Submitted by Everett Marc Lautin, M.D., Jun 27, 2007 16:55

Re: Passport Backlog Mounts, as Does Frustration, by Joseph Goldstein, June 27, 2007

Increased border security is essential in the age of terrorism—but the federal government is taking the wrong approach. It is not just the long lines at passport offices and the months delay in getting a passport, nor the expense of building a passport printing plant and hiring additional employees. The approach is fundamentally flawed.

The passport is 19^th century technology—it's time has passed. Identification is much better handled with digital facial (retinal, finger print) recognition software and a secure network. Passports are lost, stolen, and forged. Replacement is time consuming and expensive. With a secure recognition network, a citizen can present at any border station with a computer and an encrypted link to the "passport office" and in seconds be identified with better reliability then an immigration service employee glancing at your passport. A government photo ID, such as a driver's license can be used as a back-up, but not required, confirmation. Shopping, banking, and stock trading are all done online. It is time to put the passport in the museum.

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