Warning about naturalization ceremony

[internetkafe 0]

They gave us flags and a generic letter from the president as we enter to be seated.

Yes, it is varies from DO to DO.

I had my oath ceremony from Milwaukee DO building, but they didn't pass out the flag.

They only distributed the booklet, and the copy of papers such as "Instructions of certificate signature", and others.

By the way, "An-nyeong-ha-seo-yo"

I came from South Korea, too.

One thing her USC did not change, and that is great, is our relationship, still my sweetheart.

Yes, Best part of whole thing is that you don't have to worry about your sweetheart separating from you by USCIS any more.

How long did it take for you to take your oath after the interview/test stage? I am going through Milwaukee too...

[NickD 203]

They gave us flags and a generic letter from the president as we enter to be seated.

Yes, it is varies from DO to DO.

I had my oath ceremony from Milwaukee DO building, but they didn't pass out the flag.

They only distributed the booklet, and the copy of papers such as "Instructions of certificate signature", and others.

By the way, "An-nyeong-ha-seo-yo"

I came from South Korea, too.

One thing her USC did not change, and that is great, is our relationship, still my sweetheart.

Yes, Best part of whole thing is that you don't have to worry about your sweetheart separating from you by USCIS any more.

How long did it take for you to take your oath after the interview/test stage? I am going through Milwaukee too...

Not sure how they make the divisions, people from Fond du Lac were at the St. Paul ceremony, that's only about an hour from Milwaukee, but a very long drive to St. Paul, most came in the night before and stayed in a motel. My wife was at work until 2:00 AM, got dressed and we left, she slept in the car.

Thanks to call to Sen. Feingold, we only had to wait 43 days for a special Wisconsinite ceremony that included 38 others, St. Paul was waiting up to a year for the oath ceremony waiting to get up to 3,500 people, that is kind of ridiculous jamming all those people in one spot. Viking stadium was one of the places they used, not good to wear your Packer jacket. Plus this was right before the November election of last year.

Beats me, wife after she successfully passed her interview and to read the oath aloud and sign it before her IO, seems like they could have handed her certificate right then and there, the actual oath ceremony is what I would describe as lip service, but was extremely important to show up. Envious of the field offices that do that with the same day oath and nobody else there cared if my wife received her certificate besides me. For the rest, she was just making the ceremony longer.

For some strange reason, we were sent to Milwaukee for biometrics, first for the I-751 then eleven months later for the N-400, first time, there was six ahead of us, second time, we were the only ones there, but sure was a long drive and almost late due to all that road construction going on that is taking years to complete.

[internetkafe 0]

Thanks for the reply, NickD.

We like our senator Russ Feingold very much One of the best in the Senate.

I had my interview and I passed the test, thankfully. I was told that the oath ceremonies are held once a month in MKE. I hope mine will be in November.

Are you still in WI?

[pn_ric 0]

Hi Goran:

I see you are a Richmond, VA resident. Where was your oath ceremony? Thanks,

pn_ric

Alan,

I think you're right. It's an extremely relative question, and also a very personal question. I've been lucky enough to have experienced many cultures on many different continents, and to me, the U.S. is as good as it gets. All countries have pros and cons. Their weights, I believe, depends on what you value as an individual.

I'm taking the oath on July 15th. I will remain a Swedish citizen, and therefore have dual-citizenship. However, I am fully aware (and willing) to renounce my allegiance to Sweden. In other words, if the U.S. ever declared war on Sweden, I will fight for the U.S. Which, I don't think, is a particularly bad idea considering the military powers of each country <img src="http://www.visajourney.com/forums/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="tongue.gif" />

Of course, Sweden will always have a place in my heart, but I would never have sought U.S. Citizenship if I was not willing to be fully loyal to the U.S. and accept the U.S. Culture.

Cheers,

Goran

<!--quoteo(post=2972071:date=May 29 2009, 12:37 PM:name=saywhat)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (saywhat @ May 29 2009, 12:37 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=2972071"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=2557847:date=Jan 15 2009, 02:56 PM:name=jasman0717)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (jasman0717 @ Jan 15 2009, 02:56 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=2557847"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Anticlimactic or not, he is still a citizen of the greatest country in the world <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/good.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="good.gif" /><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

On what basis ? A certain Austrian gentleman thought it was a good idea to trumpet his country and people as superior in every way - and look where that ended up.

