Beech Tree News Network

In the past couple of years, I’ve thought about applying for a passport. During those moments, I think about seeing some of Canada. When I was younger, I enjoyed travel. But, more recently, I’ve become a homebody and have not followed up on the inclination to apply for a passport.

The number of Americans who acquired passports increased more than 300% between 1974 and 2004” (http://www.us-passport-service-guide.com/passport-statistics.html). According to travel writer Andrew Bender (http://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewbender/2012/01/30/record-number-of-ame...), over one-third of Americans now have a passport. The U.S. law known as the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative – implemented for air travel in 2007 and on sea and land borders in 2009 – has likely impacted the number of passports. Bender’s article indicated that many passports may have been required for business travel.

In addition to the traditional passport (pictured above from http://www.travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html), a passport card may also be used to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda at land border crossings or sea ports-of-entry. The passport card became available in 2008. It is convenient and less expensive than the passport book. However, the passport card cannot be used for international travel by air (http://www.travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html).

According to an Internet site (https://www.uscitizenship.info/articles/frequently-asked-questions-about...), the processing time for a passport may vary, but routine applications are usually processed within six weeks from the date of the application. One of the application requirements is a photo (with specific dimensions), and many businesses make passport photos. The cost of an adult passport is $135 (an application fee of $110 plus an execution fee of $25), while the cost of an adult passport card is $55 (an application fee of $30 plus an execution fee of $25). Luckily, the passport is good for ten years.

Passports seem to be a little like a driver’s license or a work ID photo in that people have a tendency to complain about their photo: 

 - My passport photo is one of the most remarkable photographs I have ever seen - no retouching, no shadows, no flattery - just stark me. – Anne Morrow Lindbergh

 - A passport, as I'm sure you know, is a document that one shows to government officials whenever one reaches a border between two countries, so that the official can learn who you are, where you were born, and how you look when photographed unflatteringly. – Lemony Snicket

Toward the end of the passport’s life, these same people might like their passport photo. After all, by that time, the photo would picture the bearer a decade younger.

Passports are essentially for our protection. Unless we plan to leave the country, we don’t need one. And, as Andrew Bender’s article pointed out, America is “exceptionally large.” Since there’s so much to see within our own borders, I’m not sure I need a passport.