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My company has a H-1B guy that travelled home to India a few months ago and since then can't come back because the next date he can get with the US embassy is n

My company has a H-1B guy that travelled home to India a few months ago and since then can't come back because the next date he can get with the US embassy is next year. Seems he may get stuck even longer... I am to some degree on board with keeping a closer eye on immigration, but the way the current administration does it feels intentionally cruel. The guy at my company has a house, wife, and kids in the US; his visa is perfectly legal, so it seems it would make sense to process these people quickly. But instead, he is now in some limbo. Same for ICE. Clamping down on illegal immigration makes sense, but it doesn't make sense for ICE to behave like some unaccountable secret police that hires the biggest assholes they can find who can then do whatever they want.

Hikikomori 1mo ago
It is intentional.
refurb 1mo ago
Having the only appointment be a year or more out isn’t new. Anyone I knew wouldn’t take the risk of leaving the US if they didn’t have an appointment secured.
- pm90 1mo ago
  Did you read the article? They postponed all appointments.
  - genxy 1mo ago
    The pro maga crowd has learned to take a less obvious, but just as callous approach to commenting over the last 6 months. They are trying to subtly slide the overton window in their direction.
    - refurb 1mo ago
      Hilarious. My comment was replying to another comment that was discussing a different case, not the one in the article. Yet you throw around insults and labels at me. Who is the callous one here?
      - G0lg0thvn 1mo ago
        “Nuh uh you.” Quite the rebuttal.
        refurb 29d ago
        Don’t blame me when someone inserts themselves into a discussion they don’t understand and start throwing insults
itake 1mo ago
I'm an American that lives abroad. I have first-hand experience how other countries treat 'immigrants'. H1B is a temporary non-immigrant visa. I could never imagine myself buying a home in a country where I don't have permanent access to that real estate. I am not opposed to voting to prevent non-PRs from owning real estate in order to keep housing prices lower for residents and prevent non-immigrants from shooting themselves in the foot. As I live abroad in temporary status, I keep one foot back home (USA) and am extremely mindful of the risks of needing to close up shop and move. If you want an economic perspective, consider reading Warren Buffet's "America’s growing trade deficit is selling the nation out from under us" article [0]. [0] - https://fortune.com/article/warren-buffett-foreign-trade/ https://fortune.com/article/warren-buffett-foreign-trade/
- Solstafir 1mo ago
  There are arguments from the other side too. Many H1B folks do keep one foot back in the country they are from. But then a lot of backlash on specifically Indian folks for sending most of their salary back home. They know that this is transient state, many of them have rented housing, but still these visas are not like weekly visas, they are for 3 years, people would build somewhat of a life in that time and uprooting them instantly is inhumane indeed.
  - itake 1mo ago
    I don't have opinions about them sending their salary back home. Obviously its better for the USA if the money stayed in the USA, but "earning money in one locality and spending it another" is really really really situation, even in the USA. American Police officers are famous for not actually living in the cities they work in. In each country I have lived in, I was a guest. With that knowledge, I carefully designed my life so uprooting would not be a painful inhumane process. If you throw a party and a guest refuses to leave, you wouldn't declare forcing them to leave your home in-humane.
    - khriss 1mo ago
      > If you throw a party and a guest refuses to leave Show me where the govt has actually revoked their visa? Instead, because they cannot cancel the visa legally they are trying to create as much pain as possible for these visa holders hoping that some will give up and leave.
Georgelemental 1mo ago
An H-1B is a temporary non-immigrant visa. You're not supposed to rely on it to build a life in the US with no backup plan; that was never the intent of the law. However, successive administrations ignored the intent of the law, for so long that people began to rely on assurances that the law never promised. Now that the law is getting applied properly, those people are facing the consequences. It sucks for them, but continuing to not have rule of law would suck worse for all of us
- Solstafir 1mo ago
  It is always possible to make rules stricter for the new applicants. While there was some complaints with visa price hikes, they were for new visas so it was okay. Denying existing legal visa holders entry or time to wrap things up doesn't seem bad to you? These are not criminals per say.
- ab8 1mo ago
  Thanks for the info. But the WSJ article is taking about green card appointments, not H1-Bs.
- make3 1mo ago
  brother H-1Bs are transparently vectors for foreign educated workers to come to the US to build lives and eventually get a green card, so the US doesn't have to actually build a functional education system. no one talented will come pay taxes and make your nice tech companies carry the S&P500 and in turn, everyone's retirement funds, if you treat them like hogs
- afavour 1mo ago
  H1B is explicitly a dual intent visa. You are allowed to pursue a green card while in the country on an H1B. It has been an accepted, valid path for a very long time now. If the government wishes to change that of course they can. But the humane approach would be to let those who have already started the process finish it.
  - Georgelemental 1mo ago
alexgoodhart 1mo ago
“Feels intentionally cruel”? Where have you been? There is so much evidence of the deliberate cruelty that it beggars belief you’d say that.
- roarcher 1mo ago
  So you agree with the person you're responding to, but you're attacking them for stating it with less melodrama than you would prefer? What a useless comment.
  - spacechild1 1mo ago
    OP is right. There are too many people here in the comments who act surprised although it has been very clear what the Trump administration is trying to do. The cruelty is the point and they are not even trying to hide it.
