Proposed Change to Animal Ordinance Stoops Into Evil

I can already predict the reaction I'm going to get from some people over this. I don't care. I know what I believe in. I know what I believe to be true. I also know that when you give the government an inch, they take ten miles, every single time. KFDX reported on this July 25. Changes being proposed to the animal ordinances in Wichita Falls may seem like just good common sense measures to most. But there is one I find very troubling-required microchips.

For generations, we've branded cattle to identify and separate herds, for identification at the sale barns and prevent cattle theft. Today, we tag cattle for the same reasons. Part of the underlying issue at the heart of any debate on tracking pets and people is that we've intermingled the world of animals and humans; that is, we look at dogs, cats and other animals as being almost human. And that contributes to the notion in some minds that if chips (RFID chips, specifically) are OK for your dogs and cats or other animals, then surely they're  OK for you and I and for your children in particular. The prospect has frightening possibilities for us.

Yes, on one level I do equate the forced chipping of your animals as a kind of Biblical 'mark of the beast'. I get it. There are plenty of irresponsible people out there who have pets and don't adequately take care of them. This will not stop that. You cannot fix stupid and it will always be around, so let's just accept that fact. This opens the door even further to a much darker possibility: the microchipping of humans.

Back in 2015, an article was published in The Observer, a liberal British publication, about the possibilities of planting microchips in children to track them in the event of a kidnapping. A company called BrickHouse Security claimed they were getting an average of two calls per day from parents asking if this could be done. As of the 2015 article, the 'tracking chip' or RFID chip wasn't a true reality for humans, but work was underway. And what your pets would get is (or was, at least) essentially a bar code, storing your contact info, should they be picked up by animal control. ID technology is advancing at a feverish pace. Here's a quote from a March, 2018 article in Allure:

The RFID chip isn’t the only technology being used. Grindhouse Wetware, a biohacking start-up in Pittsburgh, is experimenting with powered implants: The RFID chip is powered by the device it interacts with, like the card scanner on your office door, while the implants are powered internally by a battery. Cofounder Tim Cannon inserted a monitor slightly smaller than a stack of credit cards into his forearm that would read his temperature and, through Bluetooth, transmit that information to his Android. The monitor, called Circadia, can be used to control a Bluetooth thermostat or to call an ambulance if Cannon’s temperature spikes or drops too suddenly.

While some of you may find it exciting to be able to track your dog or cat should they get lost, you are helping set the stage for the next evolution in tracking tech, the microchipping of your children. Frankly, every one of us is already carrying a tracking device on us. It's called a smartphone. Even if you turn off the location services in your phone, it still knows where you are and where you've been. But at least with this kind of tech, if I want to 'get off the grid' for a while, all I need to do is leave the phone at home. Of course, if you have a newer car, it employs the same tech as your phone, so you may need to ditch the 2019 model for something a little more on the collectible side. But right now, at least I can still get away from the tech. The chip is a much more sinister big brother.

Would you actually subject your child to being microchipped? Sadly, I think many parents would do so, not even considering the potential for how far off the rails this could go in the very near future. The idea of chipping your pet is that it's all about keeping your dog or cat safe and helping you to find them should they be picked up by animal control. But forcing this on the citizens by law is wrong. I won't do it, not even voluntarily. It's the first leap into branding every single human being. And it will all be presented in the interest of your health, safety and security. It's putting us on a scary path of "1984" meets "Minority Report".