keelec
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Posts posted by keelec
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Hi Clifford!! Glad to see you came by to visit. Dont be such a stranger. Many things have changed since you been around. We have new toys to play with and new tech problems to solve. I bet we could use someone with your puter know how to help Jeff figure out a Chinese language glitch in our new Chinese forum. Oh and congrats on the new friend and I know you don't need us to tell you to be careful.
Hello Carl,
I like your picture. You and Bing look happy.
It just makes me upset that anybody would bring these "students" into the USA, then work them like dogs and pay them $1.43 / hr. Somewhere something has to be wrong.
I could understand a company who would bring in foreign "students", Work 6 hr days, 5 day weeks, setup English and American History Classes in the afternoons, and organized tours on the weekends.... in the end only paying some "mad money".
But, whoever this employeer is, he is just bringing in foreign students for the sole purpose of taking advantage of them.
----- Clifford -----
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Hello,
I just met a new Russian Friend online
Apparently she is here in the USA on a J-1 Student Visa (I think) for 2 months.
She is working in a kitchen somewhere, 15 hour days, 6 days a week... (90 hr weeks). So much for a "cultural experience".
Her compensation is $550 / month ($1100 for 2 months).
I presume that her "employeer" has paid for her flight, and room&board.....
Let's see... A few calculations:
Federal Minimum Wage:
$5.15 / hr x 40 hrs / week = $206 / week
$7.725 / hr x 50 hrs / week = $386.25 / week (OT)
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Total: $592.25 / week
Times 9 weeks (for 2 months).... $5330.25 for 2 months.
So, it sounds like her wages are about $4230 short for her 2 months sojourn.... It must include a suite at the Hilton.
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Something just leaves a BAD Taste in my mouth.
:angry: :angry:
----- Clifford ----- -
Hello,
I am still lurking in the shadows.... well, somewhere. I am curious where you got my name.
Anyway, there are lots of people on this site that could potentially offer some suggestions. Please tell us a little more about your case.
Are you Russian? Chinese?
As I understand it, your case has never cleared the National Visa Center in New Hampshire? Do you know which agency is the cause for the delay? I remember being told that several agencies work in conjunction with the FBI during that phase of processing.
Who has initiated the queries? You? Your Fiance? Remember that every state has 2 senators and several congressmen (although the congressmen will usually only represent those members of their own congretional districts). Contact both senators and the local congressmen.
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I am not sure of your source. In my case, I had applied for a visa for my fiancee.... the application cleared the NVC and was sent to Moscow for processing. However, it was referred back to the NVC for further processing prior to scheduling the interview. At that time my then fiancee and I had a 10 month delay waiting for a poorly defined "additional administrative processing". Nobody has ever told me the reason for the delay, but I presume that it had something to do with the FBI.
Please clarify a few details about your case, and perhaps we can dig up some useful information for the two of you.
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Congratulations.
I know when I was waiting and waiting and waiting for progress, it seemed to be an endless wait.
I hope the rest of the process will go smoothly.
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A couple of comments...
I think names should only be publicized AFTER a person is convicted in a trial for a crime.
I do not know this Harold guy... nor do I want to know him. However, I think our news agencies should treat information like this using the rule that a US Citizen is innocent until proven guilty by a jury of peers in a court of law. And, internet news… that can be very unreliable.
In this case, we could easily have language, translation and interpretation difficulties. We could have cultural differences. We could have outright fraud. Right now, we are all jumping to conclusions without seeing any physical evidence that was collected, and based on 3rd or 4th generation hearsay.
Let's wait until after the trial... then at the appropriate time, string him up.
As far as background checks.
The checks on the US Citizen were very restrictive due to privacy issues. Our constitutional law does not allow the investigation of a crime, or the potential of committing a crime without actually having probable cause. I.E. If there is no evidence of a crime being committed, they can not investigate you. And, the last I heard, falling in love is not a crime.
That said, the INS could publish certain guidelines of who is or is not eligible for sponsoring a visa. I.E. Convicted sex offenders against juveniles should not be allowed to sponsor K2 or K4 visas. The rules should be specified, published… then the conditions should be verified.
