"Americans will accept the fact that a person can be an alcoholic or a dope fiend, but if a man doesn't drive, they think there must be something wrong with him." -Attributed to Art Buchwald
you would not believe the amount of trouble I have getting places to accept my passport as ID. "You mean you don't have a driver's licence? You look older than 16, so how is that possible?"
(duh... I'm also not an American, which anyone I am speaking to can tell from my outrageous accent. I do actually have a driving licence, but until recently Britain issued stupid driving licences with no photo on them, so a fat lot of use that is)
Yeah, I had the same trouble when I was travelling once without my drivers' license. I understand that it's probably because most cashiers have never even seen a passport and so they don't know how to spot forgeries - but really, it is much, much easier to fake a DL than a passport, so liquor stores would do well to train their employees better.
The most amusing thing, to me, is that I have a drivers' license despite having no actual skill at driving; I passed the test at 18, just barely, after being harangued by my parents for a year and a half, and I haven't been behind the wheel of a car since. So in a sense, my drivers' license is *only* good as an ID card - as far as its ostensible main purpose goes, it's completely counterfactual, and nobody cares!
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Date: 2004-12-17 04:41 pm (UTC)(duh... I'm also not an American, which anyone I am speaking to can tell from my outrageous accent. I do actually have a driving licence, but until recently Britain issued stupid driving licences with no photo on them, so a fat lot of use that is)
(no subject)
Date: 2004-12-18 10:13 am (UTC)The most amusing thing, to me, is that I have a drivers' license despite having no actual skill at driving; I passed the test at 18, just barely, after being harangued by my parents for a year and a half, and I haven't been behind the wheel of a car since. So in a sense, my drivers' license is *only* good as an ID card - as far as its ostensible main purpose goes, it's completely counterfactual, and nobody cares!