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  • #2197539

    Visiting the USA

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    by neilb@uk ·

    or, rather, not visiting the USA.

    I’ve been to the USA on vacation a dozen or more times. Love it and love you all. Although, on every flight I’ve filled in that silly green card with its stupid questions: “Were you ever a member of the Nazi party?”.

    Last time, I filled in my details on the new Electronic System for Travel Authorization, ESTA, a couple of weeks prior and although I have to reckon it the crappiest website ever invented, it was probably easier than trying to fill the card in on an economy flight table. The questions aren’t any better: “Have you ever been or are you now involved in espionage or sabotage; or in terrorist activities; or genocide; or between 1933 and 1945 were you involved, in any way, in persecutions associated with Nazi Germany or its allies?”. Ah, well… That would be telling.

    Now, it would seem, we have to comply with the ESTA and [b]pay for the privilege[/b], starting on 8th September. OK, so it’s only 14 USD but – and this is where I get slightly ticked off – the charge is not to pay for the service but is intended to be used to promote US tourism.

    You want ME to pay for YOUR tourist promotion? Nope. Don’t we Brits (and others) contribute enough to you tourism?

    Now, I could fill it in now while it’s free and it’s good for the next two years but my passport needs renewing and the ESTA goes with it. And so does next year’s trip.

    It’s the principle. The USA is a rich country and I go there to spend money – lots of it – on travel, accommodation, food and entertainment. I already pay US customs $2.70, a US immigration fee of $3.50 and a US animal and plant health inspection services user fee of about $2.50 every time I travel (and I don’t get anything from that).

    This year, I’m driving to Rimini, in Italy, and I’ll pass through seven countries and not only will it not cost me anything when I cross the borders, I won’t even have to show my passport.

    Neil 🙁

    My erstwhile membership of the Waffen SS will probably be quite useful in Switzerland.

All Comments

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    Replies
    • #2852439

      WHAT?!?!!?!

      by jaqui ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      you won’t come to CANADA instead?
      that does it.
      not only stand gg up but ignore Canada. to boot.

      • #2853864

        Oh, I’ll visit Canada

        by neilb@uk ·

        In reply to WHAT?!?!!?!

        you guys don’t want to rip me off!

        🙂

        I’m still going to Rimini, though. And also down to Sorrento, near Naples. I’m going to climb Vesuvius and stare down into the crater and see if it dares to explode.

        • #2853853

          If it does….

          by puppybreath ·

          In reply to Oh, I’ll visit Canada

          can you send us pictures before the lava gets too close?

          😉

        • #2853851

          Of course

          by neilb@uk ·

          In reply to If it does….

          If I can outrun the pyroclastic flow.

          :p

        • #2853663
          Avatar photo

          NA Neil

          by hal 9000 ·

          In reply to Of course

          Don’t bother trying to outrun anything take a Lappie along with a 3G USB Dongle and give us the Real Time Web Cam Feed as the ash envelopes you. 😉

          Col ]:)

        • #2853759

          Vesuvius will give your calves a work-out.

          by charliespencer ·

          In reply to Oh, I’ll visit Canada

          Stretch good first, and plan on about 45-60 minutes to get all the way up if you push it. It’s a leisurely 90 if the tour bus isn’t on a schedule and you’re not in a rush.

          Sorrento is pleasant; Pompei is mandatory; Naples is a dump.

        • #2853520

          Thanks for the info

          by neilb@uk ·

          In reply to Vesuvius will give your calves a work-out.

          I will have my own car with me so no time constraints. It also means that I can pack my walking boots and poles. Barring eruptions, I should be good to go.

          Naples, we are deliberately by-passing. Sorrento is so that we can see Pompei, Vesuvius and Amalfi.

          🙂

        • #2852370

          I don’t suppose you’ll be driving to Sicily.

          by seanferd ·

          In reply to Thanks for the info

          :0

          But Etna is a fantastic beast.

        • #2852343

          It was a little more active than usual when I was there

          by nicknielsen ·

          In reply to I don’t suppose you’ll be driving to Sicily.

