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U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

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Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#311

Post by BurningFrog »

adamsea wrote: post #183
opportune wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Conversely, it makes running an opposition campaign so easy that the opposition won't need to focus on the big issues. The opposition could focus on morality and pay lip-service to neoliberal diversity theatre while simultaneously selling out to corporate interests. If you're running against Trump in an election, what's the point of drawing the ire of industry (pharma, insurance, military, surveillance, general big-c…

> The opposition could focus on morality and pay lip-service to neoliberal diversity theatre while simultaneously selling out to corporate interests. Pretty sure any phrase preceded by the word 'neoliberal' is already (by definition) aligned with corporate interests. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoliberalism "Neoliberalism or neo-liberalism refers primarily to the 20th-century resurgence of 19th-century ideas assoc…

Yeah, "neoliberal" is pretty much a slur. No one calls themself neoliberal.

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#312

Post by onthe_otherhand »

I will offer the outsider's perspective. I didn't know which form it was going to take, but I expected this for quite a while. What is really happening here is a brilliant kind of targeting of the most tech savvy folks (most likely to be prolific on social media) - you know, that pesky immigrant group who not only easily make more than the median income of the natives, but the ones who are most likely to be law abiding (and against whom the usual slander such as "rapists" will not stick). This is the group which most infuriates the native underclass in all societies when the society starts facing economic turmoil.

To all immigrants who went to the US on such a visa (e.g. H1) - take this as a distant warning and make a plan B to leave the US. This story does not have a good ending and it has happened too often in history. There may be a lot of native folks wringing their hands and even offering their support (which is welcome of course) but the underclass is generally too economically ignorant to ever listen to them.

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#313

Post by tagawa »

therealmarv wrote: post #297

So will this be the case for ESTA visas too?

I can't confirm but according to the ESTA site[1], "an approved travel authorization is not a visa. It does not meet the legal or regulatory requirements to serve in lieu of a United States visa when a visa is required under United States law".

Therefore if the social media details become a requirement for visa applications only, then ESTA would theoretically be exempt. Having said that, social media is currently an optional field on the ESTA form so the foundation has been laid.

[1] https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#314

Post by grecy »

ineedtosleep wrote: post #13

Pretty absurd that they're asking for all of this and: > [...] In addition to their social media histories, visa applicants will be asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers, email addresses, international travel and deportation status, as well as whether any family members have been involved in terrorist activities. I know a number of people going through, or have been through, the US visa process an…

> visa applicants will be asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers

Which I think is an interesting admission they have all the calls stored somewhere so they can check them for content...

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#315

Post by Nomentatus »

The ancient Greeks were paid to show up and vote. If you don't do this, irrational actors or those with very poor math skills will be highly over-represented and this will show in the result.

But thanks to gerrymandering, your vote will very likely be moot. So that has to be fixed first.

(This was a reply that appears to have become stranded.)

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#316

Post by s2g »

dbsvsv wrote: post #269
opportune wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Conversely, it makes running an opposition campaign so easy that the opposition won't need to focus on the big issues. The opposition could focus on morality and pay lip-service to neoliberal diversity theatre while simultaneously selling out to corporate interests. If you're running against Trump in an election, what's the point of drawing the ire of industry (pharma, insurance, military, surveillance, general big-c…

The entire Russia collusion thing is to take peoples attention away from dnc's burning of Bernie and other actions. I would urge people to read the WikiLeaks emails once and see what's in their. Its truly damning. Also if there were an actual collusion then one of those "17 intelligence agencies" and the senate intelligence committee or Mueller probe would have revealed in a year. Unless you admit Trump is a total Ge…

> I would urge people to read the WikiLeaks emails once and see what's in their. Its truly damning.

hey look, recommendations to read propaganda from a green account.

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#318

Post by Nomentatus »

justicezyx wrote: post #70
Someone1234 wrote: post #24

People I've spoken to seem more comfortable acting like this is part of the current administration's agenda, rather than an encroaching trend which has been gradually getting worse year upon year. For example this specific policy was added as an "optional" (not really) question on an entry form before the 2016 presidential elections (I know, I wrote a letter protesting it during public comment period). My point is: B…

Well, the US political structure was designed to make such things happen.

Madison designed the system to avoid parties and collusion. He was not as successful as he hoped.

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#319

Post by s2g »

downandout wrote: post #261
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One nice thing about having a President with 50%+ disapproval [1] is all the things that got swept under the rug, previously, can now be made alarming. This might be an unintended way the system clears detritus and scope creep. [1] https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/trump-approval-ratings/...

Isn't it always the case that the President has "disapproval" ratings around 50% though? Half the country tends to like the person they voted for, and half the country has sour grapes because their side lost. Obama's disapproval ratings also hovered above 50% at several points in his Presidency [1]. So it isn't Trump's "disapproval" ratings that are new for any President, it's the level of hatred that the press has f…

Not really, and especially not so early.

Trump is historically unpopular.

Re: U.S. To Seek Social Media Details from All Visa Applicants

#320

Post by s2g »

sanderjd wrote: post #243
bassman9000 wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

can now be made alarming This is wrong in so many levels, and explains exactly how we got here. You're judging the issue not by its own weight, but by who is going to deal with it, or not.

A counterargument: our system (in the US) is representative . That is, we elect individuals who are empowered to represent us as they see fit. This is subtly different than electing delegates who we expect to carry out our will indirectly. In a representative system, the "who" is, and is intended to be, important.

The president isn't, the senate isn't, and the house is supposed to be but isn't.

Where is the representative government?

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