Perhaps other violent offenses should also be restricted from being able to sponsor visas. Rapes, Murders, etc. Again, I think this should be specified up front. There should be none of…. "Ummm… steeling a candy bar, is that bad enough to prevent a person from sponsoring a visa?????" "Bob stole a mars bar when he was 6, Joe stole a Million Dollar Bar when he was 12"
----- Clifford -----
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I actually had my second passport issued in Milan, Italy. I think it took a few days and they mailed the new one to me. That was a few years ago so perhaps procedures have changed. But, don't consider it as an emergency if you are planning an extended stay internationally and your passport is due to expire while you are overseas.
One note though.
Find out which consulate services the area where you are staying.
I rode my bicycle 500 Km from Parma to Rome to get my passport renewed. Then when I arrived, they said that I was at the wrong consulate and that I had to go to Milan instead
Having just ridden my bicycle for 3 days to get there wasn't enough to convince the embassy officials that I deserved an exception to the rule.----- Clifford -----
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I was just browsing today.
I saw a note that Bigzoo is supposed to go away at the end of the month:
Important Message:BigZoo.com (Prepaid Calling Service) Phasing Out of Service
BigZoo Prepaid Calling Service will end on January 31st, 2005 at 11:59 PM (Pacific Standard Time).
I didn't see an explanation of why.
---- CK -----
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If you are talking on the phone using a major phone company.... well, it is like flushing money down the toilet, but you will have the receipts.
Some online "phone card" companies including Bigzoo allow you to access the bill online and print it out.... of course, this would be easy to forge. However used plastic phone cards are meaningless.
---- CK -----
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---- The cougar kills a mother trying to protect her son in the Cascades, but since it isn't in the OREGON Cascades, the apologists continue making their absurd assertion: "There has never been a fatal cougar attack in OREGON."
So, we should kill all the cougars in the forrests because of a single cougar attack somewhere in the world. Was it Washington or Canada? Truthfully, I have never seen a cougar, and would love to see one of the beautiful felines sometimes. The chances of getting killed by a cougar on my next camping trip is far less than the risk associated with driving to the mountains.
Here in Missouri, apparently the deer populations are going wild now that all but one preditor has been removed from the forrests.
Haven't there been sightings of Bald Eagles eating lifestock in Oregon? Nobody can determine for sure whether they killed the cattle and sheep, or whether they were just opportunistic.... But, maybe we should kill off all the bald eagles anyway.
What about the dogs that are killing sheep in Oregon?
Now, there have been kids attacked, or maybe even killed by dogs in Oregon.
Maybe we should just kill off all the dogs in Oregon too.... One could even make it illegal to own a dog.... that would get rid of that problem.
As far as castration or chemical castration.... The guy is 80 something... He has over a 30% chance of having active prostrate cancer... He probably needs the treatment anyway.
No, it is not right to go outside of the USA to commit crimes. But, one should also be judged by the local laws.
Should we also prosecute everyone who goes to Nevada to gamble and participate in the LEGAL Carnal Pleasures?
No, I don't think it right to take advantage of anybody, or young girls. But, if one takes away this man's passport, and put him on parole for the rest of his life, does that eliminate the chances of him doing this in the future?
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I agree that this man's actions are dispicable.
However, the age of being a "minor" is different in every country. Prostitution and Pornography is also different in every country. For that matter, how prostitution is treated is different in every state in the USA.
It is possible that his actions would have been legal, or at least tollerated in the Phillipines.
As far as being a sexual preditor in the USA .... you would have to come up with more evidence that he has harmed, or has any potential for harming American Girls.
----- CK -----
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There is always the BABY thing.....
It takes about 9 months to finish up so you could potentially have one before the interview
The infant gets a US Passport.
---- Clifford -----
P.S. Truthfully, I wouldn't consider having a wife or fiancee pregant without spending the time with her while she is pregnant, and while she is at the hospital having the baby.
Yes, your list looks good. Pictures, more than one trip to China, and phone and correspondence records.
