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- Peace of Mind or Big Brother?
by Adrienne Thomas
It's no bigger than a grain of riceor maybe a rice krispie. It is inserted beneath the skin of the arm between the elbow and the shoulder, and activated by the sweep of a special laser wand. It is called "The VeriChip", manufactured by Applied Digital Solutions, and guaranteed to change our lives.
The VeriChip is being marketed to healthcare organizations as a potentially life-saving device. The chip holds an identification code which, like a credit card, when scanned may reveal a vast array of information associated with the code. Many geriatric healthcare organizations are advocating the chip be implanted in patients with Alzheimeršs disease and other forms of mental dementia so that accurate medical information will be easy to find. Other proponents of the VeriChip include emergency medical practitioners who claim that this chip would help to significantly decrease errors in medical treatment. If an individual is unconscious and in need of emergency care, with one scan of a laser wand, information regarding his medical history, drug allergies and current medications will be readily available to healthcare providers.
Information security is another selling-point for the VeriChip. On its website, Applied Digital Systems describes how the VeriChip addresses current security concerns: "Personal identity verification technology has gained considerable interest recently. A great deal of focus has been trained on so-called 'biometric' technologies which identify individuals by their unique biological or physical characteristics, such as fingerprints, voiceprints, retina characteristics, and face recognition points. VeriChip, by contrast, relies on imbedded, tamper-proof, microchip technology, which allows for non-invasive access to identification, medical and other critical data. Use of advanced VeriChip technology means that the threat of theft, loss, duplication or counterfeiting of data is substantially diminished or eliminated." This seems like a great deal of trouble to go through in order to avoid the inconvenience of replacing a lost health card. Why have billions of dollars been spent developing and lobbying this new technology? Since when has the American government held the quality healthcare of its citizens at such a high priority?
It is suspected that the truth behind the VeriChip is part of a much more elaborate plan. The amount of information that can be provided about an individual is unlimited. Every bit of information that is now associated with onešs social security number address, phone numbers, work history, credit history, legal records, travel history, financial records, family records, even books checked out from a local library could be accessed with one scan of a microchip.
The VeriChip tech-nology developed by Applied Digital Systems was patented in 1999 and has remained unchanged since then. What has changed numerous times, however, is the manner in which this technology has been marketed to the public. It was sold to cattle ranchers, animal shelters and veterinarians for implantation into animals for identification of owner purposes. This was relatively successful and today over 1 million dogs and cats have VeriChips. There were also less successful "campaigns" to get the general public to accept microchips into their lives. Some law enforcement agencies advocated parents to have their children chipped in case of kidnapping which, not surprisingly, was not effective at all. There was the suggestion that prisoners be chipped in case of escape, but while well-received by prison wardens and administrators, it was made clear by civil liberties and human rights advocates that would be no easy task. In the wake of 9/11 terrorism, it was suggested that all foreigners on American soil should be implanted with the VeriChip so that their activities could be monitored, and even amidst all of the fear being experienced by the American people at that time, the notion of "micro-chipping" individuals was still unacceptable.
So has Applied Digital Systems finally become successful? Have they created a marketing strategy so effective that the American public will actually begin demanding that they and their loved ones be implanted with one of these devices? This device, mind you, is the exact same device that is capable of storing every bit of personal information about every aspect of your life, tracking cattle in a pasture, finding a lost pet within a neighborhood, locating an escaped prisoner, and even monitoring all activities of foreign visitors throughout the country.
The responses to this latest marketing strategy have been frighteningly positive. When the same healthcare system that makes it nearly impossible for most Americans to have basic health care without accruing huge amounts of personal debt, will spend billions of dollars for an implantable device providing easy access to medical records, it becomes glaringly obvious to this writer that there is an ulterior motive. The American public should take a very close examination of this new technology before subjecting themselves and their loved ones to what could potentially mean the end of any type of personal privacy.