I will be a dual citizen of the U.S. and the U.K. but claiming superiority over other countries is not a necessary qualification unless one is Rush Limbaugh fan. Mitt Romney says the U.S. is the 'finest country in the history of the world', but a stroll round downtown Seattle at midnight (dare you), might have people wondering about that.

On the basis of the ratio of doctors to patients (4 times as many as the U.K.), and the quality and cost of care, France for instance, beats the U.K. and the U.S. easily - so the criteria is important

So in my book it's ok to point out some aspects of the U.S. and say they are superb (and I do), but fauning over America as some kind of heaven on earth is a bit yucky and not realistic unless one comes from a 3rd world country where becoming an American (or a citizen of anywhere in the West), really is salvation.

On the basis of the quality and gravitas of the citizenship ceremony, it seems the US has some way to go, and it sounds like a sausage machine with little regard to the importance of the occasion to the individual . It would probably have more solemnity to do it at the end of the interview on a one to one basis with relatives present then

<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

[masterpiece 2]

"......So in my book it's ok to point out some aspects of the U.S. and say they are superb (and I do), but fauning over America as some kind of heaven on earth is a bit yucky and not realistic unless one comes from a 3rd world country where becoming an American (or a citizen of anywhere in the West), really is salvation......."

@ Say What..... Sayyyy what???? Salvation???? Please be careful how you make such general statements that stray very far from the truth...

Axiom 1: By 3rd world country you are referring to most countries in Sub-sahara Africa and perhaps some South American countries

Axiom 2: By citizen of anywhere in the West... as in Western Hemisphere....you would include countries like Haiti (even before the earthquake)

Say what???

I won`t even dwell too much on this one because it shows a great level of ignorance, on your part,to make such generalization and over-arching assumption.You clearly have not been to the places you call 3rd world countries (last time i checked the politically correct terms were developing and under-developed nation....but hey who`s checking....perspectives come a dime a dozen..) and may have not interacted long enough with those who continue to proudly declare their motherland and place of birth as the number 1 place they`d rather be.

Truth be told most folks i know that have left Africa are here, in the main, just like other immigrants......for economic reasons!Here`s a simple example- true story! I hustled to get green cards for my parents. Both parents made their inital entry to U.S, validated the 1-485 filed for them and promptly returned to Nigeria. No thanks! Salvation? I think not!

Yes there are generation X kids--- the MTV-influenced teenagers who dream about nothing else (okay call it salvation) but travelling to U.S but the fact is simple- you will find a subset of this population in practically every nation (outside the states) simply because U.S portrays a certain amount of freedom. [Keyword: Portrays

I bet an analysis of these teens would reveal that ten years after entry into U.S, they begin to yearn, all too fervently, for their homeland because they have appreciated that the so-called U.S freedom is a little bit more of a mirage, an illusion if you will...

Say What???

Dont let me expound anymore...simply curtail your statements to very little generalizations. It certainly is a more prudent approach to take when your discourse is in a public forum such as visajourney.com

Say What???

Did you ever hear about the 1986 Nobel Prize winner for Literature? A certain gentleman who picked up his prize in Norway (think West!!) and despite all the doors that opened up decided to make his home country his place of abode.

Say What??

If i begin to delve into examples here, we will not leave this thread. So enough said!

A retraction of a generalization should be your logical move. Say what? Yeah you heard me.

Edited July 17, 2010 by masterpiece

[Captain Oates 911]

"......So in my book it's ok to point out some aspects of the U.S. and say they are superb (and I do), but fauning over America as some kind of heaven on earth is a bit yucky and not realistic unless one comes from a 3rd world country where becoming an American (or a citizen of anywhere in the West), really is salvation......."

@ Say What..... Sayyyy what???? Salvation???? Please be careful how you make such general statements that stray very far from the truth...

Axiom 1: By 3rd world country you are referring to most countries in Sub-sahara Africa and perhaps some South American countries

Axiom 2: By citizen of anywhere in the West... as in Western Hemisphere....you would include countries like Haiti (even before the earthquake)

Say what???

I won`t even dwell too much on this one because it shows a great level of ignorance, on your part,to make such generalization and over-arching assumption.You clearly have not been to the places you call 3rd world countries (last time i checked the politically correct terms were developing and under-developed nation....but hey who`s checking....perspectives come a dime a dozen..) and may have not interacted long enough with those who continue to proudly declare their motherland and place of birth as the number 1 place they`d rather be.

