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International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

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Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#211

Post by dx034 »

edanm wrote: post #189

I really can't believe all the negativity here towards traveling to the US. You're taking a few admittedly awful anecdotes, and turning them into giant statistics about the country. You know that thought experiment where you have scientists debating global warming, but to make it clear just how much consensus there is, instead of having 1 scientist against and 1 pro, you have 1 against and a whole crowd pro? I run th…

I agree with you. I'd actually like to know how many people really get send back at the border. There are occasional stories but the number can't be higher than 0.1% or so..

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#212

Post by Markoff »

ItendToDisagree wrote: post #144
Markoff wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

it's not random check, it's called profiling i don't see why people have problem with this, what would be point randomly search old (white) retired woman, what risk she present? pretty much same goes for Eastern Asians, etc. if you have biggest odds finding terrorist between dark skinned Muslims, then you will search them the most, nothing random or racist about that, it's like saying i won't take umbrella outside wh…

If you're going to profile and be proud... At least profile the correct demographic. http://time.com/3934980/right-wing-extremists-white-terroris...

domestic right wing terrorist don't pass through immigration officers at airports

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#213

Post by infimum »

jbb67 wrote: post #129

Most of the posts on here are ridiculous. People saying they are not going on holiday to the USA because it's too much of a pain. Seriously. We applied online for the visa thing. It took under 5 minutes. Then at the airport we queued up at immigration for around 10 minutes. We showed our passport and answered one question about purpose of visit, and they waved us though. This is the experience of 99.9% of those who v…

from what i gather all the ridiculous security theater is because there's a non-zero chance of anyone being terrorist.

i find it absolutely reasonable to avoid traveling to a place when there's an even bigger chance of being treated like garbage.

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#214

Post by cryptarch »

apexalpha wrote: post #49
8draco8 wrote: post #10

I live in Europe. From my perspective going to US looks like going to some kind totalitarian country. First I have to got visa which is not automatically approved because I'm Polish not British. Then I have to go trough a lot of, mostly pointless, security checks, checking social accounts, interrogations, scans and manual personal revisions. On any stage of that I can be handcuffed and sent back to Europe for almost…

GF traveled to the US for work, a conference in Houston. Everyone that looked Arab of Muslim was 'randomly' picked out of line. Some of the employees had to undress and squat in front of the TSA and one had to undergo cavity searches. These were regular European citizens. Let's just say conferences will be help in Europe or Canada in the future...

They seem to get the racial/sexual/agist profiling right at Schiphol (Amsterdam). I'm a white male in my twenties, and consistently get the patdown. Half the time that includes my inner thighs and the side of some guy's hand touching my balls.

I've come to dislike flying for the humiliating and demeaning security theater I have to go through for it. No way I would risk going through that in the U.S., where it's presumably worse and where I'm not a citizen.

I can barely convince myself to go to family weddings if I have to pass through Schiphol for them. At least with Schiphol I don't have the risk of being detained (or marked a terrorist for having encrypted data/voicing anti-authoritarian opinions/having contact with Muslims, "no rights applicable"), and if I were anyway I could defend myself well as I'm a somewhat savvy citizen.

I already go through great lengths to fly via small German airports, where the security measurers aren't dehumanizing. Perhaps I'll visit the U.S. by boat sometime.

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#215

Post by robteix »

edanm wrote: post #189

I really can't believe all the negativity here towards traveling to the US. You're taking a few admittedly awful anecdotes, and turning them into giant statistics about the country. You know that thought experiment where you have scientists debating global warming, but to make it clear just how much consensus there is, instead of having 1 scientist against and 1 pro, you have 1 against and a whole crowd pro? I run th…

But from the company's perspective, all that matters is that it _can_ and _does_ happen.

I don't believe anyone is saying every single person coming into the US will get searched. We _know_ they are not. But searches _do_ happen and _are_ legal, and that alone justifies preparing for the eventuality.

My employer has always had rules about how to take care of data on your devices. They tell you to enable encryption and to never leave your company laptop alone and stuff like that. The vast majority of employees will never have their devices stolen, but the fact that some might is enough justification to make sure everyone does their best to protect their data. It's the same thing.

That you always had very easy experiences with immigration _is_ the anecdote here, because it does nothing to change the fact that _some_ people will get their devices searched (and data potentially copied) by Immigration agents.

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#216

Post by dx034 »

martinko wrote: post #169
paulajohnson wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lying to them is a serious criminal offense carrying (IIRC) up to 5 years in prison. Even a harmless fib counts.

Jesus. I will seriously try to avoid ever having to travel to the US in this climate.

That lying at the border is a serious offence is neither new nor US specific.

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#217

Post by hollander »

Jare wrote: post #108
ItendToDisagree wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The majority of US citizens did not vote for Trump. Just thought I'd point out that most people DO NOT want this president.

You could say that ~70% of the voters did not try to prevent him becoming president.

Trump voters of course didn't prevent him becoming president. They wanted him, so they voted for him. That doesn't count in my book. So with 55% turnout, that leaves 45% who didn't vote. Still a large portion.

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#218

Post by cryptarch »

raftaa wrote: post #21
Markoff wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

maybe just stop traveling to US would be easier and cheaper solution, why one need to be physically present anywhere in 2017? i find it odd, i can understand it for my father that when some of his agricultural company partners has training, people from neighboring countries must travel there for hours to stay there for few hours and go back, but IT company in 2017? reminds me of Huawei which is still organizing telec…

Because the costumer wants some of the developers on site to see that they are actually working on his problems.

Which is great, because now the developers can do their side jobs while their customers provide them with coffee.

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#219

Post by wil421 »

8draco8 wrote: post #10

I live in Europe. From my perspective going to US looks like going to some kind totalitarian country. First I have to got visa which is not automatically approved because I'm Polish not British. Then I have to go trough a lot of, mostly pointless, security checks, checking social accounts, interrogations, scans and manual personal revisions. On any stage of that I can be handcuffed and sent back to Europe for almost…

Quit believeing everything on the internet. I'm sure those things happen but are so far off the norm.

I've been to Europe twice this past year and I don't think it's any different.

In Italy there was military everywhere in Rome and Florence. At every monument and Big site there were military with guns looking at everyone. Sometimes stopping people.

I've never been patted down and searched as bad as I was in Frankfurt. Security and questioning was on par with US customs.

Don't even get me started on Serbia.

Re: International Travel Guide for Basecamp employees

#220

Post by dbbk »

afandian wrote: post #130
dbbk wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It has happened to me. They looked through my emails and text messages. It was extremely terrifying to experience.

Mind sharing your story? And, though it's unfortunate to ask, can you think of any reasons why you in particular were singled out?

I was just going to the US for a convention then staying for a few weeks afterwards. The question that arose suspicion was why I'd booked to stay in a hotel rather than stay at a friend's house. Ridiculous.

Anyway yeah, I had to collect my luggage and they then opened it up and rummaged through it. Asked why I wasn't taking a video game console despite ostensibly going to a video game convention. My response was of course that this would be quite impractical.

They then demanded access to my phone and read through my messages. They couldn't find anything other than my friend asking when my flight would arrive and a photo of him holding up a bottle of vodka (he was under 21). I think they just gave up at that point and let me through.

Fortunately I narrowly managed to make it to my connecting flight but it was such a stupid thing to have to go through.

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