Here's the story of how I got our appointment

[tparrent]

We were patient. That's it.

 

Ok, we weren't patient but I'm not sure we did anything to help our case. Here goes...

 

As I previously reported, I talked to an info officer last week and was told we would have to wait awhile yet for an appointment. I got upset and didn't let her brush me off. She finally talked to her supervisor who said packet 4 would be sent this week.

 

On Monday, Ling called and was told she would have to wait two more months before an appointment was scheduled. I blew my stack and wrote a series of blistering e-mails to everyone at State that I had an e-mail address for. I then recalled that I had an list from many years ago (this is my second time through the process) that listed consular officers. I dug it out of my files (pack ratting can be a good thing!) and, lo and behold, it had a web address on it! I'll post that at the bottom of this message.

 

I went to the website and got a list of current officers. I then took a decent guess at how they form e-mail addresses at State and fired off another salvo of nastygrams. I then discovered a mysterious phone number so I tried it. After listening to five minutes of Mandarin (which I do NOT understand), I figured they were talking about a new number. Sure enough, the number was spoken in English. Several minutes later I got through to the consulate and spoke to someone who shall remain nameless because that's what I promised. Let's call that person Mr. X.

 

I had a pleasant and informative conversation with Mr. X for about 20 minutes. He recognized my name immediately because when I said "This is Tom Parrent" he replied "Oh God!" and I said "Just call me Tom" which cracked him up and got us off on the right foot.

 

Turns out Mr. X had already looked up our case and found that it was awaiting Hawk security clearance which is done at Guangzhou apparently and is not part of the DOS namecheclk. He said this takes 4-6 weeks after receiving DOS name check clearance. He also said I could call him next week if we had not received clearance and he would look into it.

 

I asked how it was possible that people who just received clearnces were scheduled so quickly for interviews. He told me a most interesting story. While some of the early interview cases may have occurred because of the new processes, most of them did not. In fact, most of them didn't occur at all! Mr. X gave me several examples of fictitious people "receiving" clearances and visas. In other words, there are sick people out here who are just making this stuff up and posting messages to stir up trouble. They are not visa applicants at all!

 

I said "no way!" He said "Way!" I aske dif he knew of cases such as that from this site. He said he knew of a couple fakers here He also told me that he was the lucky one who had to respond to 56 different Congressional inquiries that were made on behalf of a person .... who simply didn't exist! He said Congressmen are understandably reluctant to get involved after that fiasco.

 

If one of you fakers is reading this, I'd just like to confirm what I am sure others have told you throughout your life. You are one sorry, sick puppy. Now, get lost!

 

Anyway, Mr. X then told me that the whole visa process really is improving daily. GZ has additonal staff now and the e-mail system is getting much more responsive. he said applications are being processed more quickly and more accurately than ever before. The problem is simply volume. This morning alone they received over 250 clearances that now need appointments.

 

Two things that slow down the process are fax and e-mail spam from petiotioners. Legitimate inquiries are fine but apparently some people send hundreds of messages and faxes. When this happens they need to dump part of thesystem and we all suffer.

 

Mr. X also asked me not to send any more two page e-mails which just proves that he actually read the one I sent

 

I felt much better after our talk because I now had the most valauable thing possible (other than the actual visa) INFORMATION. That makes all the difference in the world.

 

I slept for a couple hours and then checked my e-mail as I do every morning. Guess what? An e-mail from Mr. X telling me that he had checked again and found that the EMS had gone out even as we were talking on the phone

 

I really don't think my conversation with Mr X made a difference in the process but I do believe my insistence on information last week with the info line operator made a difference. Maybe.

 

Ok, here's the deal. The following website is in the public domain and I know that if I were you, I'd want to know it. I solemnly promised Mr. X that I would not post his name, phone number or e-mail address. He seems to be someone who really is improving the process and I think it is fair to let him work.

 

Please use discretion with the following information. If you abuse you then you are worse than a faker.

