transpass
08-22 11:33 AM
I totally agree. This might be true, but cableching MUST update his profile with a valid information and be verifiable and then be contacted if we want to believe what he says.
I don't think he wants us to believe him. And why should he? It's just for our FYI, he posted...Sure, one can ask more details about his experience, but it's upto the individual whether he/she wants to believe and to what extent...
I don't think he wants us to believe him. And why should he? It's just for our FYI, he posted...Sure, one can ask more details about his experience, but it's upto the individual whether he/she wants to believe and to what extent...
wallpaper RED - 1999 Mitsubishi Carisma
acecupid
07-05 01:55 PM
We are trying to mock their actions and doing it in a unique and peaceful manner which is bound to get media attention since its so unique. I hope the number of flowers in enough to grab media attention.:D
newuser
02-26 10:34 AM
ALLOW EVERYONE TO FILE I485 SHOULD BE OUR NUMBER ONE PRIORITY.
You people already have filed 485 and have EAD. EAD gives you so much freedom . It is as good as a green card.
What about people who are less fortunate and cannot file II485. We need to allow everyone to be on the same page first and enjoy EAD freedom.
That should be our priority before any country limits or this thread action item
Everybody waited for a fair time before they got there EAD's. None of us got the EAD on day one. So don't try to mix all the issues into one.
I support this initivative.
You people already have filed 485 and have EAD. EAD gives you so much freedom . It is as good as a green card.
What about people who are less fortunate and cannot file II485. We need to allow everyone to be on the same page first and enjoy EAD freedom.
That should be our priority before any country limits or this thread action item
Everybody waited for a fair time before they got there EAD's. None of us got the EAD on day one. So don't try to mix all the issues into one.
I support this initivative.
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pappu
12-19 10:10 AM
As per this $20 drive, I tried to contribute thru my Visa Card & it was "repeatedly" prompting card# enter is invalid...I checked/ensured expire date/secure code & info which I entered is correct but repeatedlly it was prompting same message...Anybody from IV can help whats wrong with the web page?
I tried to submit request my request 3 times, does it mean that I have contributed 3 times?
system is working. I sent you a PM
I tried to submit request my request 3 times, does it mean that I have contributed 3 times?
system is working. I sent you a PM
more...
reedandbamboo
09-15 09:44 AM
For 2 and 3, the following is the address...
Acting Director Jonathan Scharfen
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service
20 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20529
Acting Deputy Director, Michael Aytes
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service
20 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20529
Thanks!!
Acting Director Jonathan Scharfen
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service
20 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20529
Acting Deputy Director, Michael Aytes
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service
20 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20529
Thanks!!
dvb123
07-10 12:13 AM
http://www.visaserve.com/CM/Articles/DOL%20Fact%20Sheet%20for%20Labor%20Certifications. pdf
http://www.foreignlaborcert.doleta.gov/pdf/OFLC_Report_v11_8-23-07.pdf
Look on page 10 and this number is only with the leading occupations. There may be others like auditors.
Note: Occupations with a salary greater that 60k are EB2 95% of the time.
I think comparing both these data I can approximately say 90,000-100,1000 EB2 labors have been cleared in 2004 and 2005. That is like 2 lakhs applicants including primary and derivative applicants. Even if we put a 50% error margin thinking that there were more Eb3 labors, 140's are denied or downgraded to EB3 or a problem at 485 stage there are 1lakh - 485 applicants including Eb2 and EB3 waiting for 2004 and 2005. With a per country quota of 3800 + a bit of row how many years will it take to come to 2006 - where a lot of Eb2's are stuck?
I think it will take 10 years for a EB2 2006 applicant to get his physical green card including 485 waiting time etc.
http://www.foreignlaborcert.doleta.gov/pdf/OFLC_Report_v11_8-23-07.pdf
Look on page 10 and this number is only with the leading occupations. There may be others like auditors.
Note: Occupations with a salary greater that 60k are EB2 95% of the time.
