Understanding the History of Id Tags

Military identification cards and dog tags are generally required components of military uniforms. Military ID cards are required to travel on and off military installations, access commissaries and Post Exchanges and serve as an indication of a service member's rank, branch of service and the Geneva Convention Category he or she falls under. Dog tags (also called identification tags) serve to show a service member's name, Social Security number, blood type and religious preference in case the service member becomes a casualty. Army regulation 670-1 requires that soldiers carry a military-issued identification card at all times, whether in or out of uniform. It also mandates that soldiers traveling or living overseas wear dog tags at all times (even in civilian clothing), and states that every soldier in uniform must include them as part of their duty uniforms. Soldiers conducting routine daily activities may be at risk of becoming a casualty; if a soldier loses consciousness or is unable to communicate, dog tags are read to gain important information. Dog tags contain information that can notify responders whether the service member has allergies, indicates his blood type and displays his name and Social Security number so the service member can be properly identified.
History
In the military, sad, but true, for centuries, in times of war, it is very likely that military personnel will lose their lives, and a proper burial will need to take place. However, if the Soldier, Marine, Airman, Sailor is not identified, this process may take longer.
Sometimes to fully understand the importance of something, we must learn and know the history. Since the civil war of 1861-1865 the identification of military personnel has been an issue. Many of the service members affiliated with this war would pin slips of paper with their name and address to the backs of their coats, they'd stencil their information on their knapsacks and they'd scratch their vital information on the