CBC’s Mag
Posted on June 27th, 2006 by catalyst into the Uncategorized categoryI was flipping through this Summer's In Community Magazine from City Bible Church, and I came across an interesting testimonial titled MIRACLE!:
I wanted to come the illegal way but my brother stopped me. My family told me to apply for a visa and a passport. I knew that someone my age would have a hard time getting a visa. I had nothing that immigration requires; no money, no house, no car and no lands. For one year my family encouraged me to at least try.
The day I applied for a visa I was given an appointment and along with 21 other people we were taken on a bus to another town, four hours away, where we would actually apply. I shared a seat with another woman who was older than me and whose parents had everything since they owned a business in the city. She asked me, “What do you have?” I answered simply ”I have only my father’s passport, I am going to school and I just want to visit my sister during the Christmas holiday.” The woman did not give me much hope as she said “You are wasting your money and time in applying because you don’t have anything they request.”
When I arrived for my appointment there were 3 different windows with people taking the applications. There was one man at a window who was repeatedly saying to each applicant “NO, NO, NO.” I continued to wait and when it was my turn to go to a window, it was the window of the “mean” man.
I motioned to the woman behind me to go ahead, but he was too quick and I had to step up to his window. “Hi, how are you” said the man. “Fine, thank you” I replied. “Why do you want to go to the States?’ he asked. “I want to go see my sister” I answered. “What do your parents do?” was his next question. I said “They are farmers.” “Do you go to school?” was his final inquiry. “Yes” I answered as I pulled out my papers to prove I was a student. The man did not even look at the papers! “Okay, study hard, have a merry Christmas, go and wait in the waiting room for a receipt to get your visa,” were his instructions. When I received my receipt I was told that my visa would arrive in the mail in three weeks, a TEN YEAR VISA! Out of the 21 people riding on the bus that day only 2 people were granted visas.
The 28 year old lady who I shared a seat with on the ride down was given only a 6 month visa. When the bus driver overheard that I was given a ten year visa he demanded “Show it to me!”
I'm not sure why this story stuck with me, but for some reason I am happy for this kid. It's good to see that God is helping Canadians get into this country legally.
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June 27th, 2006 at 5:55 am
lol. Good one!
I’d love to know what country this guy was from, where the USA granted a 10 year visa with nothing more then a “I go to school” for qualification.
I sincerely don’t believe this story is true, unless it happened BEFORE 9/11.
June 27th, 2006 at 6:52 am
I’ve never seen that rag before. wow. Anyway, of all those testimonies why are there no names, dates, etc.? How can you “testify” if no one knows who you are? Like Henri, I call shens on the whole thing.
June 27th, 2006 at 6:56 am
The man was probably grooving to the old Ringo Starr No Song.
…
Didja notice the picture on the front cover of Canadians coming in the illegal way?
June 27th, 2006 at 8:51 am
Actually, the whole visa-granting process is very much like this, from what most of my friends from abroad have told me. It’s totally subjective, and having an invitation from someone already in the country is about the best leverage you can have. And, if you’re traveling alone, it *is* a lot easier than if you travel with other people….because they figure people are less likely to pick up and move to another country alone, and probably if they have the guts to, they probably also have the wherewithal to be productive once they get in (this is the theory, anyway).
It is true that they’ll say no for no reason at all, but it’s also true that they might just as well say yes for just about as little reason. It’s capricious….and actually, you’d be surprised to know what countries actually are subject to it — it’s a lot more than you’d probably think. Even the citizens of Hungary, an EU member, are subject to this kind of process….this getting-an-appointment-in-order-to-even-apply nonsense, and then once you have your appointment (which is assigned to you…you don’t get to choose the time yourself), you have to show up at the embassy in Budapest and wait OUTSIDE until your name is called, which could be near your appointment time or not, and you have to pay the application fee (20,000 HUF or about $100, a LOT of money in Hungary….half a month’s rent) regardless of whether you are granted a visa or not. And this is Hungary…a US ally with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, a free nation since 1989. No wonder they’re pissed off.
