May I See Some ID?

It happened again. And I think it's about time I write about it.

I was making a small purchase by credit card when the cashier asked me, "Can I see some ID?" - not, "Can I see YOUR ID?" but just "some" ID. Ok, I'm not really picking on the language... Dutifully, I pulled my driver's license from the same wallet I had just pulled my credit card out of. Now the key here (I forgot to include this in the original post), is that the cashier NEVER looks at my face to see if the ID matches me... hence, it really isn't ID!

Now wait -- isn't there something suspicious here?

I've been assuming all along that, "Can I see some ID?" means that somebody is trying to protect me... except that I really don't understand how this system is supposed to work.

Suppose I'm a thief. Hypothetically, please! Suppose I just got finished pickpocketing a wallet... so: suppose I look at the ID in the wallet, learn the guy's name, and practice his signature 10 or so times. Now... suppose I go buy something with one of the credit cards. When the cashier asks, "Can I see some ID?", I confidently pull out the driver's license. I sign the receipt and walk away with my goods. Now: how was the owner of the credit card protected??

There may have been cameras, etc. but specifically, what good did showing the ID of the wallet serve??

If my credit card is stolen, I call my credit card issuer and report it stolen... and sure: I'm "protected" for transactions purchased within some time and price window. But isn't that just covered by some form of insurance that the credit card charges to merchants (and therefore, indirectly, to me) through their service fee? Or what about the exhorbitant rates that some credit card companies charge... 19%... 22%... 26%...!??

So again, I'm confused: what purpose does me pulling out my driver's license serve? If I'm not purchasing an age-controlled substance (say, liquor), what right or need does the merchant (or cashier) have in looking at my ID?

All of this leads into a blog for another day... have you ever considered how insecure the entire credit-card system is? Given that all sorts of third parties have your credit card information, and given that no identification is required to use a credit card by phone, why isn't this an ENORMOUS problem?