I was trying to figure out the ArriveCAN app today and I think this border-crossing nonsense would be appropriate for a police state but it really does not belong between Canada and the U.S. I grew up in this country when crossing into the United States was about as formal as saying ‘Hi.’ I remember more than a few times heading for Niagara Falls teaching the kids with foreign-born accents how to say “Toronna” in case they were questioned as to where they were born.
And that is all it should be between countries such as Canada and the United States. I was hardly inconvenienced when we started using passports at the border but I thought of it as unnecessary. By that time, I had been on business or holiday to all but three of the states of the union. I have no idea what would attract me to Rhode Island and, maybe I shouldn’t count Wyoming, as I don’t think I even stopped for gas crossing that state. Though I bet I am the very rare Canadian who has ever addressed a state police convention in Salem, Oregon.
I should hasten to add that the border needs to have barriers against COVID 19. Proof of vaccination should be sufficient. My opinion is that ArriveCAN is excessive, intrusive and stupid. And the assumption that everyone has a smart phone is the most stupid. This government has the nerve to think that all Canadians are so self-important as to pay the outrageous cost of smart phones and usage charges of the telecoms in this country.
And for the agist idiots who think the smart phone is an inconvenience for seniors, I should mention my oldest brother was having fun with his smart phone at 93. He found it was a great toy. And that is what it is, a toy. And whomever dreamed up the idea of putting a camera in cell phones must have been a sadist.
Have you ever noticed that when you are checking an app to see if it suits your needs, you find there is more than one source offering to help you download the app. Most of these secondary sources are just trying to get your information for their own usage. Many of them profit from selling the information.
But then a smart phone is, by its nature, like wearing the story of your life on your sleeve. It might seem a boring subject to you but there are people who want that information to sell you, to influence you, to manipulate you or to steal the money recorded in your bank app. You do not have to be paranoid about this. Your cell phone can tell them all they need to know.
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Copyright 2022 © Peter Lowry
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