Congress Considers Forcing Travel Registration

macduffman writes "Congress and the Department of Homeland Security are considering several new visa restrictions, including forcing some foreign travelers to register their travel plans online 48 hours in advance. Business advocacy groups are worried about both foreign relations and the economic impact of such legislation, while privacy concerns see this as another possible 'in' for identity thieves. From the article: 'Along with online registration, the updated program would require new and existing member countries to improve data-sharing; more rigorously report lost and stolen passports (not just blank passports); and guarantee they will repatriate nationals if those people are ordered out of the United States. "It's really a 21st-century model," said James Carafano, a Heritage Foundation analyst who specializes in homeland security. "It'll all be done electronically and biometrically. And it really doesn't compromise your privacy."'"

Comments

Re:"It's really a 21st-centry model."

[Anonymous Coward]

I think the next President had better grow some major cojones and disbands the Department of Father\WHomeland Security.

I think you mean the Ministry for State Security (google for what the initials would be in Russian).

Posting AC for the obvious reason.

Won't affect me ...

[Alain Williams]

I decided a couple of years ago that the USA was not a country that I wanted to visit: too much invasion of privacy; the country that has sponsored more terrorism than any other over the last 50 years; ignores any responsibility under Kyoto/global-warming; attempts to export its own laws to other countries; abuses power of trade for its own ends - doesn't play by the rules ...

Unfortunately: the UK seems to be following the USA; maybe a new prime minister will have more of a mind of his own - but I suspect that we need a new government to get that.

Re:Umm, RTFA?

[HTH NE1]

It mentions foreign travelers inbound to the US, not US citizens outbound elsewhere.

Beware shifting definitions. A foreign traveler can be read two ways: a foreigner that travels here or anyone that travels to foreign places.

Be sure they note when citizens travel to unfriendly places and seek to return. Declaration of someone as an "enemy combatant" is effectively the same as revoking someone's citizenship, even a natural-born citizen.

Yakov Smirnov should update his act: "American Express: Don't Leave Home."

Re:Umm, RTFA?

[grcumb]

It mentions foreign travelers inbound to the US, not US citizens outbound elsewhere. US Citizens travelling abroad (or internally, or etc) are obviously not affected by this. Also, it's not as if we'd be the first to implement such a plan in either case.

Oh! Foreigners! Well, that's all right, then!

I guess we won't be needing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, then. Silly thing says all humans are created equal. And Article 13, the part about freedom of movement, is clearly a quaint antique, a relic of a bygone era when Americans actually cared about others.

Try visiting Australia

[cdrguru]

You need an "electronic visa" to get in.

Try leaving Japan sometime. They charge to leave.

The US so far hasn't been doing much in this area and it certainly high time we start. $1 entrance fee would easily pay for lots and lots of border inspectors.

Re:Try visiting Australia

[Brobock]

Try leaving Japan sometime. They charge to leave.

I just left Japan about a week ago, I was not charged. I do this annually and never been charged to leave. I am also a US citizen however.

Re:Try visiting Australia

[amuro98]

*sigh* that's an AIRPORT TAX. Other places have them too. Even the locals/citizens have to pay it. It has nothing to do with your visa, your travelplans, you being a foreigner (or a citizen) or your privacy.

Now if you want something identical here, why not attack the "gaijin card" ID they make all longterm foreigners get, now with mandatory fingerprinting. Even then, you weren't required to tell the government that you wanted to go visit Kyoto over the weekend... Sheesh.

Re:Like Predicting the Sun Rising in the East

[maxume]

You realize that people from countries other than the United States generally are ordinary citizens right? Just not of the U.S.

No travel plans in China

[spooje]

I'd just like to point out as an American living in China I've never been required to tell the government where I plan to travel other than to tell them where I work, but that was only to get my visa. When I want to go on trips I just take off. I've never had a waiting period to buy plane or train tickets.

Re:Well...

[Profane MuthaFucka]

Ausweis bitte! in the original German.

Re:Umm, RTFA?

[rtb61]

More to the point how do you 'prove' you are a citizen with out access to the courts ie. you are a foreign terrorist suspect for as long as they say you are and you can not legally 'prove' you are not as you are legally denied access to a court to do so.

Ironically once you are in this situation the only way out is to be deported to a country with a proper rule of law so that you can gain access to the courts to prove that you are a citizen and then legally return, with 48 hours notice of course ;).

Re:Umm, RTFA?

[QRDeNameland]

However, what you missed is that 9/11--which killed more than Oklahoma City, Pearl Harbor, and Iraq (to date) combined--was the trigger for Bush's fanatical delusions (which in turn led to the 3000+ soldiers dying in Iraq).

Better check your math....

9/11 official death toll: 2,793

vs.

Pearl Harbor death toll: 2,403

OKC death toll: 168

Iraq death toll to date: 3,466 (US military), 276 (other coalition military), 917 (contractors), 102 (journalists), 39 (media support workers), 88 (aid workers)

Even without counting Iraqi deaths (estimates run from 68,000 up to 655,000), you are off by more than half.

Re:Umm, RTFA?

[germanbirdman]

And if you are going to say how safe the country has been with the new stasi...
I will be blunt here, for I feel very strongly on this point. There is no secret police in America. The closest that we have come is with a bunch of telcoms either too chicken or too stupid to not comply with the FBI/CIA's illegal requests. However, there is no secret police in the United States.

Stasi != Gestapo.

Stasi; short for Ministerium fuer Staatssicherheit; translated: Department of State/Homeland Security. Existed in the former communist East Germany and encouraged spying on all the individuals by individuals.
Gestapo = acronymn for 'GEheime STAats POlizei' - Secret State Police. This was under the Third Reich.

Re:Umm, RTFA?

[2short]

"so what branch of government is DHS again"

It's part of the Executive branch.

"and when did they get to create/codify law?"

DHS has extensive rule-making authority. These rules have the force of law. You seem to be implying that these rules won't become legal requirements without action by Congress. In this, you are incorrect.

As far as who deserves to have their rights protected, everyone vs. just citizens, I think Jefferson addressed that better than I could.