[dusanbab]

I think the frustration with the various state differences is less interesting, to be honest. That's part of what makes the US great IMO - states have to compete with each other as people and businesses can vote with their feet.

The difficulty you encountered during what I would have thought should be a routine L-1 is most concerning & perplexing. I really never understand this point - more than a million new green cards were issued in 2012 [1] but you can't even easily get a temporary work visa.

To make matters worse every year 50K new green cards are issued to completely random people, I mean it's a lottery after all [2]. Why does the US want to hand out residency en masse and then stop people who can create jobs and grow the economy? As an outsider looking in I would think you're getting the worst of both outcomes.

I don't believe there is a good answer. Regrettably decision making has become so paralyzed in the US Congress and Senate and the whole machine only exists to serve itself.

[1] - http://www.voanews.com/content/us-issues-million-green-cards... [2] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diversity_Immigrant_Visa

Edit: references