 

http://foia.state.gov/mms/KOH/keypostdetai...&letter=G&id=34

 

Good luck and fast processing to all of you. Except the fakers.

[chinadave2001]

Hi Tom,

There's so much in your letter that it's difficult to know where to start.

1. Congrats on your good news. That's the most important thing.

2. I am glad you made this contact. Please guard it carefully. Maybe we can use it indirectly through you to help other hard core cases in the future.

3. He has confirmed what we have long suspected in that this is still largely a case of too many petitions, too few staff workers. Glad to hear that it is improving.

4. They monitor this website! Interesting...there must be a way to use that more effectively.....

5. As for "Fakers" well, I really don't know what to say except that these people are truly troubled and must have very sad and boring lives to make so much trouble.

Anyway, thanks for the insights into the process. Congrats on the p4 being sent out!

dave

[wolf]

tparrent,

Tom Thanks for this. maybe it can help with my case, will see, but this is very good information for the true beleivers. Sorry to hear about the fakers on this site, it really creates a problem for all of us trying to get our loved ones here.

[Guest Long_strider]

tom, glad that things are moving along now.

 

The comments from Mr. X are interesting!

 

I received notification of the name clearnace via A.S. on 5/23/03 (Friday)and my fiance (now wife!) received a call from the US consulate in Guangzhou on the following Tuesday (5/27) from a woman who called to confirm her mailing address. The EMS was received on 5/29 in the afternoon (She lived in Guangzhou) and the interview was scheduled on 6/16.

 

I have emails from AS confirming the name clearance and it being sent to Guangzhou, and of course the appointment letter received on 5/29.

 

So I am wondering about this. Maybe there are some fakers, but according to the info from A.S and the receipt of our P4 things can be scheduled quite quickly. Our interview was scheduled very quickly after the name clearance notice from A.S.

 

So this is interesting Tom.....

[youmolide]

well that was nice timing ... I just sent GZ 15 emails trying to elicit a reponse

 

First, congrats. Second, GZ would spend 1/10 of the time handling phone calls faxes etc. if they were simply HONEST !!! instead of treating us like mushrooms. Your story is a PERFECT example of government thinking run amok ... if the they had a concrete list of ALL the steps necessary and this list and each applications current standing were HONESTLY

[youmolide]

whoops ...

 

... continued

 

 

available to those who called or faxed or emailed or went to the website, then we wouldn't be reduced to pulling spam stunts or calling 'unlisted' phone numbers !

 

Geez, I would offer to write the software myself for free and so would half the people on this board if it would help our case.

 

As for the 250 clearances, maybe ... but if so those are clearances for non K1 non K3 cases. Where exactly ARE all these phantom spouses and fiance's ? There is NO WAY there is more than a one or two thousand K-3 and K-1's processed thru GZ a YEAR. If there were more, why are there only a few HUNDRED who show up on websites like Candle, G7 and Yahoo ??? What, there are thousands who 'magically' carry on international relationships without ever turning to the internet for help ?

 

Especially with SARS and the curtailing of international travel ... and now GZ isnt processing adoptions either ...

 

Bah Humbug ! and Crapola !

 

Anyways, they shoot themselves in the foot by not being honest and upfront and they pay (and we pay even more) in lost efficiency, wasted time, wasted money and wasted lives ....

 

Anyways, glad you made it Tom ... I think you finally pissed the right people off and I congratulate you for it

[rocksplit]

Tom, thanks, glad you got this information. Congratulation: Great you finally can move on!

 

Right, it is information we crave; I called DoS and could not get a confirmed clearance date!

4-6 weeks for "Hawk" appears ridiculous!

 

Fakers I am perplexed as to where the fakers reside!

Here or there, everywhere? Motives?

How I yearn for improved transparency in this mess!

[Tom & Jen]

Tom, Good for you! You did what you felt you had to do, and you got what should be done, done. I hope your efforts have helped us all in some small or big ways. Now on to the next step. Good luck!