    - roarcher 1mo ago
      > There are too many people here in the comments who act surprised That may be so, but since the person they're responding to is not one of them, I don't see the relevance of their comment.
  - schubidubiduba 1mo ago
    Unnecessarily euphemistic descriptions of cruelty should be rightfully called out
    - roarcher 1mo ago
      I agree. Please point to the one you're referring to.
UltraSane 1mo ago
It IS intentionally cruel because Stephen Miller is a sadistic psycho.
- thrance 1mo ago
  You're getting downvoted but this is literally true. > According to The Atlantic, while helping Trump prepare for a debate in 2024, Miller got into an argument with an ally on immigration. Trump reportedly said, "Stephen... if you had it your way, everyone would look exactly like you", to which Miller replied "That’s correct". In another incident reported by The New York Times, Trump told a campaign meeting that Miller only wanted 100 million people who looked like him to live in the United States.
apexalpha 1mo ago
Same for ICE. Clamping down on illegal immigration makes sense, but it doesn't make sense for ICE to behave like some unaccountable secret police that hires the biggest assholes they can find who can then do whatever they want. To you. But the existence of a secret police has a lot of upsides if you plan to not leave office.
aprilthird2021 1mo ago
Trump supporters will be shocked when such people just start working from abroad for the company vs the company hiring unqualified American citizens
- vjvjvjvjghv 1mo ago
  That’s what my company is doing. Instead of hiring more people in the US they are hiring almost exclusively in other countries. The tariffs seem to be backfiring in a similar way. More production is moved outside the US to avoid the tariffs.
  - jpgvm 1mo ago
    Can't manufacture anything in America if all your inputs are tariffed out the wazoo.
nujabe 1mo ago
But nobody asked him to buy a house, have a kid etc. He came here supposedly with the intention of not staying permanently.
- thrance 1mo ago
  Sure, he should just have lived as a slave and not socialize with anyone until he left. H1Bs have been used as a path to citizenship for a long time. You can't just change the rules like that without destroying so many lives in a senseless act of cruelty. But the cruelty is the point.
  - profdevloper 1mo ago
    Is it not cruel to Americans to replace them with said slave labor through legislation? The people who built this prosperous modern nation that so many people wish to flock to for a better life are just kicked to the curb -- talk about cruel.
    - thrance 1mo ago
      Your premise is flawed, so your argument is worthless. * America was built by immigrants. * None of the Americans currently alive "built this prosperous nation". They were born into it. * Welcoming immigrants won't "kick Americans to the curb".
      - profdevloper 1mo ago
        * America was built by pioneers and colonists who tamed the wild continent and helped create the modern civilization we enjoy. They brought their experience and culture from the Western civilization from which they were launched. * There are Americans currently alive who are direct descendants of the pioneers and colonists who created this great nation who deserve to prosper from their ancestors' sacrifice(s) * Resources (housing) and opportunities (jobs) are finite -- if Heritage Americans have to compete with the entire developing world for their birthright, there is a non-zero chance they will be "kicked to the curb" so to speak.
donohoe 1mo ago
"feels intentionally cruel" They are intentionally cruel. Its the point. They aren't even trying to hide it. The posts on official Whitehouse X account are borderline gleeful on topics of deportation and immigration. I'm in dis-belief at times.
- LeifCarrotson 1mo ago
  The intentional cruelty must be visible because they're doing it to gain support from those who want to see immigrants mistreated. They're not trying to change the rate of immigration, they're just looking to score political points.
  - cute_boi 1mo ago
    This is the issue with low trust society. Consulting companies and H1B have abused things so much, people don't show any empathy even for genuine candidate.
    - goolz 29d ago
      A really good point and it echoes exactly how I feel. I want people to feel stable, have visas, etc. I understand there are truly irreplaceable workers out there and I want to have empathy for their situation. Yet, I feel my apathy growing. I know logically it is not the person seeking a better life’s fault. But the system is broken and the only winners seem to be Fortune 500 companies.
  - e40 1mo ago
    After having blamed immigrants for many of our problems. It fits nicely in their strategy.
- floro 1mo ago
  [flagged]
jimmydoe 1mo ago
between this and fdr's japanese internment order, there're still a lot room to go crueler. every foreign-born, myself included, should get ready.
tristor 1mo ago
> The guy at my company has a house, wife, and kids in the US; I agree that this is cruel, but I also think that many people coming to the US on an H1-B visa aren't taking to heart the very clear terms of that visa. An H1-B is a /nonimmigrant/ /temporary/ work visa. It does allow you to pursue a green card via the PERM process, however until your receive your PERM status you reside in the US at the mercy of the government only. Buying a house on an H1-B visa, for instance, seems like an exceptionally foolhardy idea. As someone who once had temporary residency in another country, I did not buy real estate even though I was considering seeking permanent residency, because it was obvious that until I had permanent residency granted that I could be removed at any time and it was perfectly legal, within their rights, and aligned to the terms of my visa.
0ckpuppet 29d ago
you can't clean up somebody elses shit without getting some stink on ya'
JaceLightning 29d ago
> doesn't make sense for ICE to behave like some unaccountable secret police that hires the biggest assholes they can find who can then do whatever they want ICE is run by the same people today as it was under Obama. No one had a problem with Deporter-in-Chief Obama. Any notion that ICE is "some unaccountable secret police" is unsubstantiated nonsense.