So, yeah, this guy was lucky. He got a nice break, but it wasn’t exactly a miracle. And, that kind of “luck” is based on someone making the right judgment call within a system that’s really screwy overall. Maybe the appropriate response isn’t to thank God for a miracle, but to start letting people know that the US is mistreating a lot of people with their practices abroad, and the rest of the world doesn’t appreciate it much….so why don’t we all start advocating for a more just system?
June 27th, 2006 at 9:33 am
I’d say successfully getting something from most modern government bureaucracies would classify as a miracle. Now if somebody can just give me a hand with the DMV line this afternoon……
June 27th, 2006 at 9:37 am
What I’m about to say will probably be very unpopular, but I am an advocate of making it difficult to get into the U.S. If the system were truly navigable and “fair” people would find ways of exploiting it. I have to believe that the beauracracy is a conscious effort to make it just difficult enough that only the truly determined can make it. In spite of what our Statue of Liberty says, I don’t think it’s in our best interest to import the poor, downtrodden, huddled masses.
That aside, you missed some high-quality comedy fodder in that publication. There are 3 footer “ads” on pages 13, 17, and 25. The middle is practically its own punchline. How can you not believe that CBCers are not preoccupied with money? I’d like to recommend changes to the first one:
* The good coffee: $10
* Snacks for 10 people: $12
* Group curriculum: $8
* A helicopter for Frank: Priceless
June 27th, 2006 at 9:46 am
FICM:
You’re right I did miss those ads. Unfortunately, I’m not smart enough to cut and paste those into the blog. But so true… …that church has always got money on the mind.
June 27th, 2006 at 9:53 am
Admit it - you just don’t like Canadians.
June 27th, 2006 at 10:21 am
Actually, some of my best friends are Canadians. But I can’t help but ask the question, if Canada is so great why are they here?
:-P
June 27th, 2006 at 10:31 am
… if Canada is so great why are they here?
We can be certain it isn’t for the beer.
June 27th, 2006 at 11:20 am
****Disclaimer: My Apologies To All Bush Lovers****
My ex tricked me into an abuse marriage because he was illegal and wanted his citizenship and lied about it so here is my letter to President Bush.
Dear President Bush:
I’m about to plan a little trip with my family and extended family, and I would like to ask you to assist me.
I’m going to walk across the border from the U.S. into Mexico, and I need to make a few arrangements.
I know you can help with this.
I plan to skip all the legal stuff like visas, passports, immigration quotas and laws.
I’m sure they handle those things the same way you do here.
So, would you mind telling your buddy, President Vicente Fox, that I’m on my way over?
Please let him know that I will be expecting the following:
1. Free medical care for my entire family.
2. English-speaking government bureaucrats for all services I might need, whether I use them or not.
3. All government forms need to be printed in English.
4. I want my kids to be taught by English-speaking teachers.
5. Schools need to include classes on American culture and history.
6. I want my kids to see the American flag flying on the top of the flag pole at their school with the Mexican flag flying lower down.
7. Please plan to feed my kids at school for both breakfast and lunch.
8. I will need a local Mexican driver’s license so I can get easy access to government services.
9. I do not plan to have any car insurance, and I won’t make any effort to learn local traffic laws.
10. In case one of the Mexican police officers does not get the memo from Pres. Fox to leave me alone, please be sure that all police
officers speak English.
11. I plan to fly the U.S. flag from my house top, put flag decals on my car, and have a gigantic celebration on July 4th. I do not want any
complaints or negative comments from the locals.
12. I would also like to have a nice job without paying any taxes, and don’t enforce any labor laws or tax laws.
13. Please tell all the people in the country to be extremely nice and never say a critical word about me, or about the strain I might place
on the economy.
I know this is an easy request because you already do all these things for all the people who come to the U.S. from Mexico.
I am sure that Pres. Fox won’t mind returning the favor if you ask him nicely.
However, if he gives you any trouble, just invite him to go quail hunting with your V.P.
Thank you so much for your kind help.
June 27th, 2006 at 12:05 pm
oinvu4uraqt: do you have anything to say yourself, or do you plan to just regurgatate your inbox for us?
June 27th, 2006 at 12:51 pm
Sorry I came back. Now I remember why I left…you people are still as kick-ass unfriendly as ever.
June 27th, 2006 at 1:00 pm
My bad. If you really were in an “abuse marriage” and really wrote this letter to President Bush, I appologize. Hugs.
