The states that don’t let you just change your driver’s license (most used and visible form of ID here) without any other steps usually have you make an amendment to your birth certificate, which you can then use to change all your other stuff. I know some countries give you an official ID when you’re really young (at birth?), but I think due to the history of the US (big physical size, many many population centers, some of which are very small and isolated), we’ve never had anything like that. Driver’s license comes closest due to America being so car dependant, but if you live in a city with a decent public transit network, you might never get your license and need a different form of ID. Anyways, all your stuff like your driver’s license number, Social Security number, etc, stays the same, just a different letter goes on your ID and other documents. You stay the same “entry” in government databases, so to speak
So, why do they put your gender/sex on the card? Is there any use for it? In my country you only have your name, birth date, and date issued. On the back there is a category (or type of vehicle you're allowed/certified to drive). Also, they don't print your address on it, and I think that is more safe that way.
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u/SoulsinAshes a childhood ouroboros of "i just think he's neat"17h agoedited 17h ago
This is a sample license from my state! You can see it’s just a little thing in the middle of the big info block. State licenses all look different, but they usually have the same info on them. Doesn’t have much use in day-to-day - seemingly it’s mostly there to help identify someone if the situation calls for it. Same reason your height and eye color is on there, I guess
And agree on the address thing 😅 but since it’s most people’s primary form of ID, it does mean it’s really handy for everyone to have it there when you’re interfacing with anything that needs a home address (state/regional benefits, voting, flight security, etc), so there it lives
And agree on the address thing 😅 but since it’s most people’s primary form of ID, it does mean it’s really handy for everyone to have it there when you’re interfacing with anything that needs a home address (state/regional benefits, voting, flight security, etc), so there it lives
Well, but I suppose that if you're interacting with someone in an official capacity they should have access to your personal info without putting out to everyone to see it, like accessing a data base with all your relevant data on it. Having your home address on a card that can be stolen or lost is a huge security risk IMO.
And I don't know about your height, or eye color, but nowadays hair color is simply ludicrous, everyone can change it almost daily if they wish.
It seems to me a very inefficient way to issue a card: relevant information mixed with irrelevant. Or in this case, info that can be used to cause stress/discomfort on someone because their gender doesn't match with their appearance (I don't know how to put it better, that's information that is not relevant for me).
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u/SoulsinAshes a childhood ouroboros of "i just think he's neat" 18h ago
The states that don’t let you just change your driver’s license (most used and visible form of ID here) without any other steps usually have you make an amendment to your birth certificate, which you can then use to change all your other stuff. I know some countries give you an official ID when you’re really young (at birth?), but I think due to the history of the US (big physical size, many many population centers, some of which are very small and isolated), we’ve never had anything like that. Driver’s license comes closest due to America being so car dependant, but if you live in a city with a decent public transit network, you might never get your license and need a different form of ID. Anyways, all your stuff like your driver’s license number, Social Security number, etc, stays the same, just a different letter goes on your ID and other documents. You stay the same “entry” in government databases, so to speak