part of my travel....

[cbd2cai 0]

A high school friend of mine works for Homeland Security, and as part of the background check, they interviewed me as a character witness. They weren't rude or mean, but they definitely would try to throw me off-balance (by insinuating that my friend's mother, for example, was a ####### with a crack problem, just by slipping it in). They gauge whether you're a threat or being honest not so much by what you say, but by how you react to outrageous treatment.

I'm really sorry that happened. Just keep in mind that they can't do much... what are they gonna do, deport you back to the U.S.?

Yep.... by stating to the OP that her marriage was a sham and her husband wasn't getting into the US, they wanted to see how she reacted to that... If she fought like hell or cried or some other natural and expected emotional response to such a statement, that is an indication that you're telling the truth... a much better indication than anything else... a mere response can be crafted and molded... an true emotional response in response to something less so...

Ah, so now we are dealing with highly trained individuals who understand all the psychological tip offs . . . like all the ones about how to tell someone is lying??? Granted I think some of them might be that good . . . but not sure about all of them . . . because it is a government agency and they can't pay enough to always have the best trained stuck in the airport customs/immigrations jobs!!

Of course, I might not be keeping up with all the goings on of Homeland Security . . . so what do I know??

[zyggy 9]

A high school friend of mine works for Homeland Security, and as part of the background check, they interviewed me as a character witness. They weren't rude or mean, but they definitely would try to throw me off-balance (by insinuating that my friend's mother, for example, was a ####### with a crack problem, just by slipping it in). They gauge whether you're a threat or being honest not so much by what you say, but by how you react to outrageous treatment.

I'm really sorry that happened. Just keep in mind that they can't do much... what are they gonna do, deport you back to the U.S.?

Yep.... by stating to the OP that her marriage was a sham and her husband wasn't getting into the US, they wanted to see how she reacted to that... If she fought like hell or cried or some other natural and expected emotional response to such a statement, that is an indication that you're telling the truth... a much better indication than anything else... a mere response can be crafted and molded... an true emotional response in response to something less so...

Ah, so now we are dealing with highly trained individuals who understand all the psychological tip offs . . . like all the ones about how to tell someone is lying??? Granted I think some of them might be that good . . . but not sure about all of them . . . because it is a government agency and they can't pay enough to always have the best trained stuck in the airport customs/immigrations jobs!!

Of course, I might not be keeping up with all the goings on of Homeland Security . . . so what do I know??

CBP Officers Actually get paid pretty well... people who leave CBP don't leave because of the pay and benefits... they usually leave because of the punishing schedule...

CBP Officers go to 8 months of full time training before they even go to a port.. and then they do an additional 1 year of training on the job before they are a full officer. The psychological training and interrogation techniques are part of the training.... There are other officers who do additional training in psychology and interrogation and have advanced degrees in it...

The majority of CBP officers are highly trained and college educated... The supervisors more so...

My supervisor had a law degree and our Port Director had a PhD in Criminal Psychology... it was really interesting when you had the PD give an interrogation...

And CBP pays very, very well for their supervisors and specialists... PD's make 6 figures... Supervisors make about $60 to $80k per year depending on their level... A Line Officer with more than 4 years of experience makes about $45k without overtime... Overtime pay pushes some very experienced line officers into the high 5 figures...

Of course, I was at the 2nd biggest POE in the US.. so we might have been tilted a bit..

Edited December 7, 2006 by zyggy

[cbd2cai 0]

A high school friend of mine works for Homeland Security, and as part of the background check, they interviewed me as a character witness. They weren't rude or mean, but they definitely would try to throw me off-balance (by insinuating that my friend's mother, for example, was a ####### with a crack problem, just by slipping it in). They gauge whether you're a threat or being honest not so much by what you say, but by how you react to outrageous treatment.

I'm really sorry that happened. Just keep in mind that they can't do much... what are they gonna do, deport you back to the U.S.?

Yep.... by stating to the OP that her marriage was a sham and her husband wasn't getting into the US, they wanted to see how she reacted to that... If she fought like hell or cried or some other natural and expected emotional response to such a statement, that is an indication that you're telling the truth... a much better indication than anything else... a mere response can be crafted and molded... an true emotional response in response to something less so...

Ah, so now we are dealing with highly trained individuals who understand all the psychological tip offs . . . like all the ones about how to tell someone is lying??? Granted I think some of them might be that good . . . but not sure about all of them . . . because it is a government agency and they can't pay enough to always have the best trained stuck in the airport customs/immigrations jobs!!

Of course, I might not be keeping up with all the goings on of Homeland Security . . . so what do I know??

