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Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

richardbarrow.com

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Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#101

Post by jasonkester »

jaysonelliot wrote: post #95
jasonkester wrote: post #11

For all the mean things that border control agents get away with every day, I personally enjoy "Returning From Thailand" as my little opportunity to even the score a bit. "How long have you been gone?" "I don't know. A year, give or take? Who keeps track?" "Which countries did you visit while you were away? Your landing card just says 'most of them'" "Well probably not most of them really, but definitely enough not t…

I don't think I've read a more privileged, arrogant, myopic comment in a very long time. In what world is it your role to judge a person for going to work every day to feed their family? "Basically, it's your opportunity to remind them that their job is to sit in a little cube talking to people who are actually out there leading exciting lives." I'm trying not to read that sentence in the voice of a young English ari…

Are you some authority appointed to correct the misbehavior of your inferiors?

No. If you came away with that impression then you may have misread my intent.

My stance is that mean people deserve to live an unhappy life. No more. Nice people, as noted in the comment you responded to, receive no such treatment from me. Mean people get a fictionalized account of a person leading a much better life than themselves, delivered by a person who in actual fact is not likely leading a much more interesting life at all.

As a mean person, the theory goes, one can continue being mean and thus unhappy. Or they can start being nice and be treated nicely. Notice how class does not enter into it at all.

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#102

Post by kleiba »

solistice wrote: post #87
arrrg wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At lest in Germany the police still uses them to justify random searches. I haven’t been affected by that since I’m quite white (even though I live in one of those zones where the police can more easily search me). In the train and train stations police seems always laser-focused on inconveniencing brown and other strange looking people. They are masters at racial profiling. For white people those open borders are qu…

"white" people are stopped as well, albeit most likely not as often. I have a friend who's more German than the Bundestag, who was once stopped and screened randombly by a customs official whilst he was running to catch his bus. Tough luck.

The police are not allowed to only check people that meet a certain racial pattern, so they usually add some white people in the mix just to give the appearance of randomness.

Mind you, though, I find that the security checks at a German aiport are heaps more comfortable and relaxed than anything I've experienced at any American aiport I've been.

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#103

Post by jasonkester »

niuzeta wrote: post #94
jasonkester wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For what it's worth, during the years I actually had these conversations, I doubt I ever made as much as a Customs clerk. I'd bring in maybe $20k in consulting and product income over the course of a year, which was enough to travel on but likely not enough to pay for, say, the apartment that the clerk lived in. There's no requirement for privilege, or even "living wage" to lead such a lifestyle. As such, I appreciat…

I need to remind you that you're using the fact that your financial situation isn't successful as a justification to being a jerk to another human being. If a border officer was rude to you, then be a jerk to him, not some random stranger who just happened to be in same situation to him.

You're mistaken. I was correcting somebody who wrongly assumed I was using my high social status as a reason to be mean to somebody. And now I'm correcting somebody who wrongly assumed I was being mean because my social status was in fact low.

But in actual fact, I was doing that thing you describe in your second paragraph. As it states in my original comment.

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#104

Post by jaysonelliot »

jasonkester wrote: post #101
jaysonelliot wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think I've read a more privileged, arrogant, myopic comment in a very long time. In what world is it your role to judge a person for going to work every day to feed their family? "Basically, it's your opportunity to remind them that their job is to sit in a little cube talking to people who are actually out there leading exciting lives." I'm trying not to read that sentence in the voice of a young English ari…

Are you some authority appointed to correct the misbehavior of your inferiors? No. If you came away with that impression then you may have misread my intent. My stance is that mean people deserve to live an unhappy life. No more. Nice people, as noted in the comment you responded to, receive no such treatment from me. Mean people get a fictionalized account of a person leading a much better life than themselves, deli…

Do you think for a moment about what that person had to put up with for the hours before you arrived that day, or will continue to deal with after you leave?

Is it not enough that you've managed to retire as a young man and lounge on the beaches of Thailand, do you also need to be treated with smiles and deference by people who still have to go to work every day? They have a job to do, and your abuse isn't going to help anything. At best, it'll just make the experience that much worse for the person in line behind you.

Empathy is not something that can be forced on a person, and a comment on a web page isn't going to make you change your attitude or think about anyone else's life, but then again, being a dick to customs agents isn't going to help, either, so I guess we're both wasting our breath.

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#105

Post by lukeschlather »

Honestly, this is refreshing. The US does not have a serious terrorism problem, so the massive amount of border searches are very trouble. We're giving up a lot of freedom to solve a problem that we don't really have.

On the other hand, we do have a pretty serious human trafficking problem, so I'm glad to see someone taking it seriously.