June 27th, 2006 at 1:45 pm
Thanks for your apology. I accept it. i told the truth. You can read my story at the following:
.
After I was married and pregnant, my ex said that the plan of Hispancis should be to come to the U.S. any way they can and “breed” with Amerians so they become the majority and we become the minority. Then they can rule the country. You know what scares me? He wasn’t joking. It seems to me they know how to play the game. It seems to me that the American politicians cater to these types of illegals above their own people…and it will slowly destroy us. How is that for giving you something new to think about?
June 27th, 2006 at 1:47 pm
It didn’t link like it was supposed to. My story is at http://www.newsregister.com/news/results.cfm?story_no=199195.
June 27th, 2006 at 2:07 pm
Thanks for the link, and your story. I notice that the article is from late 2005. How is your father?
June 27th, 2006 at 2:11 pm
Still alive but doing very poorly. He wants to go to his permanent home. Thanks for asking…and I have a great job I love now. I will make it on my own. I just hope someday to help others.
June 27th, 2006 at 2:21 pm
I hear you. Went through that same thing (father, prostate cancer) last year. I don’t think that anyone who hasn’t been though it can understand. My sympathies.
June 27th, 2006 at 2:32 pm
THANK YOU.
June 28th, 2006 at 5:29 am
It’s a MIRACLE that CBC is still sending you the magazine.
June 28th, 2006 at 2:41 pm
Oinvu,
Thanks for sharing your story. What a brave thing to do. You are an amazing person to survive all that and make it out and push on in life. Your kids are very lucky to have such a wonderful mom.
KM
June 29th, 2006 at 7:23 am
Thank you…that means alot to me. I don’t consider myself brave at all…just desparate. I was desparate to be there to watch my kids grow up; desparate to end the abuse cycle with me so they do not continue the pattern. If you know of anyone who can benefit from my story or if you want some very interesting reading, try http://oinvu4uraqt.blogspot.com.
It is a blog I created called AWESOME (stands for Abused Women Everywhere Speak Out Make Examples). I attended Bible Temple/City Bible from when I was one week old until I was 16. I went to their Christian school every weekday from 1st to 10th grades…and I never heard about domestic violence. I think it is time we prepare our Christian youth and not shelter them so much.
June 30th, 2006 at 1:44 pm
oinvu4uraqt, I am so sorry that you have endured such pain.
I agree with you that sheltering our teen-agers sets them up for all kinds of problems. I agree that we need to teach our children about domestic violence and characteristics to watch for that are typical in abusive people. I also think that we need to teach our children how valuable they are, how precious they are, what kind of treatment they deserve, and how fellow human beings should relate to one another, so that they can always be cognizant of how much they are worth, and what it means to love and be loved, so that they will not tolerate people treating them disrespectfully.
I would guess that even if no one had directly told you about domestic violence, per se, you would have never have even been attracted to an abusive person if your parents had loved you unconditionally in a functional family system, taught you your true worth by how they treated you and how they treated each other, etc. Is that fair to say? If not, please say so. CBC is a performance-based, fear-based environment, which emphasizes blind submission to authority, lobotomizes its women and devalues critical thinking, all of which I think creates an ideal breeding ground for abuses of all kinds, unfortunately.
Many blessings,
FFTM
June 30th, 2006 at 2:24 pm
Exactly…and I’m living proof of that. So are a couple of friends I know from CBC.
July 6th, 2006 at 12:12 pm
More, more, more… I can’t get enough. Aaaaaaaahh, it’s so good to be back.
July 6th, 2006 at 12:17 pm
Good to have you back, AW. I’m very sorry about your physicall suffering. I hope you’re finding some of those “treasures in darkness” that Isaiah talks about.
Peace,
Matrix
July 6th, 2006 at 2:17 pm
That’s fine. But if AW starts going naked around this blog, I’m leaving.
July 7th, 2006 at 2:33 pm
You crack me up Jack. I am glad to have clothes now that cover my backside.
I never knew you were so sensitive. Nothing to be ashamed of in nakedness. I do my best worship naked.
July 7th, 2006 at 2:38 pm
TMI! TMI!
That image is gonna take awhile to flush.
July 7th, 2006 at 2:41 pm
So much for corporate worship.