Pirate's Cove

Well, the headline isn’t quite as catchy as “Where Were You Circumcised?: State Department Passport Application is Impossible“, but, I thought that going with “Trig Palin may need Andrew Sullivan’s permission to get a passport” might be a bit confusing to those unfamiliar with Excitable Andy’s Trigerism. Anyhow, moving on to the originator of the story, found, shockingly, via Raw Story, at Consumer Traveler

If you don’t want it to get even harder for a U.S. citizen to get a passport — now required for travel even to Canada or Mexico — you only have until Monday to let the State Department know.

The U.S. Department of State is proposing a new Biographical Questionnaire for some passport applicants: The proposed new  Form DS-5513 asks for all addresses since birth; lifetime employment history including employers’ and supervisors names, addresses, and telephone numbers; personal details of all siblings; mother’s address one year prior to your birth; any “religious ceremony” around the time of birth; and a variety of other information.  According to the proposed form, “failure to provide the information requested may result in … the denial of your U.S. passport application.”

The State Department estimated that the average respondent would be able to compile all this information in just 45 minutes, which is obviously absurd given the amount of research that is likely to be required to even attempt to complete the form.

The 45 minutes comes from the supporting statement. Anyone else think they can list all their jobs in 45 minutes? Heck, some of the places I have worked no longer even exist. I might get all my residences in that time, provided I was given a computer, though, one no longer exists. Wiped out by flooding after TS Floyd. And mom’s pre and post natal records? Good luck with that: I’m adopted.

Consumer Travel points out that “no criteria have been made public for determining who will be subjected to these additional new written interrogatories.” Well, it’s probably like the TSA’s groping project, where only a few people get sexually violated….oh, wait.

Say, who’s president now?

Crossed at Right Wing News and Stop The ACLU.