Truth be told most folks i know that have left Africa are here, in the main, just like other immigrants......for economic reasons!Here`s a simple example- true story! I hustled to get green cards for my parents. Both parents made their inital entry to U.S, validated the 1-485 filed for them and promptly returned to Nigeria. No thanks! Salvation? I think not!

Yes there are generation X kids--- the MTV-influenced teenagers who dream about nothing else (okay call it salvation) but travelling to U.S but the fact is simple- you will find a subset of this population in practically every nation (outside the states) simply because U.S portrays a certain amount of freedom. [Keyword: Portrays

I bet an analysis of these teens would reveal that ten years after entry into U.S, they begin to yearn, all too fervently, for their homeland because they have appreciated that the so-called U.S freedom is a little bit more of a mirage, an illusion if you will...

Say What???

Dont let me expound anymore...simply curtail your statements to very little generalizations. It certainly is a more prudent approach to take when your discourse is in a public forum such as visajourney.com

Say What???

Did you ever hear about the 1986 Nobel Prize winner for Literature? A certain gentleman who picked up his prize in Norway (think West!!) and despite all the doors that opened up decided to make his home country his place of abode.

Say What??

If i begin to delve into examples here, we will not leave this thread. So enough said!

A retraction of a generalization should be your logical move. Say what? Yeah you heard me.

That's just playing with words. ok instead of 3rd world, substitute any word you like because you know exactly what I mean.

...and you can see some VJ ers falling on the floor with tears and relief at getting their USC and they are invariably from those countries that you have just chosen a word for. To them it is salvation.

oh I am not saying that West Europeans are exempt from having a small tear of relief/pride at the end of the journey because many do; but there are many countries where they are actually escaping a living hell - and that doesn't apply to West European countries /Australia/New Zealand/Canada etc

Let me give you an example: If you were a non - arab woman from Dafur, you would probably be in heaven at being able to become a USC - especially if you then had a husband/family in the US. Read the forums - the stories are there.

That is just one example but there are many.

Hope that helps you to understand the context

Edited July 17, 2010 by saywhat

[antda 13]

Hi Everyone,

It's an extremely relative question, and also a very personal question. I've been lucky enough to have experienced many cultures on many different continents, and to me, the U.S. is as good as it gets. All countries have pros and cons. Their weights, I believe, depends on what you value as an individual.

I'm taking the oath on July 15th. I will remain a Swedish citizen, and therefore have dual-citizenship. However, I am fully aware (and willing) to renounce my allegiance to Sweden. In other words, if the U.S. ever declared war on Sweden, I will fight for the U.S. Which, I don't think, is a particularly bad idea considering the military powers of each country <img src="http://www.visajourney.com/forums/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="tongue.gif" />

Of course, Sweden will always have a place in my heart, but I would never have sought U.S. Citizenship if I was not willing to be fully loyal to the U.S. and accept the U.S. Culture.

Cheers,

Goran

Likewise, this is how I feel about US Citizenship and dual-citizenship too...Very well put, indeed, Goran!

Now back to the original topic.....

I agree, all oath ceremonies are different, as you can all see from those VJers who posted about their experiences here on VJ...And to each of us, the oath ceremony and the act of citizenship itself can be meaningful to all of us individually and collectively as a group...

Sorry to hear that some of you didn't enjoy your oath ceremony. Nevertheless, I do hope that you enjoy the 'bigger picture' of becoming a US Citizen and finding the happiness in achieving that.....

To me citizenship meant being with my immediate family here in America.

And I wouldn't have gone through an oath ceremony without them....

So for this reason, and for many other reasons (which I won't discuss here on VJ) I had to make special accomodations in order to have a private ceremony.

This type of oath ceremony is rare and can only be done under 'extreme circumstances' (lol..I think I was the only one to have such done) and this was certainly "unusual/different" from the typical group oath ceremony that they were used to conducting..

Nevertheless, me and my family did enjoy the oath ceremony and I still enjoy my life now as a US Citizen....

For more information regarding my private oath ceremony, you can read about it here:

ANT IS AN AMERICAN CITIZEN! OATH CEREMONY DETAILED STORY….