Hikikomori 1mo ago

It is intentional.

refurb 1mo ago

Having the only appointment be a year or more out isn’t new. Anyone I knew wouldn’t take the risk of leaving the US if they didn’t have an appointment secured.

pm90 1mo ago
Did you read the article? They postponed all appointments.
- genxy 1mo ago
  The pro maga crowd has learned to take a less obvious, but just as callous approach to commenting over the last 6 months. They are trying to subtly slide the overton window in their direction.
  - refurb 1mo ago
    Hilarious. My comment was replying to another comment that was discussing a different case, not the one in the article. Yet you throw around insults and labels at me. Who is the callous one here?
    - G0lg0thvn 1mo ago
      “Nuh uh you.” Quite the rebuttal.
      - refurb 29d ago
        Don’t blame me when someone inserts themselves into a discussion they don’t understand and start throwing insults

itake 1mo ago

I'm an American that lives abroad. I have first-hand experience how other countries treat 'immigrants'. H1B is a temporary non-immigrant visa. I could never imagine myself buying a home in a country where I don't have permanent access to that real estate. I am not opposed to voting to prevent non-PRs from owning real estate in order to keep housing prices lower for residents and prevent non-immigrants from shooting themselves in the foot. As I live abroad in temporary status, I keep one foot back home (USA) and am extremely mindful of the risks of needing to close up shop and move. If you want an economic perspective, consider reading Warren Buffet's "America’s growing trade deficit is selling the nation out from under us" article [0]. [0] - https://fortune.com/article/warren-buffett-foreign-trade/ https://fortune.com/article/warren-buffett-foreign-trade/

