“The true equation is ‘democracy’ equals government by world financiers. The main mark of modern governments is that we do not know who governs, de facto any more than de jure. We see the politician and not his backer; still less the backer of the backer; or what is most important of all, the banker of the backer. Enthroned above all, in a manner without parallel in all past, is the veiled prophet of finance, swaying all men living by a sort of magic, and delivering oracles in a language not understood of the people.”
— J.R.R. Tolkien, Candour Magazine, 13 July 1956 (via konservativegedanken)
(via byjoveimbeinghumble)
A few days ago I was stopped at a police checkpoint with Ka and waved over to the side of the road. We were heading back to the hospital to see the results of my husband’s latest chest scan and blood work. We both had helmets on and weren’t doing anything wrong. Unfortunately my international driver’s license is no longer acceptable, so I had to pay a 1000 baht fine. Ka had to wait with the motorbike while I walked to an ATM.
“I see they stopping many farang. Everyone gets fined 1000 baht.”
I sighed. “If they stop you they want money and will find something wrong. That’s the way it is.” The officer tried to helpfully inform me that I could get a Thailand driver’s license for next time, but since I don’t even have a marriage visa to stay here, that’s not technically true. At least they never stopped me during the Covid facemask in public or 20,000 baht ($700) frenzy. That used to give me nightmares.
I’m not allowed into the tuberculosis ward of Thalang hospital, because in that area strict facemask usage is required. “I have a very odd spot though, where I am technically behind the staff monitor. Because of this I have seen a lot of chest x-rays. I noticed quickly that Ka’s looked much clearer than most people. I saw his as soon as it came up. They didn’t even need to call Ka to the front for me to know.” I explained to Jasmine. “His lungs look worse. Also they stopped the medicine because his liver function is too low to take it anymore. And now he has high blood pressure so they wanted to prescribe statins.”
Wake me up when September ends indeed. Poisoning my husband has not made his asymptomatic condition better. It was only done in the hopes he could get a clear chest scan for his visa to the USA. I explained to the doctor from behind the area that my husband had been getting an itchy rash on his thighs when taking the medicine so it had been tapered down already. Her solution was laughably to wait two weeks and then test his liver function again to see if the poisoning could be resumed. With antibiotic resistance a huge problem in Asia, shouldn’t they have been saving this course for somebody who was actually sick?
I still think Ka might have been targeted for refusing the Covid jabs and other vaccines at the medical check. If they are incentivized enough they can find something wrong. Next time they want to run scans for hepatitis B and C, mysterious “Vaccine preventable” ailments of the liver that are also inexplicably contagious in really weird ways. If they keep on testing long enough I figure my husband can get a diagnosis of monkeypox, bubonic plague and bird flu while we’re at it. Maybe he can make the papers as the benchmark case of Disease X. Another required vaccine will be just around the corner.
The US Embassy came back with an update on Ka’s case. They had ignored my inquiries in July. Now they’ve updated the visa to Refused but the links they sent me had no explanation for what in God’s name that means.. There was a weird thing about how a visa must be made within one year of availability, but there have been at least 20 actions taken since last August on the case. They’ve also updated some things in the family preference category. Yes, they still require the Covid jabs and many others during the medical check.
But when did green card holders become higher preference than US Citizens are?
Visa Bulletin For August 2024
Section 203(d) provides that spouses and children of preference immigrants are entitled to the same status, and the same order of consideration, if accompanying or following to join the principal. The visa prorating provisions of Section 202(e) apply to allocations for a foreign state or dependent area when visa issuances will exceed the per-country limit. These provisions apply at present to the following oversubscribed chargeability areas: CHINA-mainland born, INDIA, MEXICO, and PHILIPPINES.
4. Section 203(a) of the INA prescribes preference classes for allotment of Family-sponsored immigrant visas as follows:
FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES
First: (F1) Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400 plus any numbers not required for fourth preference.
Second: Spouses and Children, and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Permanent Residents: 114,200, plus the number (if any) by which the worldwide family preference level exceeds 226,000, plus any unused first preference numbers:
A. (F2A) Spouses and Children of Permanent Residents: 77% of the overall second preference limitation, of which 75% are exempt from the per-country limit;
B. (F2B) Unmarried Sons and Daughters (21 years of age or older) of Permanent Residents: 23% of the overall second preference limitation.
Third: (F3) Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens: 23,400, plus any numbers not required by first and second preferences.
Fourth: (F4) Brothers and Sisters of Adult U.S. Citizens: 65,000, plus any numbers not required by first three preferences.
I’m going to make a point here. A US CITIZEN is usually considered in a different category than a US permanent resident. This should be evident by the first family preference going to Unmarried Sons and Daughters of US Citizens (presumably children).
A question I have though is where do me and Ka even exist on that list? Perhaps this was a small editorial oversight, but the second preference, which I am quite sure used to list spouses of US Citizens, now simply says it goes to spouses of US Permanent Residents. I am not a US green card holder and nor will I ever likely be one, being that I was born in Ohio and didn’t even get a passport to formally leave the USA until I was 23 years old or so (there were short stints across the border into both Mexico and Canada when I was young). In short I am as pure blooded of a US citizen as one can get.
I’d have to suppose that a US permanent resident in this case envelopes anyone who is either a citizen or a resident with no distinction between the two. Otherwise I can find nowhere on this list where I can get a family preference visa as there is no listing for a US CITIZEN’S spouse, only for a US permanent resident’s spouse.
Even assuming that what I wrote above about spouses is simply an oversight, they make it much clearer in the language and rankings of permanent residents and family preference Visas regarding married or unmarried (presumably adult) children. In short permanent resident’s children get preference two, whereas US citizen’s children get preference three.
The Great Replacement seems to be continuing apace. Did Kamala Harris falsely claim she worked at McDonald’s?
Wake me up when September ends. That said the beachfront restaurant idea is looking better and better. I don’t advise near birthday pairings because both people have similar weaknesses and no one to bridge the blind spots. In mine and my husband’s case we both tend to be martyr types who try to follow the rules in a corrupt system. I don’t even know how to bribe people!
I dont know what to say Amy.....what a bollocks. Swear just fly to Mexico , rent a car, drop him off before the wall 8n California that extends into the ocean..have him walk/swim around it and pick him up 9n the beach.
at least you haven’t lost your sense of humor. my trust in medicine is zip… I would be wondering if the diagnosis was doctored.