Bosjohn says, 'You need one to do just about everything else in this society, so why not show ID to insure our most basic freedom is free from fraud?'
View full sizeVoter Margaret Henze, left, hands her identification to election inspector Judy Wise Tuesday morning, Feb. 21, 2012 for a school board primary election at the polling place at the Lakeview Community Center in Racine, Wis. Voters who voted Tuesday were subject for the first time to Wisconsin state voter I.D. laws. (AP Photo/Journal Times, Scott Anderson)The Pennsylvania Department of State said Tuesday that 91 percent of the commonwealth's 8.2 million registered voters have PennDOT identification numbers, meaning that more than 758,000 do not have photo department-issued identification cards.
These voters may not be able to vote in November unless they have another acceptable form of identification.
Readers took to debating the issue of why some voters may lack photo ID.Be excellent to each other writes:
Bosjohn replied, saying:"I understand that in your particular daily life, you encounter many situations where you need to produce a photo ID. However, you need to understand that not everyone lives the same privileged life that you have. For example, waitingformiracle says that you even need ID to see a doctor. Well, the unfortunate reality is that a sizable portion of our citizens simply don't ever see a doctor. Remember, not everyone is as lucky as you are, but they still deserve the right to vote.
Metaldemon says that it only took "about ten minutes" for his 16 year old to get his ID. For some of our less fortunate brothers and sisters, a trip to the DMV means taking time off of work, which may also include a deduction in their next paycheck. When you're living paycheck to paycheck, that might not be possible. For some, it means public transportation to and from the DMV, which may involve multiple buses/trains, or excessive walking, and is not free. For some, it means taking public transportation to the county courthouse, or the hospital in which they were born to obtain a birth certificate, or other documents they may need to show the DMV, and obtaining those documents may come with a fee. Some may have to do all of these things while bringing small children with them, or some elderly may have to do these things while dragging an oxygen tank around with them.
Remember, everyone lives in a different situation. Cars, airplanes, doctors, hotels, mortgages, and credit cards may all be a part of your daily life, but they aren't for the poverty stricken. That's why three quarters of a million voters don't have ID. Sure, some of them will make the sacrifice to obtain the proper ID, but not all of them, and that's the point. These new laws will place more of a burden on those who are poor, and it's going to cause a large number of them not to vote. That's what is meant by disenfranchising voters. We should be striving to make it easier for all voices to be heard, not making it harder, especially in the turbulent political scene with which we find ourselves"
"Be excellent, you sound like a caring person. I disagree about the ID though, I am having trouble seeing how it is such a burden to get an ID. Lower income people generally get some kind of government assistance. I would hope you have to prove who you are to get taxpayer paid benefits. You need one to do just about everything else in this society, so why not show ID to insure our most basic freedom is free from fraud?
As far as being poverty stricken, both my wife and I come from nothing. We got ourselves educated by taking out loans. With a little luck and a lot of hard work we are no longer poverty stricken. Was it easy? No. Like Waiting stated above, where there is a will there is a way!"
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