          I could see the glow from my hotel room in Caltagirone.

          When I left, I flew out of the airport at Catania. I was able to see it on the left as the flight headed up the coast. Very impressive.

        • #2852233

          I did check out Sicily

          by neilb@uk ·

          In reply to I don’t suppose you’ll be driving to Sicily.

          because I could have got a really good hotel deal but once I’d factored in getting the car across the Strait of Messina, It didn’t really seem worth the extra thousand miles.

          🙂

        • #2852232

          Make sure…

          by ansugisalas ·

          In reply to I did check out Sicily

          that it wasn’t in fact a hotel deal you cannot refuse…

    • #2853866

      Never let it be said

      by boxfiddler ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      that our ‘fearless leaders’ have any sense…

      • #2853862

        Some piece of tourism promotion…

        by ansugisalas ·

        In reply to Never let it be said

        that form and that site…

        Yes, come right in, but first, answer me these questions three…
        WHAT is your name?!? Goering? Hitler? Goebbels? Hmmm?!?
        WHAT is your quest?!? Terror? Genocide? Death and Destruction? Rebuilding the Reich?!! Hmmm?!?
        WHAT is your favourite colour? Brown, maybe? Hmmm?!?

        • #2853703

          Questions

          by ed woychowsky ·

          In reply to Some piece of tourism promotion…

          I worked with a guy who said yes when asked if he or any member of his family ever tried to overthrow the government of the United States. Turns out that his grandfather or great-grandfather was a Confederate General.

          I wonder how Homeland Security would handle that kind of answer?

        • #2852176

          Aiieeee!

          by juanita marquez ·

          In reply to Some piece of tourism promotion…

          Do you mean colo(u)r in the visible or invisible spectrum?

          *flip*

          You have to know these things when you are royalty, you know.

    • #2853855

      The reason is

      by seanferd ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      that not only will they bust you when they find out you were a member of the SS, but they can heap on additional charges for lying about it. Because that would be worse.

      edit: That fourteen bucks is supposed to make you really re-think your position if you are going to lie, because you’ll be out that fourteen bucks as well as not getting into the U.S. (Because being out the fourteen bucks would also be worse than not getting into the U.S.)

      • #2853843
        Avatar photo

        But I love SS’s

        by hal 9000 ·

        In reply to The reason is

        So does that mean that I can’t come?

        Granted they are Ducati SS’s but after all the Italian Government was a German Allie and right in there with the German SS, so does that mane that anything called SS from Italy is suspect too?

        Yep I knew that there was a reason why I didn’t go to the US this year and now I’ve remembered it. It wasn’t that I was so busy but that they wanted me to fill in that silly green thing that isn’t even at all [i]”Green.”[/i] :0

        But no questions about Members of the previous Japanese Air Force asking if they where ever a failed Kamikaze?

        Col :^0

        • #2853833

          Well, they aren’t as scary now.

          by seanferd ·

          In reply to But I love SS’s

          Since the Japanese enemy at the time didn’t have a cool buzzword name like the Nazis (whom many in the U.S. defended right up to the war).

          Besides, we nuked the crap out of Japan, and and they were mostly killing unsympathetic brown people and future Commies who don’t have a huge post-war lobbying concern. And since there weren’t U.S. companies aiding the enemy in the Pacific as they did for the enemy in Europe (e.g., IBM), there may be additional guilt involved for the whole Nazi thing.

          Hrm. Does Ducati USA sell the SS?
          http://www.ducatiusa.com/bikes/index.do
          Don’t see a super sport for 2010. Maybe they don’t like the SS designation? :0 However, the name “Hypermotard” certainly grabs my attention.

        • #2853831

          “Hypermotard”

          by santeewelding ·

          In reply to Well, they aren’t as scary now.

          That can only be a dog of mechanical intelligence.

          HAL: tell us it ain’t so.

