I'm terribly disappointed. I think we have been badly beaten.

I fear now that Mainers will march in to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and get fingerprinted, tagged or retina scanned, that they will fall into line. And once fingerprinted, tagged or scanned, they will rationalize - "It's not so bad". Stockholm syndrome.

I understand better how Nazi Germany happened.

In the last couple of weeks Congress has given a get-out-of-jail-free card to the telecoms. The FBI is claiming it can investigate Americans without cause. Our response? We put up American flags - made in China - on every utility pole and house.

I understand better how Nazi Germany happened.

"I can't stand what's happened to my country," a middle aged woman told me last week at the Yarmouth Farmers' market. She was shaking with anger.

I fear that somehow Maine will scrape nearly $200M out of our state budget to pay for this - twice what it would cost if we cut a check to buy passports for everyone in Maine now without one. None of which helps the truck driver who delivered the lumber for my chicken coop; he's expecting a $3000 bill to fill his oil tanks before this winter. Real ID is to make sure people like him don't cause trouble.[1]

All these immigrants running red lights on their way to pick my lettuce are quite the problem. But it's not the immigrants looting this country to the tune of multiple trillions of dollars [2]; it's the people in charge.

More trouble. Expect trouble.

I spoke with several thousand people during the campaign to repeal Maine's Real ID Act. They had the hardest time understanding that in Maine we passed a law several years ago saying we would not comply with Real ID. And that Governor Baldacci pushed through a law saying we will comply with Real ID. And that both laws are on the books. We cannot fix this law with more law.

"That's crazy," they say. "But it's not so bad because I have nothing to hide."

I'm an adult. I have everything to hide. My friends, my money, my guns. What I eat and drink and smoke. What I say and what I write. Government has no business snooping around in my business. But that is exactly what this Governor and this Federal government want to do. Stick their Big Brother police state noses into my business. To force us to comply.[3]

This long winter more Mainers will be cold. More Mainers will be hungry. Peace Action Maine will continue its work to stop Real ID. Because either we hang together or we hang separately.

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[1] Homeland Security now has more than a million Americans on the terrorist watch list.

[2] The bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will double the national debt.

[3] Comply - a favorite word of fascists and authoritarians.