I would also add "Evidence of a common language". If your wife or fiancee speaks poor English, it wouldn't hurt to help her enroll in an English class. If you have something written demonstrating a proficiency in Chinese (college transcripts or????), it might be helpful. Or, make a tape of the two of you chatting. Leave it in the hotel, but have it ready in case GZ asks for it.
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Thanks so much everybody. Great advice. I will definately go with her for the followup visit. Does she need to reschedule or just show up with the additional infomation (and me)?
TD
As I understand it, she needs to arrive early, but doesn't need an appointment. There is a special line for "overcome", or something like that. You will have to wait outside, but you can give her your passport to take in with her.
There is a GZ info session that is held either Tues or Thursday Afternoons. Someone else will have the exact times. But, relax, you should be fine if you can put together the proof that they asked for.
---- CK -----
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EXCEPT that it is possible the CO asked your fiance "how do you communicate?" and she got nervous and said "he reads and writes Chinese." Or maybe the CO asked "does he read and write Chinese?" and she said "yes."
The Reading and Writing Chinese is a standard thing.
It is just a check box on the pink & blue slips. It actually doesn't have anything about the couple talking together, but that seems to be the "standard" thing that is turned in.
I think Mark (hypoclear) had posted a copy of Carl & Bing's pink & blue slips, he has changed the web link.
If anybody is willing to host the images, I can send my copies.
Here is a copy of Carl (WarpedandBored)'s thread.
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Don't overburden our justice system with cases like this... What would be the point of sending the guy to prison? So he will die in prison as a burdon to our society?
Just take away the guy's passport and photo collection and send him home.
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trvldog,
Relax a bit.
I think you will be just fine.
It sounds like you have had multiple trips to China (for business and pleasure). That will look very good for the consulate. And, if your Chinese is passable, that will look good too. You only have to speak a common language with your fiancee (Putonghua). There is no requirement for Manderine or any other dialect.
1) Make a video of the two of you talking. If you can prove that you communicate, then you don't need the writing. Get it converted to NTSC VHS (the US Standard)
2) Print out a few phone bills & E-Mails and pictures.
3) Rather than notarizing you passport, go to China and hand your fiancee the real thing and have her tell them that you are waiting outside.
4) Write a short letter... 1 page about how your love has grown over the last 2-3 years, and confirm that you still want to marry her. It can be handwritten or typed, but must have an original signature by you.
Relax..... you have what it takes, and you will be fine. All you have to do is prove that you have a valid relationship.
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I have been thinking about it....
I think the proper thing to do would be to buy her a "gift" with the "extra" money that she sent.
What should I get?
1) A brand new laptop which will be waiting for her when she gets here? B)
2) A set of Diamond.... Ummmm Cubic Zirconium.... Earrings which I could even mail down to her
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Here is a story that someone sent me recently... Enjoy
Connecticut Real Estate and the Nigerian ConnectionOver a year ago, my wife and I moved to a new town in
Connecticut, horrified by the budget-related deterioration of our public
school system. It was literally the best move we ever made. Continue...
Advertisement
The only drawback was that even now, a year later, we haven't
been able to sell our old house. We've dropped the price three times, but
nonetheless haven't had so much as a nibble of interest (maybe because
nobody is particularly interested in moving to a town with a deteriorating
public school system).
Anyway, you can imagine our delight when our realtor called to
say that we'd received an incredible offer from a buyer: full asking
price, cash on the table, with the deal to close in one week. My wife and
I hung up the phone, stared at each other in disbelief, and then looked
around for a chicken to sacrifice to the real-estate gods.
Our euphoria was soon cooled, however, by a few mysterious red
flags. First, the woman who wanted to buy the house showed up for the
inspection - but didn't have enough money to pay the inspector. Odd.
Second, the inspector found a few small things that needed
fixing - but the buyer didn't ask to have them taken care of before the
closing. Unusual.
Finally, our lawyer told us that the woman didn't expect to
have the funds until the day before the closing. Peculiar.