        • #2853669
          Avatar photo

          I’m probably not the right person to ask about this

          by hal 9000 ·

          In reply to “Hypermotard”

          I gave up following the new Duc’s when God Retired and the Rubber Band Motors became the only ones used against God’s wishes.

          Besides as he designed the Bevels which have a very unique sound and made a small underfunded Engine Builder into the only Successful Desmo Production Company in the world he must have been doing something right. 😉

          But those OHC Belt Drive motors just never interested me all that much. The Trellis Frames first used on the Pantha’s that where the first of the [b]”Rubber Band Motors”[/b] didn’t look or perform anywhere near as impressively as the then current MHR’s.

          The need to turn the rear Cylinder hear 180 Degree’s and fit a Down Draft Webber Carby certainly to me looked like a backward step and I was no where near as impressed riding one of those Rubber Band Things as the Bevels. Must be my age showing but then again God didn’t like them either. 😀

          I just wonder what would have happened to their latter Racing Ambitions if he had of still been involved with their design and styling. Their last World Championship Winning Moto GP Bike looked really nice provided you didn’t remove any of the plastic on it but I just can not get motivated with their Road Bikes even since they introduced the Fuel Injection that actually works. The new stuff may appear to go faster maybe but my old Bevel SS still shows most of the rubber band things a clean pair of heals whenever I turn the taps on and wear out tires.

          Drives the Competition Crazy when they are unable to keep up with a 30 year old Duc on the race track on the very few occasions that I blow the cobwebs out of the exhaust pipes.

          But did you know who is one of the biggest maker of Marine Engines? :0

          Col

        • #2852373

          Caterpillar Marine Diesel

          by oldbaritone ·

          In reply to I’m probably not the right person to ask about this

          “But did you know who is one of the biggest maker of Marine Engines?”

        • #2852211
          Avatar photo

          Cat is big in the US

          by hal 9000 ·

          In reply to Caterpillar Marine Diesel

          But it’s not the best known outside the US.

          Volvo Penta is the expected one here by most Boaties but the Ducati Marine Diesel’s are also very common. 😉

          When it comes to numbers produced Ducati is still one of the big guys in this field.

          Col

        • #2853757

          War Criminals

          by charliespencer ·

          In reply to But I love SS’s

          No one is still looking for Japanese war criminals in connection with the Holocaust.

          Why they think anyone they’re looking for would answer ‘Yes’ is beyond me. “Hey, that’s right, I was a guard at Auschwitz! I better put that down!”

        • #2853701

          Exactly.

          by seanferd ·

          In reply to War Criminals

          Why would they self-identify?

          And no, no one is looking for Japanese involved with the Holocaust. That was in Europe. The Japanese did their own thing in Asia/Pacific, which doesn’t have a name like the Holocaust does. The Rape of Nanking is about as close as it gets to the Asian atrocities having some sort of identity, and it certainly doesn’t cover all of them.

        • #2853677
          Avatar photo

          What about the Japanese

          by hal 9000 ·

          In reply to Exactly.

          Prisoner of War Camps.

          Not at all nice places to be an inmate. :p

          Col

        • #2853672

          Nope, not nice at all.

          by seanferd ·

          In reply to What about the Japanese

          And remember how freaked out the U.S. was about American citizens of Japanese descent? Put them in camps, took everything away from them. Americans of German descent weren’t treated like that, but who are we looking for with the $14 are-you-a-war-criminal card?

          It’s all theater.

          But we do have the wonderfully romanticized The Bridge on the River Kwai.

        • #2853552

          Well, the argument could be made

          by charliespencer ·

          In reply to What about the Japanese

          That POW atrocities are in a different category from those inflicted on civilians. Or that the number of Holocaust victims was much larger. Or maybe the WWII victors tried all the Japanese war criminals they were interested in.

          Or maybe the Western powers didn’t give a rat’s about war crimes outside Europe? Nah…

        • #2852371

          War Criminals … on their Walking Frames

          by oldbaritone ·

          In reply to War Criminals

          There are no youngsters who served in WWII any more, from ANY side of the conflict.