[Guest R2D2]

Seems to be typical government employee thinking. The public (we) are the culprits and they are the honest good guys. I talk twice a week with NVC and am lied to constantly. One can never get an honest answer from these people by phone or by letter. I am sure that there are a few fakers on this board and I publicly challenged one a month or two ago and that person melded into the scenery. But, I should say that there are a hell of a lot more fakers and liars in DOS than there are here. I have been in NSC for 6 months of lying and told by them that they were doing the background checks. (They do one on moi, there, that I know of.) Now, I have been with NVC for 3 months, with them telling me that they are doing the background checks and the verbiage is the same, "Due to 9/11....etc,etc..." They tell me that they do not know who is doing them even though they are the ones that ordered them. UNBELIEVABLE!!!!! These idiots must think that we are idiots!!! This person that you talked to is even a bigger liar. Not only has he lied to you, he lies to Congress. We still have people from the black hole era that do not have their visas as yet. You are a good example. What happened to first come first served. Is it to much to ask that the petition be in order? Much of the problem is due to independent contractors that were appointed by their political buddies. Some of these buddies are not doing their jobs and the heat is diverted to guess who - us, the has no voice and can't do any harm to the good old boys. I submit that instead of blaming the American public for lying that they start doing some house keeping and start an honest internal investigation of their departments for the good of the people. That is why they have been appointed and that is the reason that they are there. They seem to have forgotten that.

 

I am the type of guy that if the service is good in a store, I seek out management and tell them and could be the biggest proponent of the store. However, if the store is giving shoddy treatment, I can be one of their biggest nightmares.

[Lukexjxc]

thanks for putting my thoughts into words R2D2, well put

 

Luke

[owenkrout]

Thanks, Tom, for some really useful information and for some really positive results from proactive activity on your part. You are one of the best examples of how one can achieve some real progress while still taking the positive approach to things. You don't have to lie down and let them walk all over you, but at the same time you can keep a positive attitude.

 

Anyone who would waste their time trying to stir up trouble on this or any other board like this when they really did not have any such relationship has some really serious personality problems. Get a life. Even though I have really good reason to sympathize with those who are just now struggling through the process that my wife and I have already successfully negotiated, I must admit that it steadily becomes less and less of a priority to spend time on the board rather than with my new family. I still answer e-mails and post answers to questions on the board as well as offer encouragement but I am quite willing to let the people now going through the process decide what direction their efforts should go in now. Anyone who has to invent a sweetheart and a love life and waste their time making up stories to go with it is indeed one sick puppy.

[Mick]

Congrats Tom. Your tenacity and persistence is a good example to all who follow. You remind me of some of our more active former black holers like Eric, Owen, Mark, AngryTexan, Jon in Denver, Skibum, just to name a few. I am really glad the EMS went out. As to the fakers, this is totally beyond my level of comprehension. What could possibly motivate someone to do such a thing? This is, as you said, the act of a sick puppy.

[tparrent]

Two final thoughts on this:

 

1. Mr. X told me they will process around 10,000 K1 & K3 visas this year. I can believe that number. Many, many people would not find this site because they are not internet-centric. I think thousands use lawyers and simply leave it to them. I also think many Chinese Americans who apply for K1/K3 use alternative sources of information.

 

2. I made a mistake by calling fakers "sick puppies". I love dogs and I apologize to all ailing canines for having insulted them so unjustly

[juz]

Tom, congratulation and thanks a lot for the info...

[Mick]

Thanks, Tom. Apology accepted. My faithful Doggo was diagnosed with a tumor on her spleen back in February. She is too old to risk the surgery and her life expectancy was about the same with or without the surgery - 3 months. She's laying here at my feet, now. Still around, but sinking deeper everyday. Given the rate she is declining, and the speed of the visa, I can't imagine how my sweetie will ever meet Doggo.

 

There is a difference between sick puppies and sickos.

Really sorry to hear about your dog Don. I hope and pray for the best. It is really tough when a beloved pet is sick.