I agree that students should be accountable for their grades, but even if they fail, the school has to pay the state back for financial aid. By withdrawing students who fail to attend, the school does not have to repay the state for the financial aid. Our community college had to pay back a great deal of money to the state a few years ago before mandatory attendance as instilled because a large number of students took financial aid and ran with the money. Since this college struggles to get funds (including state funds), it needs every penny it can get to serve the students who are doing the work. We've discussed ways of taking attendance involving classroom "clicker" technology, and I see the RFID system to be a similar fix.
I hate taking attendance too (granted I don't have 300 student lectures), but for 40 person classes, it isn't that difficult; just one more hoop. In the end, I can keep tabs on students and warn them that they will lose financial aid if they stop coming to class. For students who don't understand that it costs money to educate them, this is a way to show them their responsibility (before they fail), instead of just letting them fail and be bitter about higher education for the rest of their lives. Whether or not they attend, failing means paying *again* to re-take the class. And semester hours aren't cheap.
Don't many newer jobs require some form of college degree? It seems that many students who never needed a degree (or AA certificate) now require one, and with the down-turned economy, more students than ever are pouring into college. We have to be accountable somehow. Is RFID the right answer? We'll see, but until then, attendance checking is a necessary evil.