          Oh, sorry – we’re not allowed to profile so we mustn’t look at the wrinkles or gray hair.

        • #2852209

          A better question to ask

          by ed woychowsky ·

          In reply to War Criminals … on their Walking Frames

          Want is your response to the phrase; “There can be only one?”
          A. Huh?
          B. One want?
          C. Draw your ceremonial Waffen-issue sword and take a head.
          D. None of the above.

        • #2852186

          That could

          by seanferd ·

          In reply to A better question to ask

          seriously cut down on the number of customs and immigrations agents asking any questions at all. It wouldn’t surprise me that they would allow you to walk around with a 30-odd inch blade as long as you weren’t crazy enough to have a 30 ounce bottle of shampoo as well.

    • #2853800

      creative sausage-making and ill will

      by bergenfx ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      I completely agree how stupid this is. Revenues will probably be enough to buy a wing for a military transport carrier. Hardly worth the ill will, but then I am not the one who gets to make these value judgments.

      Bush tax cuts have pushed burdens on to states (by reducing federal revenue sharing). State elected officials don’t want to antagonize voters with an income or sales tax increases, so they make creative taxes which affect the least number of people. Seems the federal govt has picked up the theme and are taxing non-voting visitors. (I know. More than you want to know about American sausage-making). I imagine also, the bean-counters set a figure that most international travelers would shrug at, not figuring for those offended in principle.

      Practically speaking, though, most European governments make out better than the US. The 15% – 18% VAT is a much larger dent than $14 plus a 5% – 8% sales tax, (in my state, 0%).

      • #2853785

        It’s not that they want to charge me 14 USD

        by neilb@uk ·

        In reply to creative sausage-making and ill will

        (much) but that they want to put the money towards promoting tourism to the US. I agree that the level is set that a family of four will “only” have to add $56 to their holiday costs and will probably pay it to take their kids to Disney but I will find somewhere else to go.

        Canada, maybe…

        🙂

    • #2853787

      Ich bin ein…

      by mjwx ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      [i]Ah, well… That would be telling.[/i]

      A quote from The Prisoner?

      Appropriate I guess. I’ve always been amused at the idea of asking, on an arrival card if I’m planning to overthrow the government. I feel like ticking yes just for the fun of it (if they find out I’m planning to do it by ticking yes on the arrival card my masterful plan will be foiled). The Australian card at least asks useful questions like “have you got any plants, animals or porn”.

      As for paying for Customs services, you could just do what most countries do. Confiscate your cheap booze at the door if you’ve got more the 2L of it (Litres, yes a metric measurement dear Americans, you will learn to love the metric system). This is why it’s always party time at the AQIS (Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service) HQ.

      Well, be seeing you.

      • #2853786

        The dutch form probably is like this:

        by ansugisalas ·

        In reply to Ich bin ein…

        A) Are you a person who isn’t dutch?
        B) Are you without drugs?
        C) Are you without a prostitute?

        The only prohibitive one is A… that’s a no-go :p

      • #2853702

        Litres

        by ed woychowsky ·

        In reply to Ich bin ein…

        Booze and soda are two things that we can get in metric. Although most Americans don’t even realize that it’s metric.

        • #2853699

          Motorcycle engines too :p

          by ansugisalas ·

          In reply to Litres

          Them cc’s ain’t cubic cubits 😀

        • #2853671

          Engine displacement is rapidly going metric

          by nicknielsen ·

          In reply to Motorcycle engines too :p

          Heck, even the big engines are metric; my company van doesn’t have a 340 V-8, it has a 5.6 liter. And 750cc sounds a whole lot better than 45 cubic inches.

          Besides, only car people really understand engine displacement anyway. :p

        • #2852368

          and Litres are larger

          by oldbaritone ·

          In reply to Litres

          so even if we have 2 full quarts, that’s “less than 2 litres”

          But most Americans don’t even realize it – all they know is that the pint bottle of water is now 16.9 oz, and they don’t have a clue that it’s 500 ml.

