VeriChip creates human tracker

    What if everyone could know everything about anyone? People could instantly find out someone’s name, address and medicines as well as track the person anywhere.

   Applied Digital Solutions has designed VeriChip, a device capable of these things and more.

Injected into the shoulder or forearm, the chip could be read using a machine resembling a palm pilot.

   Initially, the first VeriChip will contain medical information about its host. It will provide doctors necessary information about incapacitated patients in minimal time.

   However, many scientists have higher hopes for the device. They are experimenting with ways to store even more information in the tiny chip.

   Already VeriChips have been distributed in Brazil, where kidnapping is a huge problem among the rich and powerful. It may enable those kidnapped to be tracked and more easily rescued.

   Some believe it could function as an identification method. Rather than carry a driver’s license in a wallet, one could carry it in an arm.

   Originally designed for driving, licenses are now required for any type of identification. Will our body parts be scanned when buying alcohol or writing a check?

   Our society is historically known for misusing our own legislation.

   Social Security, for instance, did not originate as a large lending pool for the federal government. Our Social Security number was not meant to be a national identification number or a personal tracking number for all citizens.

   From one perspective, VeriChip looks like the wave of the future. It seems like a positive technological step.

   Some people believe that VeriChip could be the solution to a more secure way of life. It has been suggested that airline personnel wear the chip to ensure higher security in air travel, but is surgery and a foreign object implanted under the skin necessary for safe travel?

   The device is composed of a microchip capable of storing 128 characters, a capacitor, an antenna and plastic casing to protect the electronics from bodily fluids. It is a small, relatively simple device.

   Has anyone thought of the risk such a small piece of wire and plastic could pose on civil liberties?

   Information is a positive thing. The ability to track and rescue kidnapped victims and protect flights from hijacking is wonderful unless basic civil rights are forgotten.

   Under normal circumstances, it is everyone’s right to withhold information. Americans enjoy the freedom of not having a tracking device attached to them at all times.

   VeriChip could help in crime fighting, but privacy issues demand that legislation be passed regarding its use.

   Would the uniqueness and independence we treasure be sacrificed if we all sported our very own VeriChip?

   VeriChip could make life easier, but it could also present countless problems and cause us to question ideals and values treasured by Americans for over 200 years.

   The line between good and bad is often thin. People must always be aware and able to adjust in the midst of advancing technology.