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/230817-ant-is-an-american-citizen-oath-ceremony-detailed-story/page__p__3540268__hl__oath+ceremony__fromsearch__1#entry3540268

Regardless of what your oath ceremony is and/or how is conducted...The important thing is that:

As long as one enjoys becoming a US Citizen is all that matters in the end...

Good luck with the rest of your journeys too. Happy oath ceremonies and US Citizenship, everyone!

Ant

Edited July 17, 2010 by Ant+D+BabyA

[Captain Oates 911]

Bit surprised that you guys are prepared to nuke your families back in Sweden/Canada respectively.

Most people struggle with that bit of it.

I am sure you will be most welcome as new citizens in the USA

[masterpiece 2]

@ Say What...

For every one African that considers becoming a USC "salvation", there are ten others who would prefer to stay home. Period!

Please do not embark on a war of words, or facts, with me. You will lose..........MISERABLY!!!!!!!!

You have not been around the block long enough to make a generalization of that magnitude. You should have said some...keyword some...3rd world or 10th world (you probably prefer the latter) country folks equate Salvation with the acquisition of USC.

[Captain Oates 911]

@ Say What...

For every one African that considers becoming a USC "salvation", there are ten others who would prefer to stay home. Period!

Please do not embark on a war of words, or facts, with me. You will lose..........MISERABLY!!!!!!!!

You have not been around the block long enough to make a generalization of that magnitude. You should have said some...keyword some...3rd world or 10th world (you probably prefer the latter) country folks equate Salvation with the acquisition of USC.

why are you so threatening and aggressive ?

what is your problem ?

I have been round a lot of blocks all over the world so why say something you can't possibly know ?

Calm down

I no mugu

[antda 13]

Bit surprised that you guys are prepared to nuke your families back in Sweden/Canada respectively.

Most people struggle with that bit of it.

I am sure you will be most welcome as new citizens in the USA

Saywhat-Lol...Me and nukes don't mix....

And no, I won't nuke my family or anyone else, regardless....So no worries about that....

And as far as Canada/America relations..They have been pretty friendly for the past 200+ years or so....

Lol..The last time Canada/America had a war was in 1812...So it's highly unlikely it will come to that scenario again..

Actually, if war does happen...more likely than not, Canada will join with the USA (I think they have done that already)..

So in that sense, I'll be on the same side.....

But then again..They probably wouldn't want me fighting in any type of war, regardless....

Go figure...I agreed to bear arms in theory, as according to the oath of citizenship....

But in reality I'm useless with a gun and/or other weapons.....lol..I would probably end up accidently shooting myself before shooting others.....Blah...

I would also go the peace route before I went the war route....

Peace wins....War loses.....

Sigh...I wish America and other countries can learn a thing or two about peace too....

Ant

[Captain Oates 911]

Saywhat-Lol...Me and nukes don't mix....

And no, I won't nuke my family or anyone else, regardless....So no worries about that....

And as far as Canada/America relations..They have been pretty friendly for the past 200+ years or so....

Lol..The last time Canada/America had a war was in 1812...So it's highly unlikely it will come to that scenario again..

Actually, if war does happen...more likely than not, Canada will join with the USA (I think they have done that already)..

So in that sense, I'll be on the same side.....

But then again..They probably wouldn't want me fighting in any type of war, regardless....

Go figure...I agreed to bear arms in theory, as according to the oath of citizenship....

But in reality I'm useless with a gun and/or other weapons.....lol..I would probably end up accidently shooting myself before shooting others.....Blah...

I would also go the peace route before I went the war route....

Peace wins....War loses.....

Sigh...I wish America and other countries can learn a thing or two about peace too....

Ant

haha - no it was the Swedish chap who said he would go to war against Sweden no problem and his reasoning was that the USA would win... I imagined him nuking his mom and brothers and sisters and thinking it was worth it to get USC.

I am sure some would. Glad to know you would at least think twice which is more human.

The USA was worried in WW2 that the Germans in Wisconsin etc would think twice and that was a reason to delay - in the event, even those German-Americans in Wisconsin who had aunts and uncles etc in Germany were quite willing to go and bomb em.

Perhaps it's me that's different in that I would certainly have doubts about bombing my daughter and grandchildren in England. Luckily the US don't know I have been a National class marksman since 1967 so I should be able to avoid the draft due to my presumed decrepitude.