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#106

Post by Jtsummers »

kintamanimatt wrote: post #99
Jtsummers wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Basically, it's your opportunity to remind them that their job is to sit in a little cube talking to people who are actually out there leading exciting lives. And that their attempts to make other people's lives worse is not really doing a very good job of making their own life any better. The assumption that those who aren't out traveling are beneath him and deserve the ill treatment that he's intending (whether t…

I interpreted it as him being encouraging and reminding people that there's a bigger, brighter world out there full of possibility—if they want it. Someone that's not interested in his kind of lifestyle won't be inspired, and his example would wash over them unnoticed. But for everyone else trapped in a life they never really wanted it's a gentle nudge and reminder to not waste time living a suboptimal life, doing a…

I like your optimism, sadly most people I've seen doing stuff like he describes do it in a distasteful and rude manner. Perhaps he's better than that, I don't know him, and I certainly hope so.

I've worked in service industries (of which I'll lump in TSA and Customs officials for now) and have been on the receiving end of it, polite or cordial people are welcome to talk about their experience, but then you get people like a friend of mine that would rather make them feel miserable about what they do for a living (the reason I can only take him in small doses these days).

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#107

Post by kintamanimatt »

Jtsummers wrote: post #106
kintamanimatt wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I interpreted it as him being encouraging and reminding people that there's a bigger, brighter world out there full of possibility—if they want it. Someone that's not interested in his kind of lifestyle won't be inspired, and his example would wash over them unnoticed. But for everyone else trapped in a life they never really wanted it's a gentle nudge and reminder to not waste time living a suboptimal life, doing a…

I like your optimism, sadly most people I've seen doing stuff like he describes do it in a distasteful and rude manner. Perhaps he's better than that, I don't know him, and I certainly hope so. I've worked in service industries (of which I'll lump in TSA and Customs officials for now) and have been on the receiving end of it, polite or cordial people are welcome to talk about their experience, but then you get people…

Oh so have I, and I'm specifically excluding the "nah nah nah nah boo boo" folks. The only thing those people do is encourage me to pay no attention to them. I was really talking about those that are able to just go live life, have a great time, and somehow seem to serve as a shining beacon for those lost at sea! It's even better when they have a sense of humor as well as passion. (Writing "most of them" on a landing card that has insufficient space is as creative as it is hilarious!)

What specifically does your friend do to piss you off?

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#108

Post by arrrg »

solistice wrote: post #87
arrrg wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At lest in Germany the police still uses them to justify random searches. I haven’t been affected by that since I’m quite white (even though I live in one of those zones where the police can more easily search me). In the train and train stations police seems always laser-focused on inconveniencing brown and other strange looking people. They are masters at racial profiling. For white people those open borders are qu…

"white" people are stopped as well, albeit most likely not as often. I have a friend who's more German than the Bundestag, who was once stopped and screened randombly by a customs official whilst he was running to catch his bus. Tough luck.

Yeah, it’s possible, obviously. Especially if you are young and alone and look a certain way – but the way the German police does racial profiling is very obvious. And since I’m white and apparently look harmless to the police they just completely ignore me. I just don’t really have to worry about this. Ok, maybe the police will stop me the next time I’m in a train station and I will miss my train – but who cares? That would still be a very rare event for me. In practice I don’t even have to think about it. Something I’m pretty sure wouldn’t be the case if I looked differently.

During the last 25 years of my life I had exactly two run-ins with the police, one traffic stop (all I had to say that I didn’t drink any alcohol and they let me drive on – I didn’t even have to leave the car) and one time I was jaywalking (the police was hiding right at the pedestrian crossing, I had to pay a €5 fine).

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#109

Post by jacquesm »

grecy wrote: post #81
jacquesm wrote: post #10

Borders have three uses: 1) to keep people out 2) to keep people in 3) to be able to search/detain people without cause I've yet to see a border that I liked. In plenty of countries this now extends to a certain distance away from the border (sometimes surprisingly large), even when you are not actively crossing or have not crossed.

> I've yet to see a border that I liked. You need to travel more. I spent two years driving from Alaska to Argentina through 17 countries with my Jeep. The border that gave me the most trouble? Coming into the US in Washington (off the ferry from Victoria, Canada) Also, see "Long Way Round" where Ewan and Charlie ride motorbikes from London to NYC, "around" the earth. Which border gave them the most problems? You gue…

> You need to travel more.

Hehe, that's funny.

Re: Detained in the US for “Visiting Thailand Too Much”

#110

Post by soneil »

raverbashing wrote: post #49
ape4 wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How about the border between EU countries.

Do you want a "cool" border between EU countries? Fly to Ireland with a stop in the UK (from a Schengen country or somewhere else) You'll go through passport control twice

However, if you do Ireland -> UK -> EU, you'll most likely only see passport control between UK & EU.

Passport controls aren't technically necessary between the UK & Ireland, but few airports in Ireland are architected to treat ingress differently. (I suspect in at least one case, they've actually gone backwards, as the domestic channel was repurposed for the US "ingress before you fly" method.)

If you do the same trip in reverse, you're less likely to see passport controls entering the UK, as most larger airports are architected around domestic & International travel - Irish flights are usually landed as domestic.

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