Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by aplummer 700 days ago
I don’t know, I think we should have started detaining US citizens for 20 minutes in Australia to reciprocate the delays caused by Trump era USA interview requirements. For reference, before boarding a plane to the USA you had to queue up to answer a bunch of dumb questions “what is your golf handicap” was one I got. Fortunately that ridiculous process stopped.

There is something to having a degree of quid pro quo and not just being a stepping stone to more powerful nations.
2 comments
devilbunny 700 days ago
That’s a reasonable question for immigration, especially if they think you might try to work illegally (which, as a native English speaker, you could do easily). Canada can be quite hard on Americans for this, and we even have a special arrangement where the eSTAs and eTAs don’t apply between us for US and Canadian citizens. We have nearly complete freedom of movement.

My wife is usually quiet when we do immigration because I carry the passports and know the process (a bit silly, since she’s been through it almost as many times as I, but they need to be in one place and I carry that bag), but at the land border I’ve had to wake her up to get her to talk. She asked why one time. I said, you have a US passport, we have different last names, they have to make sure I’m not a human trafficker with a fake passport for you.

Then she got Global Entry and that issue went away. They know both of us.

link
defen 700 days ago
> “what is your golf handicap” was one I got.

Did you say you were going to the US to play golf or is this a reference to the debate?

link
aplummer 700 days ago
Nope I said I was going to California for a job interview, the golf thing just came up as they peppered me with questions about what I like to do on the weekend.
link
joegibbs 700 days ago
What a weird question, is there a right or wrong answer to that?
link
defrost 700 days ago
They're probably looking for a breaking facade reaction rather than any specific right or wrong answer.

There's a school of thought that thinks such approaches to questioning works, another that thinks it doesn't - but in general border agents look more for body language and reactions rather than correct answers to trivia questions.

Some say the best way to be forgotton | passed through | overlooked by aircrew and border agents is to rapidly get "bucketed" into a category group .. too many drinks and make a loud pass at staff, for example, and you're in the "drunken bore" group.

link