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I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

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Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#231

Post by chrisper »

chrisper wrote: post #128
josefresco wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right, but what happened between 18 and 33. At some point the author must have realized "the system is fucked" but decided (for multiple reasons) to risk continuing to work and live with the US. It's one thing to attend university for 4 years, get a job and then head home. Quite another thing to base/commit your entire life/career in the US without a clear path to citizenship. I'm not saying the author should "suck i…

I am in the situation you are suggesting. People like the author and me are not surprised, but rather disappointed (and sad).

I should add, sad because it is very hard to build and plan a life where you do not know where you will be in 3 or 6 years. For example, why would you try to buy a house if you don't know what will happen? Because of all this I am probably considering to not even bother with H1B.

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#232

Post by threedaymonk »

kazinator wrote: post #24
murbard2 wrote: post #12

I personally consider that opening borders is a moral imperative, but I understand why it is controversial. I understand that the arguments against "letting everyone in" have some merit, though I ultimately disagree with them. What is a real head scratcher to me is the US policy on highly-skilled immigrants. There are certainly some political constituencies in favor of those, but I can't think of anyone against, at l…

Opening borders works for multicultural countries built on immigration. For countries that are based on a unique language, ethnicity and culture, it is damaging.

> For countries that are based on a unique language, ethnicity and culture, it is damaging.

Where are these places? Very few countries are based on a unique language, ethnicity, or culture, and those that are have generally only become so as a result of active suppression of minority cultures and languages.

In fact, apart from a few microstates and isolated islands, I can't really think of any monocultural nations.

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#233

Post by lutorm »

dreamcatcher123 wrote: post #115
hagmonk wrote: post #77

The article comes across as whiny because he's a New Zealander. So cut the guy some slack, he can't help it :) As an Australian working for a large tech company, I totally feel this guy's position. It never leaves me, the sense of being an imposter in this country on limited time. I've paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes in this country, hired dozens of Americans as a manager, and mentored many of them to…

@hagmonk You have made some very good points. However "Not every immigrant is an Indian and not every unemployed American is a reprogrammable robot, able to do any open position I have on my books." is true but incomplete. Not every Indian is a cheap immigrant who's willing to work for less than their American counterparts. H1b was meant to "supplement" American workforce and not to "replace" them. Also in majority c…

I agree that comment was probably unnecessary, but to be fair he said "... this assumption that foreign workers are cheap Indians on H-1Bs". He did not say all Indians are cheap or on H-1B's.

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#234

Post by sliverstorm »

zzalpha wrote: post #211
sliverstorm wrote: post #204

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you accept that the language, ethnicity, and culture are valuable parts of that country- Such a country can assimilate some number of immigrants each year while remaining mostly unchanged. The immigrants learn the language, the culture, and marry into native families. But as you increase the number of immigrants, the country can no longer assimilate them. They don't all learn the language, they don't know the cult…

So? Things change. That's called life. To assume all nations and all cultures remain static over time is absurd. Hell, the nations as they are defined today are a very recent phenomenon. Some have only existed for a few decades! The host country will become a new, different, more diverse country. That doesn't mean the culture of the host country is completely destroyed. Altered, yes. Destroyed? Almost certainly not.…

So your argument seems to be "that damage is part of life, deal with it". That's fine, I was just trying to answer your question:

damaging in what sense?

I don't assume all immigrants are foreign invaders, thank you very much. On the other hand, I have known some immigrants who expressly wanted to get rid of the people in the town they had just moved to and import their old country's people, culture, and government. That's not my characterization, that's what was said.

China Town et al are great because they are integrated. You don't have to be from China to go there. But not every immigrant wants to integrate. Does that mean we repel all immigrants? No! Does that mean we embrace every immigrant no matter what? Also no. I see no reason to welcome people who want me gone, and say as much to my face.

It is possible to understand both these realities at the same time. We don't need to get all black-and-white, "all immigrants are evil" or "all immigrants are God's gift".

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#236

Post by mc32 »

exelius wrote: post #227
bruceb wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Europe it is a cultural issue also. There is a reason even Canada has Canadian content laws to protect from the onslaught of American music. It is not unreasonable for people to want to preserve culture.

Only slightly related, but for as much as Americans consider ourselves inextricably linked with Europe, we're much more similar both economically and culturally to South America. The average American's life looks a lot more like that of an office worker in Colombia or Brazil than it does someone in Berlin or London. This is likely because South American countries developed using the USA as a model, but it's interesti…

Culturally the US is protestant leaning. Latam is culturally catholic. Latams see Spain as a cultural beacon, whereas the the U.S. now a beacon in its own right, used to have Britain and France as their cultural beacons --yes France was nominally catholic, but they culturally leaned protestant in many ways. They are more northern European than Mediterranean.

Also, while in the U.S. the so called 'old boys net' helps to get things done, in Latam there's something akin to Chinese guanxi (關係) in getting things done. Relationships are paramount and make corruption endemic and inextricable. It's quite diff from U.S. and euro culture.)))

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#237

Post by avz »

eax_ wrote: post #164
hyperion_ wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Switzerland is not a part of the EU.

Right, but it's part of the Schengen area, which also covers most of the EU countries, so once you got a visa to e.g. France, you're free to work and live in Switzerland as well.

Nope. There are many different types of Schengen visa [1] and it generally does not allow you to work. For this you need a national visa from a specific member state [2]. So, no, if you get a work permit in France, you are not free to live and work in Switzerland. In fact, EU citizens generally need a residency and work permit if they wish to live and work there.

[1] http://www.schengenvisainfo.com/schengen-visa-types/ [2] http://www.schengenvisainfo.com/frequently-asked-questions-s...

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#238

Post by btian »

drzaiusapelord wrote: post #152
purpleparakeet wrote: post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why don't you let Jogesh decide for himself what he'd like to do?

He certainly can, but as a citizen I should have preferential right to work instead of my job taken from me and handed to H1B's.

Do you have a law degree?

Do Fortune 500 companies trust you to represent them?

The job will just remain unfilled when the author leaves the US...

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#239

Post by testrun »

hackerboos wrote: post #119
jacquesm wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I spent many years waiting to get my Canadian paperwork sorted out and spent a small fortune doing so. In the end I gave up and moved back to NL.

I was awarded Permanent Residency to me and my wife without either of us ever having visited Canada or a firm job offer(s). No other country does that. The Canadian immigration system is one of the most generous around.

Australia is the same. Got permanent residency without being in Australia.

Re: I spent the last 15 years trying to become an American and failed

#240

Post by lutorm »

bane wrote: post #161
madars wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you overestimate the straight-forwardness of this. Option #2 means including economic incentives in your relationship ("I better rush towards marrying someone, lest I get kicked out!"). Option #3 is very restricted -- if you are on a non-immigrant visa (e.g. student visa), then the simple fact of applying for the lottery (and thus signalling immigration intent) will likely make you ineligible for a renewal.

But you see, that's it. Those are the options. Option #4: treat people who want to immigrate with decency, isn't available. I think it's fair to complain that this option doesn't exist, I'd like it to exist. But it doesn't and options #1-3 are what the author had to work within, yet chose not to pursue any of them. If he still wants to get in, once he's back in New Zealand, he's free to continue pursuing permanent re…

It seems you're contradicting yourself. You say "I think it's fair to complain that this option doesn't exist, I'd like it to exist." But then you go on to disparage the author for doing just that.

You can't simultaneously say that it's fair to complain and argue that people are "just complaining". Or is it only fair for people not affected by these laws, who have no incentive to complain, to do so?

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