I think comparing both these data I can approximately say 90,000-100,1000 EB2 labors have been cleared in 2004 and 2005. That is like 2 lakhs applicants including primary and derivative applicants. Even if we put a 50% error margin thinking that there were more Eb3 labors, 140's are denied or downgraded to EB3 or a problem at 485 stage there are 1lakh - 485 applicants including Eb2 and EB3 waiting for 2004 and 2005. With a per country quota of 3800 + a bit of row how many years will it take to come to 2006 - where a lot of Eb2's are stuck?
I think it will take 10 years for a EB2 2006 applicant to get his physical green card including 485 waiting time etc.
more...
santb1975
11-20 07:21 PM
That makes it $ 1031 so far in 5 days. Let's see how soon we can get to the next milestone ($2000).
Anyone Interested in comming up with a Target?. My target is to finish a marathon ( $26.1 k by December 31'st)?. Can we do it?
Just did another $100.00 contribution, a small contribution to support all efforts to get something done to help our cause.
Anyone Interested in comming up with a Target?. My target is to finish a marathon ( $26.1 k by December 31'st)?. Can we do it?
Just did another $100.00 contribution, a small contribution to support all efforts to get something done to help our cause.
2010 Mitsubishi Carisma 1.8 Mirage,
andy garcia
02-05 08:19 AM
No cap would be the best solution... but that is very tough to sell in Washington....That's why all this complications of asking to take dependents out of the cap and allowing overflow to go to China/India...
As I understand, IV already made these arguments to senators and even the senators who are sympathetic to immigration are not willing to remove the cap..The only thing they would accept is that the overflow would go to India/China/oversubscribed countries....I wonder if one of the core members would comment on this.....You do not need to name names....Just a request give a description of your interactions with law makers in this regard...That would put this issue to rest.....
theortically what longg says is correct.The system is not fair......but not many are listening to us at this point...So we have to find some way out of the situation.....
We need both alisa and longg as members because we need more to get traction in Washington.....the only common solution for these would be to get the numbers increased somehow....Otherwise EB3-EB3-India-China-ROW keep fighting each other...you would have nothing....
If the DOS says this is because this what the law establishes:
"The annual per-country limitation of 7% is a cap, meaning visa issuances to any single country may not exceed this figure. This limitation is not a quota to which any particular country is entitled, however. The per-country limitation serves to avoid monopolization of virtually all the visa numbers by applicants from only a few countries.
How do you like if people from a certain country go to India to take all your jobs?
As I understand, IV already made these arguments to senators and even the senators who are sympathetic to immigration are not willing to remove the cap..The only thing they would accept is that the overflow would go to India/China/oversubscribed countries....I wonder if one of the core members would comment on this.....You do not need to name names....Just a request give a description of your interactions with law makers in this regard...That would put this issue to rest.....
theortically what longg says is correct.The system is not fair......but not many are listening to us at this point...So we have to find some way out of the situation.....
We need both alisa and longg as members because we need more to get traction in Washington.....the only common solution for these would be to get the numbers increased somehow....Otherwise EB3-EB3-India-China-ROW keep fighting each other...you would have nothing....
If the DOS says this is because this what the law establishes:
"The annual per-country limitation of 7% is a cap, meaning visa issuances to any single country may not exceed this figure. This limitation is not a quota to which any particular country is entitled, however. The per-country limitation serves to avoid monopolization of virtually all the visa numbers by applicants from only a few countries.
How do you like if people from a certain country go to India to take all your jobs?
more...
bsbawa10
09-06 03:26 PM
bsbawa,
also, I think this thread should be made visible to members only.otherwise, moment we start e-mail campaign on Monday, abuse might happen.
Any ideas how to do it?
I am aware of the issue. The only thing I can take care of right now is keep track of the revisions, and I am keeping track of them. (Thanks for the headup sweet_jungle)
also, I think this thread should be made visible to members only.otherwise, moment we start e-mail campaign on Monday, abuse might happen.
Any ideas how to do it?