Solstafir 1mo ago
There are arguments from the other side too. Many H1B folks do keep one foot back in the country they are from. But then a lot of backlash on specifically Indian folks for sending most of their salary back home. They know that this is transient state, many of them have rented housing, but still these visas are not like weekly visas, they are for 3 years, people would build somewhat of a life in that time and uprooting them instantly is inhumane indeed.
- itake 1mo ago
  I don't have opinions about them sending their salary back home. Obviously its better for the USA if the money stayed in the USA, but "earning money in one locality and spending it another" is really really really situation, even in the USA. American Police officers are famous for not actually living in the cities they work in. In each country I have lived in, I was a guest. With that knowledge, I carefully designed my life so uprooting would not be a painful inhumane process. If you throw a party and a guest refuses to leave, you wouldn't declare forcing them to leave your home in-humane.
  - khriss 1mo ago
    > If you throw a party and a guest refuses to leave Show me where the govt has actually revoked their visa? Instead, because they cannot cancel the visa legally they are trying to create as much pain as possible for these visa holders hoping that some will give up and leave.

Georgelemental 1mo ago

An H-1B is a temporary non-immigrant visa. You're not supposed to rely on it to build a life in the US with no backup plan; that was never the intent of the law. However, successive administrations ignored the intent of the law, for so long that people began to rely on assurances that the law never promised. Now that the law is getting applied properly, those people are facing the consequences. It sucks for them, but continuing to not have rule of law would suck worse for all of us

Solstafir 1mo ago
It is always possible to make rules stricter for the new applicants. While there was some complaints with visa price hikes, they were for new visas so it was okay. Denying existing legal visa holders entry or time to wrap things up doesn't seem bad to you? These are not criminals per say.
ab8 1mo ago
Thanks for the info. But the WSJ article is taking about green card appointments, not H1-Bs.
make3 1mo ago
brother H-1Bs are transparently vectors for foreign educated workers to come to the US to build lives and eventually get a green card, so the US doesn't have to actually build a functional education system. no one talented will come pay taxes and make your nice tech companies carry the S&P500 and in turn, everyone's retirement funds, if you treat them like hogs
afavour 1mo ago
H1B is explicitly a dual intent visa. You are allowed to pursue a green card while in the country on an H1B. It has been an accepted, valid path for a very long time now. If the government wishes to change that of course they can. But the humane approach would be to let those who have already started the process finish it.
- Georgelemental 1mo ago

alexgoodhart 1mo ago

“Feels intentionally cruel”? Where have you been? There is so much evidence of the deliberate cruelty that it beggars belief you’d say that.

roarcher 1mo ago
So you agree with the person you're responding to, but you're attacking them for stating it with less melodrama than you would prefer? What a useless comment.
- spacechild1 1mo ago
  OP is right. There are too many people here in the comments who act surprised although it has been very clear what the Trump administration is trying to do. The cruelty is the point and they are not even trying to hide it.
  - roarcher 1mo ago
    > There are too many people here in the comments who act surprised That may be so, but since the person they're responding to is not one of them, I don't see the relevance of their comment.
- schubidubiduba 1mo ago
  Unnecessarily euphemistic descriptions of cruelty should be rightfully called out
  - roarcher 1mo ago
    I agree. Please point to the one you're referring to.

UltraSane 1mo ago

It IS intentionally cruel because Stephen Miller is a sadistic psycho.

thrance 1mo ago
You're getting downvoted but this is literally true. > According to The Atlantic, while helping Trump prepare for a debate in 2024, Miller got into an argument with an ally on immigration. Trump reportedly said, "Stephen... if you had it your way, everyone would look exactly like you", to which Miller replied "That’s correct". In another incident reported by The New York Times, Trump told a campaign meeting that Miller only wanted 100 million people who looked like him to live in the United States.

apexalpha 1mo ago

Same for ICE. Clamping down on illegal immigration makes sense, but it doesn't make sense for ICE to behave like some unaccountable secret police that hires the biggest assholes they can find who can then do whatever they want. To you. But the existence of a secret police has a lot of upsides if you plan to not leave office.

