{"id":1269,"date":"2020-08-04T07:55:50","date_gmt":"2020-08-04T14:55:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/?p=1269"},"modified":"2020-08-04T07:55:50","modified_gmt":"2020-08-04T14:55:50","slug":"identification","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/?p=1269","title":{"rendered":"Identification"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
What melted in my wallet<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Since there are so many people walking around with masks on, it might be time to update your identifying documents. I sure had an adventure with this one. Not that a current ID will help at the recycling center when three people say \u201cHi\u201d to you and you can\u2019t recognize one of them. But a current ID helps for a lot of things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For instance, I tried to sign up to get retirement payments this week. I could have done it a year ago, but I knew it would be tough, so I put it off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since we are limiting our contacts, I tried to do the application online. I did this about two weeks ago. The state retirement site told me clearly that I would need to call them to request my application, so I waited until regular business hours and called. It went as smooth as could be. She got my identifying numbers over the phone and said she would mail me the information I would need to apply. And she would email me the application forms, but don\u2019t fill them out until I got her information. A week later, the envelope came.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The application for retirement said I would need both my wife\u2019s and my birth certificates, notarized signatures and Social Security cards. My wife is very organized. She had all this up in a file in our desk. Except, that is, my social security card. I do not possess a card. I did at one time, but the flimsy cardboard thing melted in my wallet after some sweaty work and wading in the river. Why do you need a stinking pasteboard card that fades out? Heck, I could make a good-looking facsimile with a Sharpie. But my retirement application wants the card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, I think I could get a replacement card online. After all, I signed up for Medicare online. The first website that comes up when you Google \u201cSocial Security Card replacement\u201d might look pretty official to you. It sure did to me. But I knew I was being scammed when they asked me if I wanted to pay with a credit card or PayPal. This was after I had given them all my identifying information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feeling my fingertips singed and my ego squashed for being an online dupe, I decided this technology stuff was beyond me. So, I called my local office. I\u2019ll bet the nice lady on the phone was in Iowa, not Idaho. But she said she could get me a replacement card. I just needed to mail her my drivers\u2019 license and passport. \u201cCopies of them?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo, the originals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She\u2019s asking a guy who just gave his address and phone number to an online Ukrainian scammer to send to her, through the US mail, two pieces of real ID? And I should trust both her and the US Postal Service? I stammered some hesitation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou could request one online sir.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI tried that but I got scammed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She chuckled. \u201cOh yes, there are a lot of those out there. Only trust SSA.gov.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhy don\u2019t you guys take those sites down?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She chuckled again, like \u201cWe could sir, but that wouldn\u2019t make you any less a fool.\u201d But instead she said, \u201cI\u2019m sure the inspector general is looking into that.\u201d She probably winked to her desk mate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I thank her for her polite demeanor. She didn\u2019t thank me for sharing my internet pratfalls, but did wish me a good rest of my day. It was lunchtime. I took a break.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I found the SSA.gov site and only got a little peanut butter on the keyboard. It turns out my computer remembered my password, and I only had to click a couple places to say I really was me. Then they said it would come in the mail in a couple weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I called the state retirement lady to tell her of my delay. \u201cSocial Security card?\u201d she asked. \u201cOh, you must have gotten the old forms.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Since there are so many people walking around with masks on, it might be time to update your identifying documents. I sure had an adventure with this one. Not that a current ID will help at the recycling center when … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1269"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1269"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1269\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1271,"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1269\/revisions\/1271"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/danschmidtforsenate.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}