If this is how America treats its friends...

[almostwitty]

So the UK stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the US against pretty much everyone else in launching a doomed war against Iraq, which sends Tony Blair out of office, potentially Gordon Brown with him and ushering in the Tories at the next general election ... and what does the UK get in return?

All European visitors to be forced to register with the Department of Homeland Security 72 hours before entering the United States on a visa-waiver system.

Erm... surely, the whole POINT of a visa-waiver system is so that you don't have to do bureaucratic things like registration, retinal scans, fingerprint IDs and all that?

It's the equivalent of asking your neighbour to help you burgular-proof your place, then thanking him and demanding that your neighbour registers with you three days before the next time he wants to visit.

I'd like to think Obama would change this when he gets into office. But he won't.

Ever wonder why we get the feeling that Bush/NASA's plans for a Mars colony aren't about exploration, but about setting up Planet America? ;)

Comments

Re: lol.

[madmosh-uk.livejournal.com]

A shame Blaire - and now Brown - seem to love the taste of shit, isn't it?

I'm not 100% clear on the implications of this "no, it's not a visa even though you have to apply for it to enter the country" thing. If you fill it in, and pass, does this mean you can walk blissfully through security with no risk of a "homeland security" officer on a bad day deciding he doesn't like your hairstyle, subjecting you to 48 hours in a cell with rapists, strip-searching you then shoving you on the first 'plane back to the UK at your own expense?

Or is that only if you remember to tick the "I am not visiting to blow anything up or act as a drug mule" box?

But seriously, will it effectively remove the hassle and worry of being kicked out at the airport? In which case, it's not that much of an issue. Unless you're flying on short notice. And assuming you can register before you pay for your flight, so if they do refuse you then you save some cash.

Re: lol.

[almostwitty]

Nope. I've been to America quite a few times on a visa-waiver. The last-but-one time I went, I was herded into immigration where I had to wait for about 20 mins while they phoned the UK and made a few spot checks on me, and refused to tell me why. Maybe it was because I was carrying a Michael Moore book.

All a visa waiver means is that it allows you to enter the US without having to apply for a visa. Pre-registering for the visa waiver pretty much amounts to applying for a mini-visa, if you will. Just less checks on your person - but can you imagine a family of four registering before they hit Disneyland? Nope, they'll just go to Disneyland Paris instead. Fortress America (hah!) has arrived.

Re: lol.

[madmosh-uk.livejournal.com]

If it's all done through a travel agent anyway, then they'll still likely go. After all, Joe Public probably won't even know about this until they've got everything booked and the agent tells them and hands them the forms.