7 ms·
Have you ever smoked weed? Answer this question and you could be banned from US
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- x3n0ph3n3 10y agoYet another reason I believe it is not unethical to lie to bureaucracies.
- paulddraper 10y agoI'm sure the feeling's mutual.
- x3n0ph3n3 10y agoBureaucracies do not have feelings.
- tomjen3 10y agoNo, but in the U.S. It is a crime. Which is why you don't talk to cops.
- ap3 10y agoWho maked the call for the ban? Is it the border agent or did it go through a process?
- vkou 10y agoAFAIK, any border agent can place a five-year ban on you for any reason, including no reason whatsoever. The moral of the story is that you should always follow the unwritten rules of interacting with border agents (Which you always should, when interacting with any people who have absolute power over you, and no accountability.) And hope that you don't run into this guy. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/ex-u-s-officer-s-border-bans-to-be-reviewed-1.997985 http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/ex-u-s-office...
- jdavis703 10y agoAnd what are these "rules?" Don't do or say anything stupid?
- vkou 10y agoAnswer the question they asked, not the question you think they asked. Don't volunteer any extra information. Don't admit to any criminal activity. Know the exact address that you are travelling to. Take off your hat, and your sunglasses. If it's dark, and you are travelling by car, turn on all of your cabin lights. If you have anything interesting in your passport, or in the luggage they searched, you may be asked questions that will try to catch you in a lie. "So, how do you like working at Facebook?" "I work for Microsoft, Sir, it's pretty good." Be polite and deferential, but not friendly. Keep your answers short and to the point. Be white. Don't look nervous. Follow these simple steps, and the overwhelming majority of the time, you'll be just fine [1]. [1] If you are traveling as a speaker to a conference, or for a work function, my understanding is there is a separate set of incantations that you should invoke.
- skyrw 10y agoSummary: Don't confess to a federal crime when being interrogated by border patrol and expect zero consequences. This applies to all nations.
- panic 10y agoYeah, these honest people deserve what they get! They should have known we only allow liars into our great country.
- serf 10y agopersonally i'd probably prefer a liar than someone who lacks the common sense to ixnay on (regionally) legally taboo matters with a law-enforcement figure. Especially when the figure has a reputation like the TSA or border patrol. Liars can be exposed; I don't know how to teach common sense. I hope one day it's not like this , but treating authority like they are your buddies having a casual chat is unwise on many levels, and not just in the U.S.
- panic 10y agoI agree that in a world where authorities have such individual power over people, lying is a good idea. But there's no law of nature that says we need to have authorities like that. There are plenty of ways to limit people in positions of power. So let's focus on how we can fix the system instead of justifying why the honest people who are caught up in it deserve what they get.
- tajen 10y agoAaaand this is why I don't even want to try visiting US, despite being offered to talk at conferences about my product. I'm using a false name on Facebook and HN, which makes me afraid of any agent asking "Have you ever impersonated someone" or "Have you ever committed a crime against US interest". I just dread the TSA. Plus I carry nudes on my laptop, which despite the male models probably being above 24, I can't prove aren't below 18, and even though I could clear my HDDs, I might as well do business with a freeer country. The only limitation is, given I'm French and we've just had our "9/11"-type terrorist attacks, I'm afraid we might progressively set up the same extreme police system. If we do so, I'd like to apologize in advance in the name of the people of my country...
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- sremani 10y agoThe headline is click-baity, he can still come to USA but has to apply in advance to a costly permit. Canada throws similar hissy-fit when dealing with Americans or Green card holders with DUI record.
- fu9ar 10y ago"I will neither confirm nor deny any prior illegal activity."
- jdavis703 10y agoAnd then they can just send you on the first flight back home.
- Const-me 10y agoHow about “No, I don’t remember doing anything like that, ever” ?
- coderzach 10y agoHow about "No sir, never."
- gozur88 10y agoBorder guards aren't stupid. They know when you're being evasive, and they'll ask followup questions.
- biafra 10y agoThe form only has check boxes for yes or no. And the right answer for all questions is: no If you want to get into the country.
- walrus01 10y agoWhen dealing with CBP/ICE don't even acknowledge that you are aware of the existence of something called weed. Seriously, they have no sense of humor.
- 13of40 10y agoYou should just say, "How should I know? Am I a botanist? I've smoked a lot of stuff."
- Jugurtha 10y agoI remember a friend asking me if I could check the visa application process to the U.S. because he didn't really understand. The form was DS 160, if I recall. Here is a sample: http://photos.state.gov/libraries/jamaica/231771/PDFs/DS-160%20Instructions.pdf http://photos.state.gov/libraries/jamaica/231771/PDFs/DS-160... Some questions from page 38: "Are you coming to the United States to engage in prostitution or unlawful commercialized vice or have you been engaged in prostitution or procuring prostitutes within the last 10 years?" "Do you seek to engage in espionage, sabotage, export control violations, or any other illegal activity while in the United States?" "Do you seek to engage in terrorist activities while in the United States or have you ever engaged in terrorist activities?" I mean, I'm sure there's a rationale behind these questions.. maybe in a "plausible deniability" way.. but they're funny. The problem is that sometimes, one cannot know if they violated a law. There was a video of a lawyer asking people not to talk to the cops where he addressed this point.
- koenigdavidmj 10y agoIt's so if they have a good reason to investigate you enough, and any of these is false, they can charge you with perjury even if they can't get anything else to stick.
- Jugurtha 10y agoThat's why I added the remark on the possibility of being unaware you even committed the deed. Here's the video of the lawyer about this issue: https://youtu.be/6wXkI4t7nuc?t=5m46s https://youtu.be/6wXkI4t7nuc?t=5m46s The video is worth watching from beginning to end. The second part includes the cop's perspective.
- pekk 10y agoWhy doesn't anyone ever think of the pimps, spies and terrorists who want to comfortably practice their trades in the US without being warned that the US is not keen on such activity?
- ArkyBeagle 10y agoThere's a Zappa piece from "Yellow Shark" about this - "Welcome to the United States."
- jedmeyers 10y ago> has to apply in advance to a costly permit. Oh, my, now this proud Canadian has to drop down to a level of some schmuck from a third world country who has to apply for a visa. Let's all feel sorry for him. And those permits are only valid for a limited time!
- dang 10y agoPlease don't comment like this here. It degrades the quality of the site for everyone. We detached this comment from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12466617 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12466617 and marked it off-topic.
- gozur88 10y agoIt's not that he can't enter the US. It's just that he has to file an extra form and pay a fee. The legal situation around marijuana in the US sucks. It may be legal at the state level where you live, but it's still very much illegal at the federal level and in theory you can spend a year in federal prison on the first offense for any amount.
- Udik 10y agoOn a side, and just out of curiosity: has there been any thought in the US so far about prosecuting the doctors that liberally hand out certificates for the use of medical cannabis? Because it is clear that anybody can get one, so the doctors must be making a false declaration.
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- BrandoElFollito 10y agoWelcome to the court-based country which is the US. You are expected to be serious when answering on the visa waiver whether you will kill people when in the US, and some more ridiculous questions like this one. Why? The only reason I can imagine is that when you are arrested after blowing up a bomb you cannot say that you did not expect this to be illegal. I am missing a question on my plans to run naked on the street or publicly pee.