I am aware of the issue. The only thing I can take care of right now is keep track of the revisions, and I am keeping track of them. (Thanks for the headup sweet_jungle)
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ken
08-28 12:25 AM
gimme_GC2006- Just wondering at which local office you went for interview.
more...
grupak
08-28 05:38 PM
Maybe you can file DHS form 7001 to the Ombudsman, and point out the self-contradiction.
Good luck!
Good luck!
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satishku_2000
07-20 05:44 PM
Hi,
this is my first post...
I've seen most of you guys are indians, I admire you for being so organized and brave, and also for getting skilled enough to be sucessfull anywhere.
I'm not in the IT business, I'm not indian, I don't have special skills nor advanced dregrees. I'm just a regular guy who has worked all his life to achieve what he got. Since my degree is a 3 years old, I did not qualify foe EB2 even being in a managerial position for over 10 years.
I was waiting for the opportunity to file my family's I485 and then my company was bought and I was laid off on jun 14th.
I've been 6 years in this country, I have 2 american born kids, I've paid a lot of taxes, I have a house mortgage, a car loan...
Now I'm out of status and worst of all, everything on the GC process is lost.
I don't think it's fair, I've never done anything illegal, but I'm not ready to leave the country. I need to sell my property, don't know what to do with the car, my wife is on her MBA thesis, I just can't leave.
I'm telling all this not because I want you to feel sorry, but to create awareness that it's NOT on your hands being legal or illegal. You're in others hands: your employer, USCIS, the adjudicator officer.
So don't judge others just because you have been lucky enough to maintain your status...
Good luck to you all in your I-485s
VZLAN, Ah! I can't return to my country since I am Venezuelan, and I don't plan to raise my kids under communism.
Exactly man Nothing is in ones hands .. Two identical applications going to two different officers can lead to two different conclusions ,
this is my first post...
I've seen most of you guys are indians, I admire you for being so organized and brave, and also for getting skilled enough to be sucessfull anywhere.
I'm not in the IT business, I'm not indian, I don't have special skills nor advanced dregrees. I'm just a regular guy who has worked all his life to achieve what he got. Since my degree is a 3 years old, I did not qualify foe EB2 even being in a managerial position for over 10 years.
I was waiting for the opportunity to file my family's I485 and then my company was bought and I was laid off on jun 14th.
I've been 6 years in this country, I have 2 american born kids, I've paid a lot of taxes, I have a house mortgage, a car loan...
Now I'm out of status and worst of all, everything on the GC process is lost.
I don't think it's fair, I've never done anything illegal, but I'm not ready to leave the country. I need to sell my property, don't know what to do with the car, my wife is on her MBA thesis, I just can't leave.
I'm telling all this not because I want you to feel sorry, but to create awareness that it's NOT on your hands being legal or illegal. You're in others hands: your employer, USCIS, the adjudicator officer.
So don't judge others just because you have been lucky enough to maintain your status...
Good luck to you all in your I-485s
VZLAN, Ah! I can't return to my country since I am Venezuelan, and I don't plan to raise my kids under communism.
Exactly man Nothing is in ones hands .. Two identical applications going to two different officers can lead to two different conclusions ,
more...
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rph20
07-20 02:38 PM
Thanks deecha for your response.
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Munna Bhai
07-20 05:39 PM
Hi,
this is my first post...
I've seen most of you guys are indians, I admire you for being so organized and brave, and also for getting skilled enough to be sucessfull anywhere.
I'm not in the IT business, I'm not indian, I don't have special skills nor advanced dregrees. I'm just a regular guy who has worked all his life to achieve what he got. Since my degree is a 3 years old, I did not qualify foe EB2 even being in a managerial position for over 10 years.
I was waiting for the opportunity to file my family's I485 and then my company was bought and I was laid off on jun 14th.
I've been 6 years in this country, I have 2 american born kids, I've paid a lot of taxes, I have a house mortgage, a car loan...
Now I'm out of status and worst of all, everything on the GC process is lost.
I don't think it's fair, I've never done anything illegal, but I'm not ready to leave the country. I need to sell my property, don't know what to do with the car, my wife is on her MBA thesis, I just can't leave.
