20200213

I'm of two minds on this

A gentleman arrived yesterday at Big Box Home Improvement Retail Operation to pick up his online order of a household appliance.  Because it was paid for, all I needed to see was a valid photo ID. 

The gentleman produced a motor vehicle operator license that expired in 2014.  He could produce no other that was valid.  He went away with no appliance, and with a pocketful of my sincere apologies. 

On the one hand, it is somewhat heartening that an adult can go six years without having to cough up identifying papers to anyone.  Here in the Western redoubt, if one keeps his head down and goes about one's business, one may never contact a cop. 

On the other hand, it's a little disturbing that one can blithely ignore some responsibilities.  Should a person so disconnected from the operations of the State be allowed to, say, vote?  Is he keeping up his auto insurance?  Had he been the subject of a mere traffic stop, I'm not sure what humiliation he would have suffered.  A traffic accident would have had him at fault even if he had done everything right and some tweaker, uninsured, or illegal had negligently rammed him.