous "J-stamp" was introduced on ID cards and later on passports. The use of specially marked "J-stamp" ID cards by Nazi Germany preceded the yellow Star of David badges. In Norway, where yellow cloth badges were not introduced, the stamped ID card was used in the identification of more than 750 Jews deported to death camps in Poland.

They also provide a 'nice' table:

Genocide: Nazi Germany (1938-1945), Rwanda (1990-1994)

Mass Expulsion: Ethiopia (Persons with Eritrean affiliation 1998), Bhutan (Lhotshampas, 1991), Vietnam (Hoa ethnic Chinese 1978-1979), France (Alsace-Lorraine 1918-1920)

Forced Relocation: USSR (ethnic Koreans 1937, Volga Germans 1941, Kalmyks, Karachai, 1943, Crimean Tatars, Meshkhetian Turks Chechens, Ingush, Balkars 1944, ethnic Greeks, 1949)

Group Denationalization: Cambodia (ethnic Vietnamese 1993), Myanmar (Rohingya Arakanese 1992), Syria (Kurds 1962)

In regard to the UK cattle tagging ID card system, The Times reported:

David Blunkett, was no better. On the subject of identity cards he once said: No one should fear correct identification. Those words always remind me of one the more distressing details of the Eichmann trial: how he told his executioner that the fate of those killed in the Holocaust was sealed by their answers to the 1939 census on religious background recorded on paper for a Hollerith machine, an early mechanical computer. Quite literally, their cards were marked.

Needless to say, lesser abuses than these are far more common.

The UK system is unbelievably scary. Going far beyond the punchcard Hollerith machine, our ID cards are backed by the National Identity Register, a database designed to merge all government databases and commercial data trails into a personal surveillance dossier that makes 1984 look respectful.

So scared is the Govt of the public finding out about this that they are secretly forcing passport renewers on to this Orwellian database from March 26th.

They are also forcing doctors to betray their patients' confidence and upload your private medical records to another insecure national database, again without telling you.

I'm sorry if you haven't been warned about this before: NO2ID has a budget around 1000 times smaller than the Home Office but you do still have a few weeks to protect yourself. Click the 3 links above and most importantly, read the NO2ID newsletter.

Here's more
http://www.november.org/stayinfo/breaking06/DrugIn formant.html
http://www.preventgenocide.org/punish/extradition/

"That's right. You heard it here first. National ID cards == The Holocaust."

Not quite. But historically they have been the first step towards it.

from the link above:

The most elaborate identification system created was that of Nazi Germany, though it was not applied uniformly in all territories occupied by Germany. Raul Hilberg describes that system and its impact upon Jews in especially great detail in his 1985 edition of The Destruction of the European Jews, summarizing as follows:

"The whole identification system, with its personal documents, specially assigned names, and conspicuous tagging in public, was a powerful weapon in the hands of the police. First, the system was an auxiliary device that facilitated the enforcement of residence and movement restrictions. Second, it was an independent control measure in that it enabled the police to pick up any Jew, anywhere, anytime. Third, and perhaps most important, identification had a paralyzing effect on its victims. The system induced the Jews to be even more docile, more responsive to command than before. The wearer of the star was exposed; he thought that all eyes were fixed upon him. It was as though the whole population had become a police force, watching him and guarding his actions. No Jew, under those conditions, could resist, escape, or hide without first ridding himself of the conspicuous tag, the revealing middle name, the telltale ration card, passport, and identification papers. Yet the riddance of these burdens was dangerous, for the victim could be recognized and denounced. Few Jews took the chance. The vast majority wore the star and, wearing it, were lost."

It's the nature of governments to continually increase their power, and it's the responsibility of the people to limit a governments power to the absolute minimum required to fulfill its function.

Remember as well, when you give a government that you trust powers, you aren't just giving them the powers, but also all the future governments that you may or may not trust.

Why should I need to show papers to authorities when I'm walking down the street? Is the street theirs and I get to walk on it only at their sufferance, or are they my servants that exist to make sure that I can walk down the street freely?

No problem. The gov. will simply j-stamp you as either a terrorist or a democrat for later processing.

It is my understanding that all of the 9/11 terrorists had valid U.S. IDs (drivers licenses, mostly) and/or valid passports which had been scrutinized at the border. These IDs were all in their own names (though perhaps not in the name under which they were wanted). So far as I know, no one has suggested that they had obtained these IDs fraudulently: they all could have gotten the new biometric IDs that so many seem to want.

We knew who they were, and some of them were on ``wanted'' or ``watch'' lists under the names on their legitimate IDs, the IDs which they used to board their planes. Identity was never a factor in the 9/11 hijackings. Therefore, obviously, what we need to make sure it never happens again is a new, improved National ID system which will further tighten the government's control over us. Yes, indeed. It kept the Jews safe in the 1930s, after all. We'll try not to think about what happened to them in the 1940s.

All this isn't to quibble with what the parent post said, but to reinforce it.

Hummmm. Amazing how often history is re-written or simply ignored. I was under the impression that A valid propiska was required in order to work, get married or gain access to education or social services. Individuals were required to present their passports and propiska for internal travel or on demand by authorities or employers.

Hummmm. I do not mind that ppl try to correct me even if they are wrong (it helps to keep us somewhat honest). But to lecture somebody on Slashdot leaves a little bit to be desired. And yes, I see the hypocrisy in this statement.

According to a presentation by Jim Fussell, Education Director, Prevent Genocide International:

"Group Classification on National ID Cards as a Facilitating Factor in Genocide, Ethnic Cleansing, and Widespread Violations of Human Rights"

The role played by group classification on national identity cards in crimes of genocide in Rwanda and in Nazi Germany should trouble all persons concerned with prevention of genocide. In Nazi Germany in July 1938, only a few months before Kristallnacht, the infamous "J" stamp was introduced on ID cards and later on passports. The use of specially-marked ID cards by Nazi Germany and some Axis allies preceded the yellow Star of David badges. In Norway, where yellow cloth badges were not introduced, the stamped ID card was used in the identification of more than 800 Jews deported to death camps in Poland. Ethnic classification on ID Cards in Rwanda, instituted by the Belgian colonial government and retained after independence, was central in shaping, defining and perpetuating ethnic identity. Once the 1994 genocide in Rwanda began, an ID card with the designation "Tutsi" spelled a death sentence at any roadblock. No other factor was more significant in facilitating the speed and magnitude of the 100 days of mass killing in Rwanda.

Read his the full text of his presentation here:

http://www.preventgenocide.org/prevent/removing-fa cilitating-factors/IDcards/

.sig classified for your convenience