The Ticker: Fake IDs Hot or Not?
Why do so many underage people want fake IDs, and what on earth is so appealing about them? Is it the fact that you are getting away with underage drinking or smoking, or is it just the fact that you have something to show off? Having a fake ID in some states is a full-blown felony, so why are they so popular? For me, I just wanted to have one, just in case I ever needed it.
In the fall of my senior year of high school, I was so focused on college. Filling out applications, meeting deadlines, and picking schools that fit my long list of criteria were at the top of my priority list. However, another important piece of college life that I knew I needed was a fake ID.
It was 2022 at the time, and all you needed to do to get a false identification was know someone doing an order and get yourself on that list. I was 17. What the heck was I thinking? I sure was not thinking about what would happen a year and two months later. To make a long story short, I was partaking in activities that a young 18-year-old first-year student should not have been doing, but we all learn from our mistakes, and to be honest, I am thankful for what happened.
I was entering the Tik Tok Inn, an infamous place if you attend school in lovely Canton, New York. If you have never been to this bar, let me enlighten you: it is a wonderful place filled with a DJ who is probably around my dad’s age standing at a laptop in the corner of the dance floor playing the same playlist each night that the Ticker is open. Two bars, one in the front and one in the back, where you can find the lovely bartenders and sometimes a friend or two.
However, if you are not of drinking age, the entrance fee at the Ticker is $10, but only $2 if you are over the drinking age. So, there I was, standing at the entrance of the Ticker, handing the bouncer an ID with my name, picture, height and a random address in Connecticut (mind you, I am fully from New York), and two dollars. Immediately, the bouncer handed the ID to a man I had never seen before. Confused, I just went along with what I thought was normal, just another person double-checking to see that the ID is passable. It wasn’t. “Where is your real ID?” he said to me. I told him that the ID I gave him was my real one, and obviously, it was not. He took me outside to a patrol car, giving me a ticket, a court date and a lovely $250 fine.
Confused and walking back to campus, I called my older brother, who studies insurance at a school in Philadelphia. He was awake at the time due to his late-night job of delivering pizzas, a job our parents had explicitly told him not to do. He answered, and I immediately burst out crying. Maybe that was the alcohol in my system, or perhaps it was just pure emotion. He laughed at me and told me to go back to my dorm and call Mom and Dad in the morning. I did exactly that.
The next day, my parents were not too happy with me; however, they understood, granted I was a young 18-year-old who was prone to making mistakes. The incident happened in November; I went to court in April. I had to pay a $250 fine and live with the fact that I am a complete and utter idiot. However, I did learn from my mistake and will never use a Connecticut ID or any other false ID at the Ticker.
My message is quite simple: learn from my mistakes, be careful, and look out for yourself because nobody wants to go to the Canton Town Court and pay $250 for a stupid mistake.