I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks • Hacker News Board

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#651

Post by ericzawo » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:28 PM UTC

avereveard wrote: post #646

greggyb wrote: post #237

Why is this flagged? First of all, it's about an entrepreneur traveling to the US for a startup, which is directly relevant to a significant proportion of YCombinator founders themselves. Beyond its direct relevance to the core founding audience of HN, it is not clickbait or wantonly inflammatory, and is clearly of interest to many based on the comment activity and votes.

It's about someone with an denied visa trying to work around due immigration process (going to a consulate) by attempting instead to get to a far away border crossing and attempting a crossing there because, in her own recollection of the events, she knew/assumed the office was less strict. And while it's a non story it's framed as a scandal because it resonate with the current political climate and the character is…

A significant portion of HN readers, right now, are working and living in the United States on the visa that the author was trying to (re)apply for.

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#652

Post by otikik » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:28 PM UTC

blindriver wrote: post #442

otikik wrote: post #334

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> during the 1970s and 1980s If we go back long enough, the democratic party opposed Abraham Lincoln. We have to put a line somewhere. > According to Biden To be clear, I'm not a US citizen. If you think telling me that Biden lied is a shocker, you are wrong. I do think that in general he lies less than Trump, though. But to answer the spirit of your not-in-very-good-faith question: GDP means nothing if all the wealt…

I'm putting a line at the 1970s and 1980s and then explained how things changed immediately after that and that's when they started abandoning the working class. > If you think telling me that Biden lied is a shocker, you are wrong. I'm not saying you should be shocked. I'm giving strong evidence that your assertion that the economy was bad is wrong. What is your proof that the economy was bad?

Why repeat what I already said?

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#653

Post by casenmgreen » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:31 PM UTC

Guardian is a reputable, sound left-wing newspaper in the UK.

I'm not a fan, because I'm not in favour of State-run services, but they make what seems to me to be a sound point; that where ICE is private, but State funded, processing people takes the longest possible time because the longer the process takes, the more money they earn. This would also be why conditions are brutal and so inhumane; it's cheaper.

Charlie Munger I think wrote something like if you give people stupid incentives, you get stupid outcomes.

On the face of it, this looks like that, with the added complication the lunatics now running place would say this treatment is desirable.

Question then is how do you set up a State-funded privately run system to behave in the ways you do want, with rapid processing and humane treatment of people.

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#654

Post by Tostino » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:32 PM UTC

helaoban wrote: post #547

Tostino wrote: post #381

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You think it's "reflexive hysteria" to be worried about fascism? Let me ask: when exactly would you recognize it? When would you "step in"? In Italy, would it be in 1919 when Mussolini founded his party? Or 1922 when he marched on Rome? Maybe 1924 when opposition leader Matteotti was murdered? Or 1926 when all other parties were banned? For Nazi Germany, was January 1933 when Hitler became Chancellor too early to wor…

Sigh, when will people stop reaching for Hitler / Mussolini analogies to explain every political development they witness in their lives? It really is a remarkable achievement by the propaganda departments of the victors of the 2nd world war that 80 years later this is still the only framework by which their citizens understand the world. History didn't start in 1918, and if you think the political situation in the U…

Your dismissal misses the point. I didn't claim "every political development" parallels fascism, I outlined specific concerning patterns: the Alien Enemies Act, mass detention, ideological purges, and demonizing outgroups.

History provides frameworks for recognizing dangerous patterns. If you prefer earlier examples: Consider the Roman Republic's fall where Sulla targeted political enemies, Caesar dismantled institutional checks, or Augustus centralized power while maintaining democratic facades. Or Napoleon's transformation from revolutionary to emperor using emergency powers and populist appeals.

The point isn't perfect historical parallels, it's recognizing warning signs before it's too late. Dismissing valid concerns with sighs and bridge-selling metaphors adds nothing substantive.

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#655

Post by casenmgreen » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:32 PM UTC

avereveard wrote: post #646

greggyb wrote: post #237

Why is this flagged? First of all, it's about an entrepreneur traveling to the US for a startup, which is directly relevant to a significant proportion of YCombinator founders themselves. Beyond its direct relevance to the core founding audience of HN, it is not clickbait or wantonly inflammatory, and is clearly of interest to many based on the comment activity and votes.

It's about someone with an denied visa trying to work around due immigration process (going to a consulate) by attempting instead to get to a far away border crossing and attempting a crossing there because, in her own recollection of the events, she knew/assumed the office was less strict. And while it's a non story it's framed as a scandal because it resonate with the current political climate and the character is…

That is a profound distortion of what happened.

I would advise readers to read the article.