aprilthird2021 1mo ago

Trump supporters will be shocked when such people just start working from abroad for the company vs the company hiring unqualified American citizens

vjvjvjvjghv 1mo ago
That’s what my company is doing. Instead of hiring more people in the US they are hiring almost exclusively in other countries. The tariffs seem to be backfiring in a similar way. More production is moved outside the US to avoid the tariffs.
- jpgvm 1mo ago
  Can't manufacture anything in America if all your inputs are tariffed out the wazoo.

nujabe 1mo ago

But nobody asked him to buy a house, have a kid etc. He came here supposedly with the intention of not staying permanently.

thrance 1mo ago
Sure, he should just have lived as a slave and not socialize with anyone until he left. H1Bs have been used as a path to citizenship for a long time. You can't just change the rules like that without destroying so many lives in a senseless act of cruelty. But the cruelty is the point.
- profdevloper 1mo ago
  Is it not cruel to Americans to replace them with said slave labor through legislation? The people who built this prosperous modern nation that so many people wish to flock to for a better life are just kicked to the curb -- talk about cruel.
  - thrance 1mo ago
    Your premise is flawed, so your argument is worthless. * America was built by immigrants. * None of the Americans currently alive "built this prosperous nation". They were born into it. * Welcoming immigrants won't "kick Americans to the curb".
    - profdevloper 1mo ago
      * America was built by pioneers and colonists who tamed the wild continent and helped create the modern civilization we enjoy. They brought their experience and culture from the Western civilization from which they were launched. * There are Americans currently alive who are direct descendants of the pioneers and colonists who created this great nation who deserve to prosper from their ancestors' sacrifice(s) * Resources (housing) and opportunities (jobs) are finite -- if Heritage Americans have to compete with the entire developing world for their birthright, there is a non-zero chance they will be "kicked to the curb" so to speak.

donohoe 1mo ago

"feels intentionally cruel" They are intentionally cruel. Its the point. They aren't even trying to hide it. The posts on official Whitehouse X account are borderline gleeful on topics of deportation and immigration. I'm in dis-belief at times.

LeifCarrotson 1mo ago
The intentional cruelty must be visible because they're doing it to gain support from those who want to see immigrants mistreated. They're not trying to change the rate of immigration, they're just looking to score political points.
- cute_boi 1mo ago
  This is the issue with low trust society. Consulting companies and H1B have abused things so much, people don't show any empathy even for genuine candidate.
  - goolz 29d ago
    A really good point and it echoes exactly how I feel. I want people to feel stable, have visas, etc. I understand there are truly irreplaceable workers out there and I want to have empathy for their situation. Yet, I feel my apathy growing. I know logically it is not the person seeking a better life’s fault. But the system is broken and the only winners seem to be Fortune 500 companies.
- e40 1mo ago
  After having blamed immigrants for many of our problems. It fits nicely in their strategy.
floro 1mo ago
[flagged]

jimmydoe 1mo ago

between this and fdr's japanese internment order, there're still a lot room to go crueler. every foreign-born, myself included, should get ready.

tristor 1mo ago

> The guy at my company has a house, wife, and kids in the US; I agree that this is cruel, but I also think that many people coming to the US on an H1-B visa aren't taking to heart the very clear terms of that visa. An H1-B is a /nonimmigrant/ /temporary/ work visa. It does allow you to pursue a green card via the PERM process, however until your receive your PERM status you reside in the US at the mercy of the government only. Buying a house on an H1-B visa, for instance, seems like an exceptionally foolhardy idea. As someone who once had temporary residency in another country, I did not buy real estate even though I was considering seeking permanent residency, because it was obvious that until I had permanent residency granted that I could be removed at any time and it was perfectly legal, within their rights, and aligned to the terms of my visa.

0ckpuppet 29d ago

you can't clean up somebody elses shit without getting some stink on ya'

JaceLightning 29d ago

> doesn't make sense for ICE to behave like some unaccountable secret police that hires the biggest assholes they can find who can then do whatever they want ICE is run by the same people today as it was under Obama. No one had a problem with Deporter-in-Chief Obama. Any notion that ICE is "some unaccountable secret police" is unsubstantiated nonsense.