In England they are choosing to condition children at their libraries rather than spend funds on improving the library catalog. Children will be required to be finger printed in order to check out books. This may seem like the latest and greatest method of tracking library loans, but it will serve another purpose in the long run. Children will be conditioned to give biometric identifiers in order to authorize various actions in their name. This may seem harmless to most, but if you think through all the implications of this method the possibilities are extreme. This will have government run libraries store databases of fingerprint. Government should not be trusted to hold such sensitive information for the general population. As the conditioning takes hold this could be used to prepare our youth for the time when the governments want us to give these biometric identifiers for every transaction. This will allow the government to monitor and eventually regulate the whole economy. Maybe this does not seem like a problem now, but if there comes a time of rationing this will be a major component if the government wants to monitor all goods and purchases. Regulation will also add to the possibility for government to flag your ID and stop your ability to purchase. It is more prudent to fear what could be done tomorrow instead of arguing about how it is used today. 

Critics labelled the plans 'appalling' and a waste of resources. Photo: GETTY IMAGES