On Sun, Jul 04, 2010 at 02:16:23PM -0400, Ron Rogers wrote:
> Perhaps it was on another forum, recently, where a visitor to the EU had to
> take a radio operator exam *which was in English*! I imagine that this is
> for extended stays. Why tempt fate? During the Tiananmen Square riots in
> China, some of my fellow American tourists wore Canadian label pins, etc. I
> did not respect that behavior.
I'm in two minds about that sort of thing, myself. Is it cowardly
behavior, or is it just being extra-cautious - say, like getting a radio
license before cruising? I guess it depends. E.g., it's not something
that I would do by choice - i.e., I won't be packing any Canadian pins
if I ever have to visit China :) - but if it was a situation where the
political climate around me suddenly jelled into "let's kill all
Americans", I would a) kick myself repeatedly for being so completely
out of touch that I missed the warning signs; b) look for the shortest
path out of the country/to safety; and c) be as inconspicuous as
possible while running for that border. If that meant wearing a Canadian
jacket, then so be it. Since I'm not Bruce Willis, I wouldn't be able to
take a gun away from a Bad Guy and shoot him and a hundred of his
buddies (with a gun that holds six rounds), so I guess I'd have to be
smart instead of "bad"...
What I _wouldn't_ do is wear that jacket *and* stick around to see the
festivities. The situation is either bad enough to follow emergency
escape procedures, or it's not. Anything in between smacks of cowardice
_and_ stupidity.
> The Chinese people were genuinely friendly
> towards polite Americans. The detectives wearing leather jackets in hotel
> lobbies - not so much.
You should have asked them if they wanted to be horse food. :) It seems
that foreign students in China - if I recall the story as it was told to
me, the student in question was from the UK - used to be taught the
phrase "do you want to be in trouble?", and were told to use it if
someone was bothering them. This particular girl's accent in Chinese was
absolutely awful - and so was the response of the people to whom she
said it (confusion and shock, but it seemed to get the right result.)
Turns out that pronouncing those words with the wrong tone carries a
rather different meaning...
> Times change and particularly in the new era of terrorism. Passports are now
> required almost everywhere (maybe not Bermuda) and even to get back into the
> States.
I spoke with a US Customs agent in Hampton Roads, VA about two months
ago and asked him about the details of returning to the States after
visiting foreign waters. According to him - and his partner, who was
standing right there, did not contradict him - you do not need a
passport, and a US DL is perfectly fine.
> Things change from one Customs officer to another to include here in
> the States. In Mexico, they might try to nail you on a fishing license or a
> radio license or how your hair is parted. It helps to at least appear to be
> poor.
Or at least to be a "working Joe" rather than a "millionaire on
vacation". Provoking resentment pointlessly is a really good way to
_become_ horse food.
> As one NYC police officer said to me (as my broken car muffler deafened him)
> "You're lucky that my wife was nice to me last night."
Ah... what a lovely illustration of the "freedom" that we are entitled
to in this country. Some pigs are indeed more equal than others.
Ben
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