        • #2852250

          That

          by ansugisalas ·

          In reply to and Litres are larger

          is hilarious!
          如此欢闹的,我可以哭

        • #2852184

          It rather much is

          by seanferd ·

          In reply to That

          a weeping matter.

        • #2852230

          Not larger than OUR pints

          by neilb@uk ·

          In reply to and Litres are larger

          Our pints are a full-bodied 20oz so 500ml glasses of beer are less than we are used to. Luckily, pubs still serve pints.

          We are resisting metrication in every way possible. The idea, put forward a few years ago, to move us to Kilometeres, was quickly shelved when the PTB realised that it would cost billions and not really achieve anything at all.

          🙂

        • #2852210

          That explains it!

          by ed woychowsky ·

          In reply to Not larger than OUR pints

          My British friend can drink me under the table because he’s had more practice. I’ve only been doing 16 oz. curls!

          Boy, am I a slacker! 😀

        • #2852191

          Yep, them British pints will get you

          by nicknielsen ·

          In reply to That explains it!

          A friend of mine brought some pint glasses back from his assignment to England. He was sorely disappointed to find out it took almost two 12-oz. bottles of beer to fill those “pint” glasses….

    • #2853760

      That’s what tourists are for.

      by charliespencer ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      Seriously, many state and local governments find ways to milk tourists for tax purposes. Many areas charge hotel taxes; obviously only out-of-towners (-countriers) pay those. Don’t European countries do the same?

      You’ve been paying for our tourism promotion all along. This time it’s just more in your face.

      • #2853666
        Avatar photo

        Not to mention that the AU Government

        by hal 9000 ·

        In reply to That’s what tourists are for.

        Charges people to come to and leave AU. Even it’s own people have to pay for the privilege to leave the country and return for a holiday.

        Could be the reason that the Current Federal Pollies don’t like the [b]Boat People[/b] they are not paying the Arrival Tax so they are not welcome. 😀

        Those who fly in and then disappear as Illegal Immigrants at least Pay their Arrival Tax so they are acceptable and don’t rate any Red Neck Style Complaints. What I find funny about both the current Political Party Leaders when they go on about the Immigrant Problem as they perceive it, they both fail to mention that they came here as $10.00 Poms all those years ago. On a Boat. :^0

        Col

    • #2853740

      Dammit!

      by maecuff ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      And I was going to have a party in your honor. We’d goosestep around the back yard. Maybe have a barbeque..

      • #2853664
        Avatar photo

        But Mae here the real question is

        by hal 9000 ·

        In reply to Dammit!

        Who is it that you where planing on Barbecuing?

        Col ]:)

    • #2852391

      That bites, Neil

      by jck ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      But, you’re not alone.

      To renew my passport went from $75 to $110.

      That’s 6 pints of beer difference!

      Damn American bureaucrats.

      BTW, got any jobs over there yet? lol

      • #2852376

        Times are hard, John

        by neilb@uk ·

        In reply to That bites, Neil

        They’ve got to get money from anywhere that they can. You, me…

        🙂

        No jobs, sorry. We’re being outsourced in February. Not too sure what is going to happen.

    • #2852334

      Oh, thats pretty bad

      by av . ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

      Who in their right mind would answer yes to any of those questions?

      Welcome to the the country that nickels and dimes you to death. If you live here, you’re used to that, but that is no way to promote tourism!

      Still, Italy is beautiful. Good choice, Neil. Have lots of good food and wine and an excellent time.

      AV

      • #2852331

        RE: Who in their right mind…

        by nexs ·

        In reply to Oh, thats pretty bad

        Who?
        I know who!

        A very honest Al-Qaeda terrorist.

        • #2852139

          So now we know…

          by ansugisalas ·

          In reply to RE: Who in their right mind…

          If you check yes, you’ll wake up next in guantanamo. Waterboarding is free, and every hour is happy hour.

    • #2852226

      Message has been deleted.

      by highmigh ·

      In reply to Visiting the USA

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