I'm telling all this not because I want you to feel sorry, but to create awareness that it's NOT on your hands being legal or illegal. You're in others hands: your employer, USCIS, the adjudicator officer.
So don't judge others just because you have been lucky enough to maintain your status...
Good luck to you all in your I-485s
VZLAN, Ah! I can't return to my country since I am Venezuelan, and I don't plan to raise my kids under communism.
If I-140 is approved you can jump to another job. why dont you try that.
this is my first post...
I've seen most of you guys are indians, I admire you for being so organized and brave, and also for getting skilled enough to be sucessfull anywhere.
I'm not in the IT business, I'm not indian, I don't have special skills nor advanced dregrees. I'm just a regular guy who has worked all his life to achieve what he got. Since my degree is a 3 years old, I did not qualify foe EB2 even being in a managerial position for over 10 years.
I was waiting for the opportunity to file my family's I485 and then my company was bought and I was laid off on jun 14th.
I've been 6 years in this country, I have 2 american born kids, I've paid a lot of taxes, I have a house mortgage, a car loan...
Now I'm out of status and worst of all, everything on the GC process is lost.
I don't think it's fair, I've never done anything illegal, but I'm not ready to leave the country. I need to sell my property, don't know what to do with the car, my wife is on her MBA thesis, I just can't leave.
I'm telling all this not because I want you to feel sorry, but to create awareness that it's NOT on your hands being legal or illegal. You're in others hands: your employer, USCIS, the adjudicator officer.
So don't judge others just because you have been lucky enough to maintain your status...
Good luck to you all in your I-485s
VZLAN, Ah! I can't return to my country since I am Venezuelan, and I don't plan to raise my kids under communism.
If I-140 is approved you can jump to another job. why dont you try that.
more...
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swamy
11-19 12:56 PM
the first 'bump' of my wwwlife
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grupak
08-28 05:38 PM
Maybe you can file DHS form 7001 to the Ombudsman, and point out the self-contradiction.
Good luck!
Good luck!
more...
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chanduv23
11-11 01:24 PM
I have a nine month old and I can understand your feelings. I hired a nanny through sulekha but did a lot of reference checking and tried her when my parents were around here in US and they monitored her carefully and then gave us the green signal to keep her before they left.
So not all nannies are like that. There are good nannies too. I pay a lot of money a lot more compared to what thunderbolt quoted ONLY because we found her to be nice and caring. She gets calls from her earlier employers who say their kids want to speak with nanny and say hello.
It is just your bad luck. Nannycams are very useful and plan to get one for myself just for my satisfaction even though we are happy with our nanny.
Like someone suggested - daycare would be a good option and I even thought about it but a 8 month old kid may catch alleriges easily and thats why I backed off too.
Now about legal recourse - the best thing is to get out of any kind of mess. You were aware that you must not hire a nanny illegally and now you pay the price. No problem. Just say good bye to her and be careful next time
So not all nannies are like that. There are good nannies too. I pay a lot of money a lot more compared to what thunderbolt quoted ONLY because we found her to be nice and caring. She gets calls from her earlier employers who say their kids want to speak with nanny and say hello.
It is just your bad luck. Nannycams are very useful and plan to get one for myself just for my satisfaction even though we are happy with our nanny.
Like someone suggested - daycare would be a good option and I even thought about it but a 8 month old kid may catch alleriges easily and thats why I backed off too.
Now about legal recourse - the best thing is to get out of any kind of mess. You were aware that you must not hire a nanny illegally and now you pay the price. No problem. Just say good bye to her and be careful next time
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dvb123
07-10 12:13 AM
http://www.visaserve.com/CM/Articles/DOL%20Fact%20Sheet%20for%20Labor%20Certifications. pdf
http://www.foreignlaborcert.doleta.gov/pdf/OFLC_Report_v11_8-23-07.pdf
Look on page 10 and this number is only with the leading occupations. There may be others like auditors.
Note: Occupations with a salary greater that 60k are EB2 95% of the time.
I think comparing both these data I can approximately say 90,000-100,1000 EB2 labors have been cleared in 2004 and 2005. That is like 2 lakhs applicants including primary and derivative applicants. Even if we put a 50% error margin thinking that there were more Eb3 labors, 140's are denied or downgraded to EB3 or a problem at 485 stage there are 1lakh - 485 applicants including Eb2 and EB3 waiting for 2004 and 2005. With a per country quota of 3800 + a bit of row how many years will it take to come to 2006 - where a lot of Eb2's are stuck?
I think it will take 10 years for a EB2 2006 applicant to get his physical green card including 485 waiting time etc.
http://www.foreignlaborcert.doleta.gov/pdf/OFLC_Report_v11_8-23-07.pdf
Look on page 10 and this number is only with the leading occupations. There may be others like auditors.
Note: Occupations with a salary greater that 60k are EB2 95% of the time.
I think comparing both these data I can approximately say 90,000-100,1000 EB2 labors have been cleared in 2004 and 2005. That is like 2 lakhs applicants including primary and derivative applicants. Even if we put a 50% error margin thinking that there were more Eb3 labors, 140's are denied or downgraded to EB3 or a problem at 485 stage there are 1lakh - 485 applicants including Eb2 and EB3 waiting for 2004 and 2005. With a per country quota of 3800 + a bit of row how many years will it take to come to 2006 - where a lot of Eb2's are stuck?
I think it will take 10 years for a EB2 2006 applicant to get his physical green card including 485 waiting time etc.
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ItIsNotFunny
06-09 03:56 PM
Advocacy day is going well. There are about 300 meetings being planed between today and tomorrow. Its very hectic in the situation room.
This afternoon USCIS Ombudsman came to meet us in the situation room and spoke with the members. More details and pictures will be posted soon. Stay tuned.
This is one of the most important event conducted. I feel bad that I couldn't attend in person.
Kudos and special thanks to everyone who made this happen.
This afternoon USCIS Ombudsman came to meet us in the situation room and spoke with the members. More details and pictures will be posted soon. Stay tuned.
This is one of the most important event conducted. I feel bad that I couldn't attend in person.
Kudos and special thanks to everyone who made this happen.
diptam
07-17 08:30 PM
I became an IV memeber few days back during May 2007 and actually became active sometime around June 10th 2007. Within this short timeframe - IV core and its great (mostly :)) members have given me so much knowledge, confidence that i filed my 485 on my own during July 2nd - I just cant believe that i did that !!!
Now its July 17th its the same IV who made USCIS accept all those hard earned documents .... Yes - I'm that guy who was forced to sign a $10,000 bond for getting Future employment letter.
"No bond, no employment letter - show me what you got" - I was thrown this challenge straight on the face. Now once i get EAD its my turn to show them what i got.
Go IV Go - we are all with you.
Yes.
If members continue the support and we will definitely now aim for these. The battle is only half won with 485 filings
Now its July 17th its the same IV who made USCIS accept all those hard earned documents .... Yes - I'm that guy who was forced to sign a $10,000 bond for getting Future employment letter.
"No bond, no employment letter - show me what you got" - I was thrown this challenge straight on the face. Now once i get EAD its my turn to show them what i got.
Go IV Go - we are all with you.
Yes.
If members continue the support and we will definitely now aim for these. The battle is only half won with 485 filings
av2004
06-18 12:12 PM
Logiclife, thank you very much for the encouraging words and your commitment to our cause.
I had the good fortune of attending the IV Advocacy days (albeit only for one day) in DC and walking side by side with great people such as logiclife, Aman etc. and experiencing the amazing feat performed by most of the members (naming a few, please feel free to add more...):
Contacting the lawmakers, confirming appointments.
Being cheerful, yet completely focussed on the task at hand.
Being mindful of what to mention to the lawmakers or their representatives.
All this was accomplished with the limited resources that IV has in terms of volunteer and monetary support. I, like many of the people here, was skeptical of how IV spends the money that is being donated by many donors we see on this forum. It was an eye opener to me when heard that we are doing the advocacy event after 3 long years because of the limited resources we have. I mean, think the 40,000+ users we have on this forum. If each one of us members donated $1, it would have pretty much covered the advocacy day costs. Instead, I read that we could collect only $20,000 for this event (even after most of people paid $50 at a minimum!).
I am not a donor on this forum yet, but I would like to be one just to support the activities of IV. I am more than convinced that the money I will spend will be put to good use for the good of this community. Mind you, many of the IV advocacy day volunteers had already received their green cards, yet they are fighting for me and you. What good would it be if we still continue to sit on the side and not support such wholesome activities made by these sincere guys? Hats off to IV (and the leaders of IV) for providing us with a great platform and opportunities to make an impact and make out issues heard by the lawmakers.
So, I request you all to take some action to help IV and help yourself, in turn. If you have any misgivings, by all means direct questions to any of the IV leaders and I am sure they can provide answers..
Lastly, I really liked the "passion" part of logiclife's message very much and would like to end with a quote about passion:
"Swami Vivekananda said, "Give me men of passion." Passion means a passionate nature, that if I do this, I must do it perfectly. I must do it as well as I can. I must do it now. And promises do not constitute work. He who wants to give must give now."
Be Unreasonable & a cause of progress, not just a beneficiary.
Hello everyone,
I will explain the title of this thread in a minute (the unreasonable part) but before that I would like to share my experience in DC last week during, before and after lobby days.
A few weeks ago, when Aman called me to join him in lobby days, just like many others, I was having a difficult time scheduling vacation days off from work. I somehow convinced my boss to let me take those days off and finish the work in the weekend prior to June.
The Airport pickup:
When I reached the Airport, Aman and Pratik were there to pick me up. And this is where it got funny and really hilarious. The car was a compact rental car and it was full of printers, laptops and folders -- all in preparation of lobby day. There was barely enough place to sit in the car. After shutting all the doors tight (we really had to compress the luggage and force the door shut) we started driving towards the hotel. And the dome light would not shut off. So everyone outside can see a car full of luggage, printers and people packed like a can of sardines. Fortunately Aman knew the way to the Hotel and we could go there without having to stop for directions.
Preparation and training on Sunday:
Sunday was hectic, busy, tiring and very very interesting. I met a lot of new people on Sunday who had come to DC for the first time. And it felt really really good to reconnect with people who we had met earlier in 2007 rally in DC and the earlier rally in San Jose in July. Just felt like I had met my friends from college with whom I spend 4 years. The kind of relationship and chemistry that we have is impossible to describe in words. Crisis and calamity have a way of creating bonds that last a lifetime. We all may get green-cards in next 1 year or maybe 10 years. But I will remember the people I met in DC twice and in San Jose for the rest of my life. And I am sure others feel the same way. These are the people who were sitting on the laptop scheduling lawmaker meetings and connecting members to appointments till 4:00 AM on Monday morning and then back to work by 8:00 AM. We ate whatever was ordered or whatever we found in the hotel. There were people printing business cards in one corner. Others were printing the drop-off material for lawmakers, preparing neat folders for meetings. There was training and mock-meetings going on in another corner for people who had never been to the Capitol Hill before. There was so much purpose and so much goal-oriented motivation in the room, I felt really glad to have not missed this even one out of 3 times we done this both in DC and in San Jose.
The next two days:
Over the next two days, I went to about 7 meetings in the House and Senate side and had very very interesting experiences, mostly positive. I cannot share the details of the response for each office as this is a public forum, but I can tell you that having been to DC about 6 times now since 2006, there are Hill Staffers who know many of us and even remember our names. Our conversations do not begin with introductions, but where we left off in our last meeting. More than 60-70% of the offices of Congressmen and Senators know about Immigration Voice and know about the issue. Some offices may have newer staff and not know, and that's where education helps.
Every single day consisted of going to the Hill from the situation room, (I mostly took a cab, I am lazy that way even if its only 4 blocks), coming back, getting some work done, going back to the Hill, accompanying someone if they are alone in the meetings (it helps to have 2 or more IV members go to a meeting). We worked till 11 PM mostly, and got about 4-5 hours of sleep each night. And that is true for everyone who was there. EVERY SINGLE one. Walking between the office buildings (and they are big) and walking a few times back to the Hotel also made some of us realize (like me) that how out of shape we are physically :):)
And now to the UNreasonables:
Every single person who came to DC this time or the time before, or who came to San Jose rally has been told by friends, family and colleagues "Why are you going to DC, let others go, take care of yourself, all problems get fixed eventually, Congress will take care of it".
They sound very reasonable or try to convince you that they are the reasonable ones and you are being unreasonable by going to the Capitol and working on your cause.
The truth is...yes, we may be. But we are the ones who will eventually make a difference. If you read the quote from George Bernard Shaw, you will realize that the reasonable men and women will sit around and talk about us, save their time for family and leisure and comply themselves to the system. They will comply themselves to a system that keeps in hanging without a green card for 20 years. They will never be capable of ushering progress.
The unreasonable ones, the ones like us, who contribute to this cause in various forms, are the gifted ones. We are the lucky ones. For we have the wisdom and the strength to do the unreasonable and get the world to comply to our point of view.
And flower campaign, the DC rally -- that got bulletin reversed in 2007,
the popularity of removing per-country ceilings in the offices that exist today and didnt exist before --
All this a work of men and women like us who are unreasonably resilient, who will not listen to the advise of reasonable men who sit on the sidelines and refresh the Visa Bulletin page every first friday of every month 20 times a day.
But to those who get it...I have one more quote for you, a final one, I promise:
I wish the problem of greencard backlogs get cleared soon, but if it doesnt, I will do this a 100 times again and with same or more passion, determination and purpose. Our energy and determination would outlast and outlive the intertia of Congress.
I had the good fortune of attending the IV Advocacy days (albeit only for one day) in DC and walking side by side with great people such as logiclife, Aman etc. and experiencing the amazing feat performed by most of the members (naming a few, please feel free to add more...):
Contacting the lawmakers, confirming appointments.
Being cheerful, yet completely focussed on the task at hand.
Being mindful of what to mention to the lawmakers or their representatives.
All this was accomplished with the limited resources that IV has in terms of volunteer and monetary support. I, like many of the people here, was skeptical of how IV spends the money that is being donated by many donors we see on this forum. It was an eye opener to me when heard that we are doing the advocacy event after 3 long years because of the limited resources we have. I mean, think the 40,000+ users we have on this forum. If each one of us members donated $1, it would have pretty much covered the advocacy day costs. Instead, I read that we could collect only $20,000 for this event (even after most of people paid $50 at a minimum!).
I am not a donor on this forum yet, but I would like to be one just to support the activities of IV. I am more than convinced that the money I will spend will be put to good use for the good of this community. Mind you, many of the IV advocacy day volunteers had already received their green cards, yet they are fighting for me and you. What good would it be if we still continue to sit on the side and not support such wholesome activities made by these sincere guys? Hats off to IV (and the leaders of IV) for providing us with a great platform and opportunities to make an impact and make out issues heard by the lawmakers.
So, I request you all to take some action to help IV and help yourself, in turn. If you have any misgivings, by all means direct questions to any of the IV leaders and I am sure they can provide answers..
Lastly, I really liked the "passion" part of logiclife's message very much and would like to end with a quote about passion:
"Swami Vivekananda said, "Give me men of passion." Passion means a passionate nature, that if I do this, I must do it perfectly. I must do it as well as I can. I must do it now. And promises do not constitute work. He who wants to give must give now."
Be Unreasonable & a cause of progress, not just a beneficiary.
Hello everyone,
I will explain the title of this thread in a minute (the unreasonable part) but before that I would like to share my experience in DC last week during, before and after lobby days.
A few weeks ago, when Aman called me to join him in lobby days, just like many others, I was having a difficult time scheduling vacation days off from work. I somehow convinced my boss to let me take those days off and finish the work in the weekend prior to June.
The Airport pickup:
When I reached the Airport, Aman and Pratik were there to pick me up. And this is where it got funny and really hilarious. The car was a compact rental car and it was full of printers, laptops and folders -- all in preparation of lobby day. There was barely enough place to sit in the car. After shutting all the doors tight (we really had to compress the luggage and force the door shut) we started driving towards the hotel. And the dome light would not shut off. So everyone outside can see a car full of luggage, printers and people packed like a can of sardines. Fortunately Aman knew the way to the Hotel and we could go there without having to stop for directions.
Preparation and training on Sunday:
Sunday was hectic, busy, tiring and very very interesting. I met a lot of new people on Sunday who had come to DC for the first time. And it felt really really good to reconnect with people who we had met earlier in 2007 rally in DC and the earlier rally in San Jose in July. Just felt like I had met my friends from college with whom I spend 4 years. The kind of relationship and chemistry that we have is impossible to describe in words. Crisis and calamity have a way of creating bonds that last a lifetime. We all may get green-cards in next 1 year or maybe 10 years. But I will remember the people I met in DC twice and in San Jose for the rest of my life. And I am sure others feel the same way. These are the people who were sitting on the laptop scheduling lawmaker meetings and connecting members to appointments till 4:00 AM on Monday morning and then back to work by 8:00 AM. We ate whatever was ordered or whatever we found in the hotel. There were people printing business cards in one corner. Others were printing the drop-off material for lawmakers, preparing neat folders for meetings. There was training and mock-meetings going on in another corner for people who had never been to the Capitol Hill before. There was so much purpose and so much goal-oriented motivation in the room, I felt really glad to have not missed this even one out of 3 times we done this both in DC and in San Jose.
The next two days:
Over the next two days, I went to about 7 meetings in the House and Senate side and had very very interesting experiences, mostly positive. I cannot share the details of the response for each office as this is a public forum, but I can tell you that having been to DC about 6 times now since 2006, there are Hill Staffers who know many of us and even remember our names. Our conversations do not begin with introductions, but where we left off in our last meeting. More than 60-70% of the offices of Congressmen and Senators know about Immigration Voice and know about the issue. Some offices may have newer staff and not know, and that's where education helps.
Every single day consisted of going to the Hill from the situation room, (I mostly took a cab, I am lazy that way even if its only 4 blocks), coming back, getting some work done, going back to the Hill, accompanying someone if they are alone in the meetings (it helps to have 2 or more IV members go to a meeting). We worked till 11 PM mostly, and got about 4-5 hours of sleep each night. And that is true for everyone who was there. EVERY SINGLE one. Walking between the office buildings (and they are big) and walking a few times back to the Hotel also made some of us realize (like me) that how out of shape we are physically :):)
And now to the UNreasonables:
Every single person who came to DC this time or the time before, or who came to San Jose rally has been told by friends, family and colleagues "Why are you going to DC, let others go, take care of yourself, all problems get fixed eventually, Congress will take care of it".
They sound very reasonable or try to convince you that they are the reasonable ones and you are being unreasonable by going to the Capitol and working on your cause.
The truth is...yes, we may be. But we are the ones who will eventually make a difference. If you read the quote from George Bernard Shaw, you will realize that the reasonable men and women will sit around and talk about us, save their time for family and leisure and comply themselves to the system. They will comply themselves to a system that keeps in hanging without a green card for 20 years. They will never be capable of ushering progress.
The unreasonable ones, the ones like us, who contribute to this cause in various forms, are the gifted ones. We are the lucky ones. For we have the wisdom and the strength to do the unreasonable and get the world to comply to our point of view.
And flower campaign, the DC rally -- that got bulletin reversed in 2007,
the popularity of removing per-country ceilings in the offices that exist today and didnt exist before --
All this a work of men and women like us who are unreasonably resilient, who will not listen to the advise of reasonable men who sit on the sidelines and refresh the Visa Bulletin page every first friday of every month 20 times a day.
But to those who get it...I have one more quote for you, a final one, I promise:
I wish the problem of greencard backlogs get cleared soon, but if it doesnt, I will do this a 100 times again and with same or more passion, determination and purpose. Our energy and determination would outlast and outlive the intertia of Congress.