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It is required now of all citizens of the US to have a passport to enter Canada when flying (driving it will be 2009). Historically the Canada/US border has not even been a "real" border like say the Mexico/US border. There have been no armed guards, no fence. No Problems! Why now. Well it is supposedly under the guise of "security" that we have to shuck out 90-100 bucks for these ridiculous documents (which by the way are easily faked by terrorists) Just another way for the government to make money....its all about money! And its not fair that now good people living in each country who want to visit and enjoy the other country are gonna have to add a passport expense onto the ridiculously expensive airfaires!! So on top of the 1800 dollars we will need to spend to fly up to Canada this summer we have to add another 260 for the dang passports!! Ya my 9 month old is gonna blow up the plane!!! And my 3 year old is gonna hold up the crew at gunpoint!! Frigin Ridiculous!!! Ok vent over. I'm really not an angry person, some things just really get my blood boiling!
While we were researching the passports we came across a new agreement between the US and Canada called the Nexis Card. The Canadian government is very concerned about how this %@#^%@ passport situation will affect the tourism industry (and rightfully so, I mean say a family of six that was saving up for a year to vacation at disneyland goes to buy their tickets and find out Oh Hey BTW you have to give the government another 600 bucks so that people can naively think that they are doing something about security issues!!!) Anyways there are going to be offices throughout the US and Canada (there are some already) you will have to go to to get interviewed for this. Your information will be put in a database and will be retrieved at customs through a retinal scan. Sooo makes sense!! (You cannot fake an eye scan but you can a passport! security my butt! all about the green stuff!) And the best part is its only 50 bucks a person and children under 18 need one but they are free. I just wish they were in all major cities in the US right now. Woulda saved us 210 bucks!
It is required now of all citizens of the US to have a passport to enter Canada when flying (driving it will be 2009).
Citizens of the US do not require a passport to enter Canada. The Canadian government has not passed any regulations requiring the extra documentation.
However
US citizens, according to US legislation, do require a passport to re-enter the United States when traveling by air. Similarly, Canadians must now present a passport to enter the US by air. This requirement will extend to land crossings in 2009.
Up until recently, US citizens were required by American law to use a passport for travel to all areas of the world other than Canada, Mexico and the Carribean. As of January, 2007, the passport requirement has been extended to all destinations.
The NEXUS program has been around for a couple of years now and is really aimed at people who cross the border frequently.
Various US lawmakers are in the process of proposing document alternatives to ease travel woes. The US is slated to begin enforcing the new Real ID legislation in 2008.
This legislation will require the reissuance of every driver's licence to higher documentation standards. It will also require that states scan all supporting documents used to obtain a drivers licence and to keep those scans in a database accessible to law enforcement country-wide.
The Real ID legislation also proposes that the newly issued driver's licences be the only form of acceptable ID for dealings with government, airlines, hotels, banks etc. This would make the cards a de facto trackable national ID card.
Perhaps these new cards will somehow find their way into the border crossing mess.
It wil be wonderful to get the Washington State drivers License that will allow you to cross without the passport. I guess I dont see the problem in paying a bit more for it (passport) though as it is a fee you dont have to pay again for awhile. All over the world people have had to carry passports and now we do too. You cant bend rules for certain ages or people get angry and Complain all the time, a big mess for those who have to deal with them. Besides I would rather know we were being protected more from someone trying to find a hole into the US then not at all. Safety costs so cough up the money
It's ironic. While the EU, Scandinavia, and I believe certain regions in South America, are breaking down barriers and liberating movement across international borders, the U.S. is building walls and fences. Another bit of irony is that while the U.S. makes it tougher for people to get into the country, goods movement is liberated. Borders, it seems, are for people, but less important where corporate trade is concerned.
That said, there's nothing wrong with getting a passport. It's the best ID you can have. I heard once that only 24 percent of U.S. citizens hold passports. Wonder how many more Americans will get one now.
In Portland I know they are trying to make the port, where goods are brought into, more safe. It is a large concern but it is a concern others are paying attention to. I dont think anyone actually expects the wall to do anything but look stupid, it is just funny. For the passports many more will have them because we love to travel and Mexico is our main destination.
I agree with dreameyes. It's all a big money grab and will hurt tourism so much. There are places along the Canada/Us border that you can just walk across and you're in a different country. Terrorists are going to be honest enough to stand in line with their fake passports eh? ya ok.
I think the rNexis card/retina scan is the way to go, although the borders are already slow. I can't imagine how long the lineups will take for everyone to get out of their cars/boats, etc, to get their eyes checked and wait until they pass the tests and get the nod.
You are right that the retina scan is the best way to go but it will take forever to get that even started much less finished and going. In the mean time we have to use what is best. So much red tape to cut and money to divert ... it all takes a long time. In the mean time this is what we have to do. Honestly people are putting in paper work for passports for their whole families now & they are over loaded and late.
Besides I would rather know we were being protected more from someone trying to find a hole into the US then not at all. Safety costs so cough up the money
I'd like TEXAS is protected from other states. We should require a passport in order to come to Texas from another state; NO EVEN BETTER--crossing every state border should require a passport. At least I not worring about disloyal backwards Oklahomans ruining our state. But are biggest problem, more so than these immigrants are these DAMN Californians! They are not loyal to TEXAS, don't care to assimilate, and they are messing up our lifestyle by overcrowding our cities with their Californian accents and attitudes. And they are taking away jobs from NATIVE TEXANS!!! Out-of-staters moving to Texas should be regulated like immigrants moving to the US. The Texas legislature should "secure our borders." After all you said safety costs money so spend money for a passport and then spend your money in our wonderful country. Welcome to TEXAS, now get the HELL out!
But seriously, an inalienable right, the freedom of movement is being infringed upon. How do you think people were able to move France to Italy or Italy to Britain. There was no such thing as citizenship. It was just living in a certain territory that subjected you to a ruler and his government. Goods are able to move freely but people are snubbed. Talk about materialism! Someone mentioned on another website that the trash moved freely from Detroit to Windsor an it was not scrutinized through Customs/security but people were stuck in traffic jams crossing the river because of unhealthy Xenophobia. I bet that Detroiters/Windsorites care more about Detroit metro than the rest of Canada/USA.
Passports can be faked as much as DL. Why is everyone obsessed with border security but forget that their state borders are as vulnerable to out-of-staters? If our state borders were secure then that kidnapper in Lubbock wouldn't have been found with the newborn baby across the border in New Mexico. She would have been stopped at the TX-NM border with no problem.
I once wanted to move to Calgary and work there but these immigration laws make it hard. I ended up deciding on Chicago since it was easier and it was an upgrade (bigger city/metro area) compared to Calgary and the rest of Canada's cities. (Actually, the lake also seduced me into choosing Chicago. I wonder if the mountains of Alberta are as beautiful as that stupid lake? I'll visit sometime though.)
Last edited by KerrTown; 04-13-2007 at 12:19 PM..
Reason: add a line
Sorry to go off topic here but I just had to say that the Alberta Rockies are the most breathtaking mountains you will ever see!!
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I'm really not an angry person, some things just really get my blood boiling!
Just For Accuracy