We figured that something was a tad fishy about the whole
thing, but what are you gonna do? We decided to play along, just in case
she was for real. Now, by this point, you're probably wondering what any
of this has to do with technology (the ostensible topic of this weekly
newsletter). Here it comes.
Sure enough, the closing never took place. The woman called
the realtors and lawyers, apologized, and let them know that the money she
was expecting never arrived.
"I just can't understand what went wrong," she told them. "I
was ASSURED that the money was on its way. The Nigerian lawyer PROMISED!"
My jaw fell open so far it practically dented the floor. I
didn't know whether to cry, sue or laugh hysterically. It turns out that
this poor, deluded soul had fallen for one of the most widely perpetrated
- and, I thought, most widely known - Internet scams on earth. "DEAR SIR
OR MADAM," the spam e-mail message begins.
"I am Ahmed Jaidi a solicitor at law. I am the personal
attorney to Mr.Mark O'Reilly, a national of your country, who used to work
with Chevron Oil Company in Nigeria.
"On the 21st of April 1999, my client Mr. Mark O'Reilly and
his family was involved in a fatal auto crash in Lagos. I am contacting
you to assist in repatriating the money and property left behind by my
client. Particularly, the finance company where the deceased had an
account valued at about $14.7 million dollars.
"Since I have been unsuccessful in locating the relatives for
over 4 years now, I seek your consent to present you as the next of kin,
so that the $14.7 million dollars can be paid to you, and then you and me
can share the money, 60% to me and 40% to you."
If you're clueless enough to contact the spammer, he leads you
on for a few weeks with paperwork and those dizzying dollar amounts,
getting you so excited about your upcoming wealth that you may even make
plans to buy a new house in Connecticut.
Of course, a few weeks in, Mr. Jaidi (or whatever the bogus
name is) reports that he needs just a few thousand dollars to grease the
palms of the Nigerian finance department to get this deal wrapped up. With
visions of a new life dancing in your head, you fork over $3,000 here,
$2500 there. And then, of course, you never hear from the guy again.
I'm guessing that anyone savvy enough to sign up for a
technology newsletter is smart enough not to fall for such a simple scam.
But if you're ever in doubt about this or any other e-mailed pitch, I beg
of you to check it out first at www.snopes.com. It's a clearinghouse of
urban myths and Internet scams. You might also want to check out a recent
Circuits article about e-mail vigilantes who turn the tables on the
scammers: Turning The Tables On E-Mail Swindlers.
I sort of wish it weren't called www.snopes.com, because that
address makes little sense and doesn't clue anyone in to its actual
purpose. But it's a great site, a well-researched encyclopedia and a
highly entertaining read. Whether it's a million-dollar windfall from
Nigeria or an unexpected full-price house offer, you can see this story's
moral coming a mile away. "If it's too good to be true..."
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Often One RT ticket is less expensive than a One-Way ticket. Perhaps even less expensive if you have to eat expensive change fees.
Typically you should be able to book your return flight anytime within a year (or so) of the original "cancelled" flight. Thus, I believe that if you book a flight now with a return flight for 6 months or a year from now, you could potentially keep that ticket for 18 mo - 2 years.
When I was expecting Irina to return to the USA with me... I could only find reasonably priced RT tickets from Russia to the USA. I pointed out to the airline that she was supposed to be getting a 3-month "non-immigrant" visa, and because of that, we needed to book a RT ticket for her.
---- CK ----
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Your case is just odd.
Remember, the FBI (nor anybody else) will ever tell you what the conclusions of your name check actually were. They will just say that the namecheck has been completed. Of course, I would presume that you would know if there was anything that should be concerning in your background (generally from previous trips to the USA).
If your wife is a US Citizen, then she must have a "residence" in the USA. Look up "Domicile" on the Candle.
Contact the representatives and senators that represent her at the place of her residence. If she is a US Citizen, and a resident of a state in the USA (no matter where she is, or how long she has been out of the country), then she can vote absentee in National elections.... THEY ARE STILL HER REPRESENTATIVES.
I am sending another phone number at DOS to try, PM.
