A license to drive

The amazing American driver's license has become a flashpoint for several controversies in recent weeks. Sorting out the various concerns is not easy, since they seem to be so interrelated. But here's how we come down on the issues and how we see the controversy.

Should a driver's license be used as a default identification card?

No. We believe that a driver's license should be for driving, not for personal validation to obtain credit, services or access.

Is a national I.D. card then needed?

We can see the advantages in such a card. They have served Britain well over the years. Other democracies have them. But in this era of homeland security in America, we share some of the reservations of naysayers who fear the cards could become "tracking devices" for surreptitious purposes. People looking to achieve some nebulous "greater good" may be willing to cut corners to achieve it. Therefore the notion of a national I.D. card should be on the table, but it needs much more study, and all reservations need to be quelled before such cards are issued.

Should illegal immigrants be given drivers' licenses?

This question is almost moot on a state basis since Congress has taken up the issue. Should illegal immigrants be prohibited from gaining a driver's license, then driving permits are the next best option. Hispanic leaders and the rank-and-file need to realize it would be half-a-loaf or none. Standing on principle because the "full loaf" is taken away may mean going hungry all together. We urge them to embrace permits. The permits mean that those who are determined to drive anyway would at least have to pass a test and study regulations before taking to the highways. Eyesight would be checked. Addresses and photos would be on file. Accountability would be demanded.

In the end, citizens who say that driving is a privilege and not a right are correct. But it is a privilege that is a necessity in the lives of many workers, students and homemakers — some of them here illegally. Punishing people who are contributing to society should not be the first option. Such punishment should be reserved for scofflaws who drive while intoxicated or irresponsibly.

Sorting through the driving debacle will not be easy.

Not sorting through it is to court disaster.