31 May 2012

Voter ID: Individual Sovereignty Trumps Anti-Fraud Efforts

The libertarian side of me has a problem with Voter ID as a concept. Citizens ultimately have power over the state as in "whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it." If this is true, then it's impossible, unworkable and contradictory for the state government facing abolition to be the same state government that decides who it will and won't permit to vote. If you & I are deciding whether or not you will move out of a house that I own, I may solicit your opinion but what are the chances that I will allow your view to trump mine?

Obviously these are ideals and/or hypotheticals but then so are most of the concepts enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Ideals are beyond individuals as they should be. Government of laws not men etc.

Now, as a practical matter I recognize that we must first clean house before we can hope to reestablish proper Constitutional structure and practices, therefore if Voter ID is the only way to reduce or eliminate vote fraud then it is a necessary evil but conservatives should be cognizant of the Law of Unintended Consequences. If and when leftists lose power via the ballot box, rest assured that they will make obtaining a photo ID so easy that the proverbial man off the banana boat will be able to obtain one with little or no documentation.

The left never seeks peace in class warfare. Why are is a driver's license and/or vehicle registration somewhat difficult to obtain in terms of bureaucratic nonsense?   How many times have you seen a fellow citizen approach the window at the DMV with a clutch of documents, acting in good faith, only to be turned away, or even scolded, for having the 'wrong' information e.g. typos on documents?  Experiences like these make the gainfully employed, law-abiding citizens shake their heads at the hand-holding that occurs at welfare agencies. Anyone who owns a car also owns freedom of movement. But again if an ID is required for voting then IDs will become as plentiful and free as leaves on trees.

No comments: