[apohn]

>I do have _some_ competitive advantage from being a tourist here.

You are actually at a disadvantage being in the US.

The H1-B visa process has a very frustrating quirk. Most years, companies apply for H1-Bs in March/April. But the person cannot start working till October. That means there is basically a 5-6 month gap between the H1-B approval and you starting the job. Many years, the quota of H1-B is exhausted quickly and visas ends up being a lottery - so even people who apply for visa lose the lottery and get rejected.

The exception to the above typically happens in a recession, when companies aren't hiring. Then the visas are available the whole year because the quota is not used up, but the jobs are not there.

Most companies don't want to sponsor somebody who cannot start working for 6 months. This ends up favoring people who can already work in the US (e.g. recent BS,MS,PhD graduates with EADs), or people who can work for the company who are outside the US and then come to the US later.

If you were in Europe, a multi-national company could hire you and have you working immediately. Then they could go through the H1-B process while you are working for them whole time until the visa is approved and October comes along.