Tuesday, April 05, 2005

America’s Renewed Isolationism: U.S. To Demand Passports Of All Travellers

Canadian Passport -CP PhotoCTV News reports that by next year, Canadians will no longer be able to enter the United States using their driver's licence or citizenship card. New rules, as of Dec. 31, 2005, Canadians will need to show a passport or other "secure document" if trips to the Caribbean, Bermuda, Central or South America by air or sea include a U.S. stopover.

While it immediately applies only to air and sea travelers, it is the first step of a three-part initiative. By this same date in 2007, all visitors to the U.S., by any means will require a passport. So far, Canadians will still be exempt from an American program that requires foreign visitors to be fingerprinted upon entry.

"Our goal is to strengthen border security and expedite entry into the United States for U.S. citizens and legitimate foreign visitors," Homeland Security Acting Under secretary for Border and Transportation Security, Randy Beardsworth said in a statement.

.....but the new rules nevertheless prompted a terse response from Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan.

"We will review our requirements for American citizens, and we're going to do that in collaboration with the United States," McLellan said outside the House of Commons Tuesday afternoon, hinting that Canada could impose a similar demand on Americans traveling north.

"There's no point in either of us going off in a direction without working together to determine how best we can facilitate the flow -- a free flow -- and movement of low-risk individuals."

But former congressman John Lafalce says it's more proof the decline in Canada-U.S. relations. "The special relationship no longer exists," Lafalce told CTV, predicting that the long-term impact on cross-border traffic will even exacerbate the situation.

"I think its going to diminish the relationship significantly. It's going to diminish the frequency of contact between our two peoples."

Until now, Canadian citizens have been the only foreigners allowed to enter the United States without a passport. The U.S. has accepted a driver's licence, birth certificate or a certificate of citizenship instead.

Canadians make an estimated 60 million trips into the United States each year. I foresee a drastic drop in that number as these obsessed rules become effective. Canadians will not shell out $90 CND to for the occasional one-day shipping spree across the border. Nor will students deplete fun money for annual Spring Break revelry. Tourism will take another definitive hit.

Canadians wait for days and in some cases months to receive Canadian passports. Two years ago, the federal Liberal’s nearly doubled the fee for passports while devaluating their validness by half. A Canadian passport is only valid for five years, half that of the U.S. and U.K. In of January, all fees were increased again by $2.00 with no change in value.

(http://www.pptc.gc.ca/passports/get_fees_e.asp)

Under these new regulations, we can anticipate enormous fee hikes not unlike the last Liberal money grabbing, gun registry boondoggle.

U.S. Isolationism was a concept from it’s earliest of years. America sought commerce and economy benefits from other nations without permanent, entangling alliances. Involvement without commitment - advantages without obligations. It took Germany's unrestricted submarine warfare during World War I to shake the neutral stance that the U.S. had cherished for so long. However, 1921-1941, saw resurgence in isolationism in the United States. War again dashed any hopes of the U.S. further maintaining isolationism, on December 7, 1941.

September 11th 2001, may well have renewed thoughts of isolation in America. Paranoia seems to be generating an air of extreme measures.

9/11 was not the first time America was attacked! December 7th end decades of isolationism. The openness gained by that war should not be defeated by the present one!

Americans may feel compelled to create a “fortress America” but know this,
“that if the master of the house had known when the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken through.” Luke 12:39

Granted, we need to be secure, we need to be safe, we need to be vigilant but not at the expense of our own freedom. America cannot barricade doors and bar her windows, refusing to allow friends and family inside, whilst expecting to conduct business as usual or join allies when it suits U.S. interests.

Such ideology will only alienate those closest to Lady Liberty. It will not ease concerns on the part of top allies that U.S. politicians are charting a go-it-alone course in foreign policy. The doors of friendship swing both ways.

This only puts the “terror” back in the word terrorist and negates the word criminal for what they really are.
Herein, lays their victory!

Have A Nice Day!