---- Clifford -----
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Clifford, I'm still a bit confused about this check. She sent you a check? And she wants you to deposit it?? Have some fun with this. Tell her the check cleared and that you really appreciate the money she sent you Tell her you couldn't find any projectors for her church, but you did find a bitchin' big screen projection TV for your den That outta send her for a loop
Yes, I have an actual check..... $9,000
It looks relatively authentic... Enough that an ATM machine would likely take it
However, it is missing the microprint that it says it is supposed to have for security (says on the back that the microprint should be on the signature line on the front).Unfortunately, I fear that the bank might not let me keep the money very long
Thus... better not buy a big screen TV just yet I have been dreaming about the new Apple (umm, did I say Apple)... well, their 30" LCD computer monitors.... the best in the world for a measly $3K.
I know you can buy big TVs, but these have actual computer resolution (2560 x 1600). Now if I could just figure out whether the Mac graphic cards will work in a PC, or a PC video card will support the Mac Monitor.Do you think Steve Jobs will trade one of the monitors for Nigerian "Monopoly Money"?
As far as why Nigeria, and not South Africa, or Zimbabwe???? Perhaps Nigeria got a jump on other parts of Africa with connecting to the internet and getting "wired". Then they would have gotten significant early success from the schemes (which are likely becoming more costly to do, and less rewarding now). The people I have talked to also seem to have excellent English skills.
Their government also has specific laws prohibiting exporting money. Thus, you can send money to Nigeria via Western Union, but you can not send it out of the country via Western Union. Perhaps there is actually some truth to the original story of the lost millions. But, these laws make some things awfully convenient.
Another internet scam that I am running into is E-Mail harvesting off of E-Bay. Sellers post "HOT" items like computers for ridiculoulsly low prices. Then add a stipulation that buyers must be pre-approved. If a person sends in their e-mail, they get added to the latest SPAM list, and the item gets removed by e-bay before the end of the auction.
----- CK -----
P.S.
As far as getting scammed... in many senses this is just a fun diversion... As soon as a woman admits that she is actually in Africa and not America, it sends up red flags.... Then when the idea of phoney checks come up.... well, then everything just enters the world of pure entertainment.
I already have one woman who has asked me to never write to her again because I didn't western Union money to her so that she could go to the hospital because she thought she might have had malaria (she couldn't even tell me her temperature).
Hey, I have an idea... I could get as many women as I can to send me phoney checks... then when one asks for a little money, I could just send them back one of the phoney Nigerian checks !!
:lol: 
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Over the last few months, I have run into several internet women from Nigeria.
The most common thing is to put a USA address on the personals ad or profile, but then say that she is in Nigeria for some reason. Perhaps visiting, or having 1 parent from Nigeria, one from the USA.
Or, another story is that they are from the USA, but have traveled to Nigeria and need some help getting back to the USA. I called one of those ladies, but she certainly didn't have the sweet Georgia accent that I was anticipating. And her begging was worse than a 4 yr old in a candy store.
One woman that I talked to online... she seems sweet. Her pictures are very cute. And, of course she is professing undying love for me. She wants me to purchase a couple of video projectors to help her church. I calculated the cost of the projectors plus express shipping to be about $7,000.
So... now I have a $9,000 check in the mail. Drawn at the First Union National Bank of Georgia. No phone numbers on the check.
So, the first thing I do is go to the internet yellow pages... odd, no First Union National Bank of Georgia in the area code 30309.
But, the check also has a routing number... Throw that into an internet search, and I came up with the Wachovia Bank, also in Georgia.
I called the bank. Apparently Wachovia and First Union merged a while ago. I read out the account number and the name, and they don't match. Hmmm.... you mean this woman who is expressing her undying love for me would send me a rubber check? Now it is time to dig out the dissecting microscope and try to find the microprint that is supposed to be on the check.
So, what do I tell her the next time that I talk to her?
I think I am going to say that I cashed the check, but the bank said that it would take 3-5 business days for the funds to be available. That would put it till about Thursday of next week which is a holiday. Throw in a couple of additional days. She is supposed to be here the first week of December for her Christmas Vacation which she is going to spend with me... I woudn't have to discover that the rubberized check until after she is supposed to be getting off of the plane.
