[pct-l] Passports

[Richard Thalhammer]

On Sun, Oct 5, 2008 at 6:14 PM, matthew lesniewicz  
<mlesswicz at yahoo.com>wrote:

> So what's the deal with passports? I know it's the new law for reentry
> back into the states. Godbless homeland security!  What is it like  
> at the
> border up in washington?


Since August, 2007, the US has been issuing so-called "E-Passports",  
with a chip embedded in the back cover.  I have one of 'em; you have  
no choice anymore.  You can go to the FAQ of the Dept. of State to  
learn more:   http://travel.state.gov/passport/eppt/eppt_2788.html but  
the info probably won't reduce your paranoia.  According to the  
website, the chip contains the same data, including an electronic  
version of your photo, that is on the printed passport.  There are  
some security precautions involved.  For example, the Passport is  
apparently impregnated with some metal, preventing it being read  
without opening first, which should help avoid someone tapping into it  
without your permission as you walk about.  And, there are some other  
measures that are touted as preventing copying, altering or  
substituting the info.

One interesting point was that, if the chip didn't work, the passport  
remains valid as if it were like one of the old ones, pre-chip.  I  
don't know what to make of that; do you?

I recently returned from Canada; they do check your passport on the  
way in.  I did not experiment with trying re-entry without it, and I  
doubt if that's something most folks would do, unless they just didn't  
have the passport.  (You can get into Canada on other forms of ID,  
though.)  Walking out is always an option; I didn't see any Border  
Patrol at the Monument.

Rick Thalhammer
rickt at macnexus.org