Not Sure Which Is The Madder Story

[liadnan]

Once again, Christ on a bike... (link via Rainstorm).

LAX or Checkpoint Charlie circa 1970: you decide.

On a more amusing note (via Neil Gaiman) thousands of Christians (for certain values of Christian) plan to move to South Carolina and then secede from the union. As Gaiman notes, it is unclear what the current population of South Carolina think about this.

On a final note, days spent arguing against litigants in person are somewhat tiring. And I have a full day's trial on something rather more substantial tomorrow...

Edited to add a small theological point on the Christian Exodus people.... they say their definition of Christianity is as wide as possible, but I notice they've included the doctrine of salvation by faith alone. Well, that excludes the Catholic and, to the best of my knowledge, Orthodox churches...

Comments

[adjectivemarcus.livejournal.com]

Christ - that's harsh! I'm going to the US in august so I'd better get my story straight in advance!

[ninebelow.livejournal.com]

The Libertarian Party had a similar wheeze to stuff Vermont with libertarians and hence create utopia. Unfortunately, as Cpt. Blackadder would be first to point out, their plan was bollocks.

[liadnan]

New Hampshire according to The Economist (but same difference so far as we're concerned) but yes. Is still their policy according to the article I read.
I was wondering whether there might be an overlap but, to give the Libertarian Party some credit, they seem to take their views to their proper logical conclusion (eg sex life none of the government's business, nor is religion).

[susumu.livejournal.com]

Almost exactly the same deportation ridiculousness happened to my friend Johnny last year.

[deililly.livejournal.com]

I seem to remember when we lived in W. Germany my parents applied to visit E. Germany. Well they started the application anyway. They took one look at the bumpf required to be filled out and decided they didn't really want to go through Checkpoint Charlie THAT much.

I would say America will wind up doing that to themselves if they carry on this way.

[sshi.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I told my mother about this and she was horrified, as she spent rather a lot of the sixties shuttling back and forth between Dublin and New York (joys of an airline job - you can babysit for your sister on another continent...) She has one or two stories about being hauled in for suspicious amounts of visa stamps on her passport (i.e. they thought she was a) gun-running, b) smuggling or c) an IRA bag-woman), but it never went past an hour or so of pointed questioning...

[dr-lovely.livejournal.com]

I can believe all of it. Have smiled my way through close questioning at a number of American airports, stood in the rain outside the American embassy for hours, and been told all sorts of crap about what I am am not allowed to do. Americans are very confident, and it seems that being on passport control does bring out the worst in people. It's the power. Plus you don't want to be the one who let in the dirty bomber.

[clanwilliam.livejournal.com]

When I remember the absolutely adorable US immigration people I've dealt with, I want to cry (the guy in Boston, who when he'd established that a) I was visitng my sister and b) she'd married "one of us" - ie, an American, cheerfully commented "there goes the family" and the lovely guy in San Francisco who said to me "oh you don't want to go to LA to see your friend, stay here, you'l have a much better party). But I saw that article at the weekend, and I have sadly concluded that I cannot go to America at the moment.

Re the Christian Exodus people: a) various American friends have commented along the lines of "South Carolian seceding? Don't they *read* history?" and b) I have been informed by a fundie American that Catholics are not Christians. To which I can only respond with a Compton McKenzie quote:

Presbyterian Minister: "Oh well, Father, we're all labourers in the same vineyard."

Catholic Priest: "Yes, but *we* planted it."

[liadnan]

On reflection I think the worst thing of all about the US immigration thing is not the facts of the instant case, horrifying though they are, but the fact that there is a special entry regime for "representatives of the foreign media".

[amaliedageek.livejournal.com]

Most of my friends live on your side of the pond, and I manage to see them once a year during a software trade show held here. This year, more than half of them looked at the entry requirements and politely informed the head of the program that they would not be attending, and why. I missed them, but I absolutely supported their decision.

[fi.livejournal.com]

I gather it depends on what airport you arrive at... I know of people who travelled to LA and San Fran and who were questioned at length, but two friends of mine who went on a shopping trip to New York, and who were expecting similar hassle, were shooed through.

Of course it could be as arbitrary a criterion as the fact that the officer doesn't like the look of you.

Scary stuff, though.

[liadnan]

Yes, I've heard the New York airports are generally ok. Somewhere in that article there was some reference to them being interested by the fact she was born in Russia - I loved her suppressed report of "and your governor was born in Austria"