Madam, - I was interested to read your front-page report of January 8th headed "US plans to retain visitors' fingerprints for 75 years". I have no doubt it is in the interests of the current oily administration to turn the United States into an Orwellian nightmare, but I would have expected a little more outrage at the consequent slick erosion of the rights and freedoms of other countries.
The final paragraph of that report carried, for me, a sinister and unexplained note: "On the first day of the scheme, on January 24th, only 25 people of the 1,000 travelling. . .needed to have their fingerprints digitally scanned." Needed? What, precisely, does that mean? Was it the way they looked, behaved, walked, spoke? How does one qualify to "need" digital scanning. Skin colour, perhaps?
If anyone needs to have their fingers digitally scanned, it's George W. Bush, if he comes here. One never knows on what trigger, or where, we'll find this gunslinger's prints next. - Yours, etc.,
FRED JOHNSTON, Carn Ard, Circular Road, Galway.