CBP Officers Actually get paid pretty well... people who leave CBP don't leave because of the pay and benefits... they usually leave because of the punishing schedule...

CBP Officers go to 8 months of full time training before they even go to a port.. and then they do an additional 1 year of training on the job before they are a full officer. The psychological training and interrogation techniques are part of the training.... There are other officers who do additional training in psychology and interrogation and have advanced degrees in it...

The majority of CBP officers are highly trained and college educated... The supervisors more so...

My supervisor had a law degree and our Port Director had a PhD in Criminal Psychology... it was really interesting when you had the PD give an interrogation...

And CBP pays very, very well for their supervisors and specialists... PD's make 6 figures... Supervisors make about $60 to $80k per year depending on their level... A Line Officer with more than 4 years of experience makes about $45k without overtime... Overtime pay pushes some very experienced line officers into the high 5 figures...

Of course, I was at the 2nd biggest POE in the US.. so we might have been tilted a bit..

Interesting info . . . That's good to know zyggy! Thanks for posting that.

Edited December 7, 2006 by cbd2cai

[Together4ever 1]

I have also "heard" that the same tactics are used by the consular officers when they interview. They did with Moh by repeating the same question about 7 times until he got frustrated and responded emotionally.

[peezey 0]

A high school friend of mine works for Homeland Security, and as part of the background check, they interviewed me as a character witness. They weren't rude or mean, but they definitely would try to throw me off-balance (by insinuating that my friend's mother, for example, was a ####### with a crack problem, just by slipping it in). They gauge whether you're a threat or being honest not so much by what you say, but by how you react to outrageous treatment.

I'm really sorry that happened. Just keep in mind that they can't do much... what are they gonna do, deport you back to the U.S.?

Yep.... by stating to the OP that her marriage was a sham and her husband wasn't getting into the US, they wanted to see how she reacted to that... If she fought like hell or cried or some other natural and expected emotional response to such a statement, that is an indication that you're telling the truth... a much better indication than anything else... a mere response can be crafted and molded... an true emotional response in response to something less so...

Ah, so now we are dealing with highly trained individuals who understand all the psychological tip offs . . . like all the ones about how to tell someone is lying??? Granted I think some of them might be that good . . . but not sure about all of them . . . because it is a government agency and they can't pay enough to always have the best trained stuck in the airport customs/immigrations jobs!!

Of course, I might not be keeping up with all the goings on of Homeland Security . . . so what do I know??

CBP Officers Actually get paid pretty well... people who leave CBP don't leave because of the pay and benefits... they usually leave because of the punishing schedule...

CBP Officers go to 8 months of full time training before they even go to a port.. and then they do an additional 1 year of training on the job before they are a full officer. The psychological training and interrogation techniques are part of the training.... There are other officers who do additional training in psychology and interrogation and have advanced degrees in it...

The majority of CBP officers are highly trained and college educated... The supervisors more so...

My supervisor had a law degree and our Port Director had a PhD in Criminal Psychology... it was really interesting when you had the PD give an interrogation...

And CBP pays very, very well for their supervisors and specialists... PD's make 6 figures... Supervisors make about $60 to $80k per year depending on their level... A Line Officer with more than 4 years of experience makes about $45k without overtime... Overtime pay pushes some very experienced line officers into the high 5 figures...

Of course, I was at the 2nd biggest POE in the US.. so we might have been tilted a bit..

Those don't sound like "good money" salaries to me for someone highly trained and with a college degree AND experience.

[zyggy 9]

A high school friend of mine works for Homeland Security, and as part of the background check, they interviewed me as a character witness. They weren't rude or mean, but they definitely would try to throw me off-balance (by insinuating that my friend's mother, for example, was a ####### with a crack problem, just by slipping it in). They gauge whether you're a threat or being honest not so much by what you say, but by how you react to outrageous treatment.

I'm really sorry that happened. Just keep in mind that they can't do much... what are they gonna do, deport you back to the U.S.?

Yep.... by stating to the OP that her marriage was a sham and her husband wasn't getting into the US, they wanted to see how she reacted to that... If she fought like hell or cried or some other natural and expected emotional response to such a statement, that is an indication that you're telling the truth... a much better indication than anything else... a mere response can be crafted and molded... an true emotional response in response to something less so...

Ah, so now we are dealing with highly trained individuals who understand all the psychological tip offs . . . like all the ones about how to tell someone is lying??? Granted I think some of them might be that good . . . but not sure about all of them . . . because it is a government agency and they can't pay enough to always have the best trained stuck in the airport customs/immigrations jobs!!

Of course, I might not be keeping up with all the goings on of Homeland Security . . . so what do I know??