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#656

Post by SpicyLemonZest » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:34 PM UTC

hattmall wrote: post #643

SpicyLemonZest wrote: post #522

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's international news because she was detained for 2 weeks with no explanation. If they had simply booted her back across the border - which I thought was the default in cases like this, where someone's applying in an orderly manner at a port of entry - few people would have cared.

>If they had simply booted her back across the border They can't. And this is entirely her fault for trying to enter through Mexico. Telling them she will return to Canada isn't helpful because what are they supposed to do? Tell her ok, go get an Uber to the Airport and just let her go? Mexico would not issue her a VISA either so her only option is US or Mexican Detention. When the agent said "You aren't a criminal"…

Is it true that Mexico denied her re-entry? The source article doesn't say anything about that, and I'm not sure why it would happen - Canadian nationals generally have visa-free entry for short trips to Mexico.

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#657

Post by casenmgreen » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:37 PM UTC

cutemonster wrote: post #503

mateus1 wrote: post #400

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Musk, Trump and DOGE topics are all being flagged, even if they are relevant… The tech world has blessed this regime.

I don't think 51% of the readers here need to flag something for it to get flagged - maybe more like 5% or 15%? I guess you can conclude that a few percent here likes Trump etc, but far from a majority

It looks like Twitter is running hate and love bots and using them to support/attack posts according to what presumably is Elon's agenda.

https://bsky.app/profile/willhaycardiff.bsky.social/post/3lk...

Given this, we can reasonably expect hostile bots here, flagging according to agenda.

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#658

Post by mandmandam » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:40 PM UTC

lenerdenator wrote: post #310

mandmandam wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Conducting genocide is supposed to be a good way to piss off "allies". That's domestic and international law, by the way.

Well, what did putting Trump back into office do to stymie it?

That's not the point, and wasn't the question.

The question was, why did Harris lose, and the answer is that many Americans are still too decent to vote for someone who promises to arm the world's most live-streamed genocide.

Millions of potential Dem voters saw atrocities being committed with weapons sent by Biden and Harris. Every day, for over a year. Harris promised to keep doing that. That's viscerally disgusting, and a red line for decent people everywhere.

That's why she lost, which answers the question. Polls before during and after the election back that up unequivocally.

Now, you can argue that it's practical and more moral to vote for the lesser genocide all day, and you can point to all the ways that Trump is worse all night, but you can never, ever convince me that Democrats actually wanted to win more than they wanted to fuel genocide. Because they knew. They knew Harris' numbers, they knew the margins, and they knew what the polls were saying about Gaza. And then they campaigned with Dick Cheney. They managed to lose to a rapist insurrectionist, despite outspending him and his billionaires.

One more time - it's not the voters fault that they couldn't stomach voting for someone actively enabling the mass murder of tens of thousands of children, even if the alternative was openly worse. And it's weird that this is in any way confusing to people.

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#659

Post by manwe150 » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:42 PM UTC

ethbr1 wrote: post #583

aendruk wrote: post #556

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Each time I traveled up there for work, the border guards were polite and professional. Each time I traveled home, I got pulled aside […] Interesting, it was the opposite for me, US citizen with CA work permit circa 2016. CBP seemed to not care while CBSA was often irrationally aggressive and suspicious. The closest thing I got to an explanation once after being freed was “We just like you” with a grin.

My experiences with CBSA were pretty bad too. I was grilled in Vancouver about whether the purpose of my visit was work or pleasure, after I helpfully told the officer that my dad was attending a work conference and I was traveling with him but sightseeing. "Well which one is it, work or pleasure?!" I don't know, dude. I just explained the situation: you're supposed to be the expert!

What confuses me even more about that situation is that Canada seems to distinguish between business travel and work travel instead, where those two options seem to be mutually exclusive to each other (199b), and neither is for pleasure

https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/sor-2002-227...

Re: I'm the Canadian who was detained by ICE for two weeks

#660

Post by yusaythat » Wed, Mar 19, 2025, 6:44 PM UTC

consteval wrote: post #636

enoch_r wrote: post #629

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

To be blunt, your perspective does not align with reality. The reality is that transgender Americans have been doing these things, all these things, for many decades. And nobody, and I do mean nobody, cared. Ultimately you are not inspecting penises in the Men's room. You, yourself, do not care. What do you believe transgender people did in the 70s, or 80s, or 90s? You've never thought about it because you know, deep…

I grew up in locker rooms. I started swimming competitively at age 7. The whole, "you were actually surrounded by trans people your whole life and never knew it till 5 years ago!" is absolutely delusional and my guess is you don't actually have much experience in men's rooms at all.