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

vox.com

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

#391

Post by dsinsky »

bruceb wrote: post #335
winter_blue wrote: post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, it's mostly because those commentors on HN can't code worth their salt, and can't find a job, in an industry with thousands of unfilled positions, and need a scapegoat to pile hatred on. Most of the points stated on those hateful comments are either factually wrong, or overstate something as being the norm, when it probably happens less than 10% of the time. For one, if you are even decently good at software deve…

Yes because if you have some criticism of policies that allow Disney to have workers train their foreign replacement you must be some kind of xenophobic racist. Immigration is a complex issue. Name calling doesn't solve anything.

I'd be open to hearing your criticism of policies that allow Disney to have [American] workers train their foreign replacements that don't invoke any sort of xenophobia or racism.

The whole idea that it would be wrong or humiliating to have to train someone who had the gall to be born in a different (and generally poorer) country is based on the notion that Americans should be treated with more regard than people born elsewhere. If Disney had fired 200 Americans and replaced them with 200 other Americans, would there have been an uproar? Almost certainly not. Since they only difference is the new workers' nation of origin, how is this not a xenophobic or racist reaction?

Lots of issues are complex but complexity is not an excuse for xenophobia.

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

#392

Post by spiralpolitik »

sampo wrote: post #366
sampo wrote: post #363

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The H1B is now primarily used by outsourcing companies to move jobs overseas. How do they do that?

Ok, maybe this is the mechanics: "some of the most active users of visas for visiting workers are Indian outsourcing firms, which appear to be training workers in the U.S. and then sending them home" http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/archives/2007/02/outs...

Correct. Outsourcing company sends workers to the job site to document the job responsibilities so that the position can be transferred overseas. Usually it takes about six months to a year.

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

#393

Post by cesarbs »

bane wrote: post #379
diego_moita wrote: post #272

Disclaimer: I am a Canadian permanent resident. > I like it here. This is the real problem, you have a severe case of non-reciprocal love. In that case the answer is obvious: move over, find another love, come to Canada or go to Northern Europe. U.S. immigration is an American problem,since they are the ones loosing talent and entrepreneurial people. It is not an immigrant's problem, since they don't have the powers…

I think this is entirely fair. The U.S. is not a country that loves anybody -- not in the way that countries like Denmark does. The U.S. works by mostly just getting out of the way and ignoring you at least compared to other advanced countries. You have more room to succeed or fail here than most other countries, but the government really won't do much to help you either way. Most interactions with the government her…

Could you elaborate on Denmark? I always thought they were really tough on immigration.

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

#394

Post by prawn »

murbard2 wrote: post #217
pc86 wrote: post #187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't it? By definition wouldn't an increase in supply of talent for a given job decrease market wage for that talent unless it was already in a shortage (which we never really know until it's over)?

It would also decrease prices and thus raise living standards. Customers would then turn their attention to better goods and services, increasing the demand for labor. You're committing the lump of labor fallacy. Think about it this way, if two countries were to merge, would everyone be worse off because of the increased competition on the job market? No, people would be better off due to the increased amount of trad…

How does that play out with increased consolidation and automation?

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

#395

Post by spiralpolitik »

blue11 wrote: post #336
bane wrote: post #72

I sympathize with the author, the path to a green card is ridiculous. [1] But that's where my sympathies stop. It's not a hidden process either. If staying here matters to you better work tirelessly to put yourself on a path to permanent residency and you better be the one to push it daily or it won't happen. Here we have a highly educated, Ivy Leaguer with a LAW DEGREE , who didn't. But about 500,000 people a year d…

Option #1 is actually fairly easy. But it often means taking a less exciting job than, say, an early stage startup. I have to agree with you that the author didn't have his priorities straight.

The key with option #1 is get everything in writing and have the filing of the GC start on day one of employment.

I know plenty of people who screwed themselves out of a GC because they didn't do both of those things.

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

#396

Post by yetanotheracc »

yellowapple wrote: post #367
simplexion wrote: post #361

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can I come to Netherlands with you? I am sick of Australia and I enjoy riding bicycles.

Can I come to the Netherlands with the two of you? I am sick of America and I also enjoy riding bicycles.

Can I have your apartment when you leave?

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

#397

Post by spiralpolitik »

lutorm wrote: post #200
rayiner wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's not an answer to the point above. Having people who live in our society but are ineligible for our social benefits is harmful and destabilizing to us.

Also note that people who are in the US on nonimmigrant visas still have to pay SSDI taxes, even though they are ineligible for the benefits. (Though they get to count them towards the time needed for sponsorship if they become immigrants.)

Depending on the state non-immigrants may be eligible if they've paid into the system as generally the state benefits are for state residents, a status that even as a non-immigrant you qualify for.

However most visa categories require you to leave the US within ten days if you no longer meet the visa requirements. So it's difficult to claim said benefits without messing up your future immigration chances.

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

#398

Post by frankchn »

DannoHung wrote: post #304
winter_blue wrote: post #259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> So who's lobbying against this exactly? If you've ever come across any posts on HN regarding immigrant workers in technology (who are on the same visa, the H1B†, that the author of the Vox article was on), you will see a shockingly offensive amount contempt and hatred for highly-skilled immigrants . To answer your question more directly, despite high support for skilled immigration reform, there are currently 2 sen…

Eat me. Change H-1B's to follow a worker from job to job and there is no problem with the program. The fact that anyone who wants to hire a H-1B worker away from their company also has to have acquired a H-1B means that it is abused by companies looking for cheap labor.

From my experience, those "transfer" applications are routinely approved because they are not subject to the H-1B cap. Sure, it will take a few weeks for USCIS to process it and will cost the employer some money, but getting a denial is pretty rare.

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

#400

Post by OmarIsmail »

DannoHung wrote: post #304
winter_blue wrote: post #259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> So who's lobbying against this exactly? If you've ever come across any posts on HN regarding immigrant workers in technology (who are on the same visa, the H1B†, that the author of the Vox article was on), you will see a shockingly offensive amount contempt and hatred for highly-skilled immigrants . To answer your question more directly, despite high support for skilled immigration reform, there are currently 2 sen…

Eat me. Change H-1B's to follow a worker from job to job and there is no problem with the program. The fact that anyone who wants to hire a H-1B worker away from their company also has to have acquired a H-1B means that it is abused by companies looking for cheap labor.

Transferring an H1-B is a couple of orders of magnitude easier than getting a new H1-B. If a person is here on an H1-B already there's more friction in finding a new apartment to rent than there is in transferring the visa.
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