Wipe That Damn Smile Off Your Face

I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this news story:

Few places in Virginia are as draining to the soul and as numbing to the buttocks as the branch offices of the Department of Motor Vehicles. And yet, until recently, smiling was still permitted there.

No more. As part of the DMV's effort to develop super-secure driver's licenses and foolproof identification cards, the agency has issued a smile ban, directing customers to adopt a "neutral expression" in their portraits, thereby extinguishing whatever happiness comes with finally hearing one's number called.

The driver's license photo, it seems, is destined to look like a mug shot.

DMV officials say the smile ban is for a good cause. The agency would like to develop a facial recognition system that could compare customers' photographs over time to prevent fraud and identity theft. "The technology works best when the images are similar," said DMV spokeswoman Pam Goheen. "To prepare for the possibility of future security enhancements, we're asking customers to maintain a neutral expression."

At a Manassas DMV branch yesterday, that translated to a simple directive: "Don't smile."

I can see the logic of this policy in trying to facilitate facial recognition software (although a part of me finds even that to be a bit fascist, but another part of me understands the need for increased security in this modern age) but I also find it to be just a wee bit soul-crushing. Of course, this same policy would not affect me as I never smile for my drivers license photos, and I think I look pretty good in them. My black friends know what I'm talking about here.

(via)