Sorry to go off topic but someone said the US is the best country in the world - I recognize non such as I am an internationalist who sees good and bad all over - so I had to respond.

ok

[masterpiece 2]

@ SayWhat....

Yes i will stay aggressive....i do that when folks over-generalize such as you did in the statement i highlighted.

There is no amount of "round-the-blocking" you can do, or profess to doing, that would equal the experiences folks have had.....not read or heard about....so please give me a break!

I reiterate: There are millions of folks in 20th world countries who would rather be home than become American Citizens. I am not one of them just like "i am no mugu" statement does not give you "street cred".

Clearly you are not wise enough to know when you made a mistake that you can easily retract without losing face and moving on...

I shall leave you to bask in your ignorance and perceived statesmanship. Hallucinations are certainly not confined to the auditory or visual with you....

[Captain Oates 911]

@ SayWhat....

Yes i will stay aggressive....i do that when folks over-generalize such as you did in the statement i highlighted.

There is no amount of "round-the-blocking" you can do, or profess to doing, that would equal the experiences folks have had.....not read or heard about....so please give me a break!

I reiterate: There are millions of folks in 20th world countries who would rather be home than become American Citizens. I am not one of them just like "i am no mugu" statement does not give you "street cred".

Clearly you are not wise enough to know when you made a mistake that you can easily retract without losing face and moving on...

I shall leave you to bask in your ignorance and perceived statesmanship. Hallucinations are certainly not confined to the auditory or visual with you....

So you are saying that America isn't a honey pot for people who live in collapsed societies where slavery and rape and no sewers and disease is the order of the day ?

Good luck selling that one - haha you are a funny guy man

You sound deranged. Sit down and have a nice cup of tea - you will feel much better.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

"......So in my book it's ok to point out some aspects of the U.S. and say they are superb (and I do), but fauning over America as some kind of heaven on earth is a bit yucky and not realistic unless one comes from a 3rd world country where becoming an American (or a citizen of anywhere in the West), really is salvation......."

@ Say What..... Sayyyy what???? Salvation???? Please be careful how you make such general statements that stray very far from the truth...

Axiom 1: By 3rd world country you are referring to most countries in Sub-sahara Africa and perhaps some South American countries

Axiom 2: By citizen of anywhere in the West... as in Western Hemisphere....you would include countries like Haiti (even before the earthquake)

Say what???

I won`t even dwell too much on this one because it shows a great level of ignorance, on your part,to make such generalization and over-arching assumption.You clearly have not been to the places you call 3rd world countries (last time i checked the politically correct terms were developing and under-developed nation....but hey who`s checking....perspectives come a dime a dozen..) and may have not interacted long enough with those who continue to proudly declare their motherland and place of birth as the number 1 place they`d rather be.

Truth be told most folks i know that have left Africa are here, in the main, just like other immigrants......for economic reasons!Here`s a simple example- true story! I hustled to get green cards for my parents. Both parents made their inital entry to U.S, validated the 1-485 filed for them and promptly returned to Nigeria. No thanks! Salvation? I think not!

Yes there are generation X kids--- the MTV-influenced teenagers who dream about nothing else (okay call it salvation) but travelling to U.S but the fact is simple- you will find a subset of this population in practically every nation (outside the states) simply because U.S portrays a certain amount of freedom. [Keyword: Portrays

I bet an analysis of these teens would reveal that ten years after entry into U.S, they begin to yearn, all too fervently, for their homeland because they have appreciated that the so-called U.S freedom is a little bit more of a mirage, an illusion if you will...

Say What???

Dont let me expound anymore...simply curtail your statements to very little generalizations. It certainly is a more prudent approach to take when your discourse is in a public forum such as visajourney.com

Say What???

Did you ever hear about the 1986 Nobel Prize winner for Literature? A certain gentleman who picked up his prize in Norway (think West!!) and despite all the doors that opened up decided to make his home country his place of abode.

Say What??

If i begin to delve into examples here, we will not leave this thread. So enough said!

A retraction of a generalization should be your logical move. Say what? Yeah you heard me.

You realize that you are responding to a post that appeared in May 2009 - 15 months ago? Why bring this up now?

Also - making insulting statements about other posters is a violation of the Terms of Service for Visa Journey so tone down the aggressive posturing or future posts will be removed.

Edited July 17, 2010 by Kathryn41