What is the next step? What if she asks for some of the money that was supposed to be used on the projectors back for the plane fare?
Hmmm, her postage was 150 Nigerian Naira (about $1.15)
How many people actually fall for the scams?
----- Clifford -----
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Somewhere, quite a while ago Carl & Bing posted their pink & blue slips.
The forms were pre-printed forms with a few check boxes. I would assume that with a little proficiency, they could be filled out in less than 30 seconds. Issues such as poor language skills would be difficult to know before the interview.
As far as language skills... It is likely that interviewers have different skills with Chinese dispite that they have chosen to live and work in China. Some may have chosen to live in the country without learning the language.
The interview can be extroidionarily stressful for some women, and thus marginal language skills become non-existant.
One thing that is certain is that the successful relationships require extraordinary patience on both parts. Perhaps more than anything, a video of the couple sitting down for a cup of tea can show this patience.
I guess my question is how easy those with bogus relationships can pull the wool over the eyes of the interviewers at GZ.
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Don has posted a pretty good set of P3 docs here.
His copy of the GIV-24 is in Adobe Acrobat format, and quite clean (but not fillable).
If you have your doc scanned in, you can import it into any graphics editor, or even Word and add your own text.
In Word (XP/2003), insert the image, double click on it, then hunt for the option "Behind Text".
I tried the Canon E-Copy Desktop that has a pretty good OCR... It sure made a jumble of the Chinese
If you get an extremely clean version of the form (or send me a very clean original), I can try to make it "fillable" in Adobe Acrobat. Should it be on 11x17 paper?
Unfortunately, Adobe won't like a lot of Chinese characters being input.
---- Clifford -----
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However, if this is the case, why is it that from start to finish, a person from England getting a K1 took only 7 weeks and was told sorry by the consulate that they took so long!
There is a good comparison of processing times at:
www.k1k3.com
As far as the visa processing for beneficiaries at other countries, the time in the USA at the BCIS service centers and the NVC is about the same.
Then the times for China significantly diverges. Shipping time from NVC to most other countries is within 1-2 days. Then, most countries can conduct the interview and issue the visa within a day or two after they get the application. Some actually allow the couple to do all of their paperwork before the application actually arrives at the "post".
Processing applications in Russia can be variable. However, one thing they have done to help streamline the process is combine the P3/P4 packet into a single packet that is sent out 1-2 months before the interview.
While I believe that China has the #1 immigration to the USA, it is also the largest country in the world. If you look at the "per-capita" immigration from England, the number is several times as high as China.
Somehow, perhaps to discourage immigrants, perhaps due to mismanagement, the process just seems to take longer in China. Unfortunately they don't seem to be interested in making a global process fix, but rather just patching the holes which then push the problem around from one part of the process to another.
Also, the designers of the "system" don't seem to be interested adding together all of the steps of the process... 6 months at BCIS Service Center PLUS 1-2 months at NVC PLUS 1 month for shipping PLUS 3 or so months for the P3 PLUS 4 or so months for the P4 PLUS 2 months for the interview.
------ CK ------
Student Exchange
in Culture & Language Discussion
Posted
I assume that you would want to host her (although she might also want a different host family in the same city).
I would drive down to the local high school and talk to one of the counselors. You may be able to get an acceptance letter from the High School and I would imagine that a counselor there would have some contacts for you.
College students require the TOEFL exam before taking regular classes (but, they can come to study the language without TOEFL). I don't believe that HS has the same requirements.
I would assume that you would also write a letter of invitation as well as something to show adequate support capabilities.
If you started the ball rolling now.... with a little luck you could have the neice here by September.
I would assume that the application process would be MUCH QUICKER than a K1/K3 visa (she is under 18). It is possible that the Embassy might even expedite Fall applications. However, you should try to find some "real" information to determine when a good time to apply will be. Perhaps target December or January.
How far along is your wife's visa application?
Would the neice prefer coming for the summer before starting school?