Recent discussions regarding the Real ID Act follow the same general path as many discussions about the trade-offs between security and privacy. These discussions typically begin with taking a security proposal and then weighing it against its costs to privacy and civil liberties. What is often not done, however, is to put the security proposal through meaningful scrutiny as an effective security measure. Instead, it is often assumed that the security measure is worthwhile, and the only question is whether it is worth the trade-off in privacy and civil liberties.
But what if security measures against terrorism were examined with a more critical eye? I believe that the risk of terrorism is not being assessed in a rational way and is receiving a disproportionate amount of resources. This can have grave consequences, probably resulting in significantly more loss of life than a major terrorist attack.