CBP Officers Actually get paid pretty well... people who leave CBP don't leave because of the pay and benefits... they usually leave because of the punishing schedule...

CBP Officers go to 8 months of full time training before they even go to a port.. and then they do an additional 1 year of training on the job before they are a full officer. The psychological training and interrogation techniques are part of the training.... There are other officers who do additional training in psychology and interrogation and have advanced degrees in it...

The majority of CBP officers are highly trained and college educated... The supervisors more so...

My supervisor had a law degree and our Port Director had a PhD in Criminal Psychology... it was really interesting when you had the PD give an interrogation...

And CBP pays very, very well for their supervisors and specialists... PD's make 6 figures... Supervisors make about $60 to $80k per year depending on their level... A Line Officer with more than 4 years of experience makes about $45k without overtime... Overtime pay pushes some very experienced line officers into the high 5 figures...

Of course, I was at the 2nd biggest POE in the US.. so we might have been tilted a bit..

Those don't sound like "good money" salaries to me for someone highly trained and with a college degree AND experience.

Chuckle... you don't get around much do you... Those are pretty decent salaries for this part of the country (Detroit)... you must live in California or something with those inflated salary scales due to the dot.com industry... There is a COLA multiplier for which part of the US you live in, so those numbers would be higher in CA or NY...

Edited December 7, 2006 by zyggy

[Caladan 19]

Somewhat, but if it works like my friend's job, 'overtime' is very easy to accrue. His base in DC was $50K, but with the overtime, he pulled in half again as much.

[Caladan 19]

Oh, and my interview was done by an ex-Secret Service agent. Very nice guy, and it was generally just a lot of fun, but it did feel like a mindgame. He was supposed to interview me at 4pm, after I got home from work. He showed up at my house at 3pm ('I'm just a little early') and when I arrived, not only had been having lemonade and cookies with my parents, but knew pretty much every last detail about me, before I even had a chance to say hello.

[peezey 0]

Chuckle... you don't get around much do you... Those are pretty decent salaries for this part of the country (Detroit)... you must live in California or something with those inflated salary scales due to the dot.com industry... There is a COLA multiplier for which part of the US you live in, so those numbers would be higher in CA or NY...

I'm pretty sure I just said I travel quite a bit, but I guess if my opinion about what a decent salary is for a phD working tons of overtime and with extensive specialized training means that I don't get around much, then OK.

[Caladan 19]

$80K a year plus overtime where I grew up would put you in the upper-middle middle class. Ph.D.'s don't generally make you rich.

[cbd2cai 0]

Somewhat, but if it works like my friend's job, 'overtime' is very easy to accrue. His base in DC was $50K, but with the overtime, he pulled in half again as much.

If I got paid overtime for the hours that I worked, I'd be making double what I make . . . but I am on salary, so that means "you do what it takes to get the job done" . . . i.e. corporate slave . . . used and abused and they still want to off-shore your job because someone can do it cheaper!!

[peezey 0]

$80K a year plus overtime where I grew up would put you in the upper-middle middle class. Ph.D.'s don't generally make you rich.

Certainly not if you are teaching, but this is the US Government, presumably at least a G-12, but probably higher.

My opinion is also based on what I think things are worth. If you are working a difficult job, several days in a row, long days, that require mental acuity and calling on extensive training no matter how many long days you've worked in a row, I'd hope you'd be paid very well, no matter where you live.

p.s. I think all teachers should be paid more, too, but that's another thread.

[peezey 0]

Somewhat, but if it works like my friend's job, 'overtime' is very easy to accrue. His base in DC was $50K, but with the overtime, he pulled in half again as much.

If I got paid overtime for the hours that I worked, I'd be making double what I make . . . but I am on salary, so that means "you do what it takes to get the job done" . . . i.e. corporate slave . . . used and abused and they still want to off-shore your job because someone can do it cheaper!!

I've been on salary for every job I've had for the last 15 years, and sometimes it can really make you wonder why you keep doing it. Consulting is the way to go if you have the stomach for potential off-time.

[Caladan 19]

Oh, I agree they should be paid well. But I think that those kind of numbers, especially in Detroit, *do* constitute being well-paid (unlike teacher's salaries.)

[Sofiyya 1,687]

$80K a year plus overtime where I grew up would put you in the upper-middle middle class. Ph.D.'s don't generally make you rich.

Having a Ph.D didn't make me rich; it's what you do with it that does. Want real money for nothing? Get an MD or JD+. One of my brothers is a GS15 scientist with a nice six figure salary. Government work can pay and pay well!

Consulting is the way to go if you have the stomach for potential off-time.

You're so right! That's what I do.

Edited December 7, 2006 by szsz