I am outraged!

[R&AINC 1]

Hundreds of words have been written in this Thread, but nothing concrete has been said.

So what is the point of this thread then??? If it is just talk, then let people talk. But it the OP wants to do something, then please come with a plan of action.

1 - Write a letter

2- get people to agree to the letter

3- Send the letter to USCIS, Congressman, etc.

4- Get media attention.Send letters to local TV stations etc.

5- Organize a Trip to VSC

6-

Well 6 is where the cookie crumbles....What is 6? Well after you have done all of the above 6 is To wait for something to happen. So after all that you are still in the same state as you started. Now is it all worth it? Well probably for a single person it will not be worth it cause probably by the time you are in step number 5, you will already have NOA2.

But if you believe in helping others, then the above is worth it. There are many people that go through this process, and if the above can help you and 10 more people, thne I think is worth it.

In any case, if you come up with a concrete plan, then I am in. If not these are just words thrown in the wind. I do not believe in intentions, I believe in facts.

Edited July 21, 2009 by R&AINC

[daboyz 36]

The whole problem with this thread is that people are trying to DISCOURAGE someone from making an attempt to express displeasure with the K1 process. Why in the world would anyone on THIS board want to DISCOURAGE someone from doing that? Does anyone here honestly think that the process absolutely CAN'T be improved in any way? And I understand that many of you have "given up" and think that we just have to deal with it (mostly people who have been on this board for a long, long time) - but do you really think that EVERYONE should feel that way?

I'm not trying to discourage anything. I'm just pointing out the fact that there is no incentive whatsoever for our elected officials to streamline this process. Immigration is "hot button" issue. Most people in this country have a hard time distinguishing legal immigration from illegal immigration. Sucks I know, but alot of the people in this country have an "I was here first" attitude and automatically assume immigration, whether legal or illegal, will take jobs and services from US citizens.

Of course this isn't my take on it, but I would guess it is probably the attitude of good percentage of this country, if not the majority. Before anyone jumps my a$$, notice I bolded guess

[Krikit 1,165]

There are a number of examples of letters and petitions on VJ which have been previously written. Might save you some time when coming up with your own.

I'm not trying to discourage anything. I'm just pointing out the fact that there is no incentive whatsoever for our elected officials to streamline this process. Immigration is "hot button" issue. Most people in this country have a hard time distinguishing legal immigration from illegal immigration. Sucks I know, but alot of the people in this country have an "I was here first" attitude and automatically assume immigration, whether legal or illegal, will take jobs and services from US citizens.

Yeah. The guys I drove by the other day with their flags and their signs telling people to only hire Americans was a good indicator of attitude.

Off topic post removed.

[daboyz 36]

There are a number of examples of letters and petitions on VJ which have been previously written. Might save you some time when coming up with your own.

I'm not trying to discourage anything. I'm just pointing out the fact that there is no incentive whatsoever for our elected officials to streamline this process. Immigration is "hot button" issue. Most people in this country have a hard time distinguishing legal immigration from illegal immigration. Sucks I know, but alot of the people in this country have an "I was here first" attitude and automatically assume immigration, whether legal or illegal, will take jobs and services from US citizens.

Yeah. The guys I drove by the other day with their flags and their signs telling people to only hire Americans was a good indicator of attitude.

Off topic post removed.

Yeah I have to laugh at things like that. Unless you're part American Indian, we all come from an immigrant at some point in the past.

[dutchmatt 1]

Yup, it blows, but there's light at the end of the tunnel. We have the rest of our lives to be with the people we love he most.

[ButterBoy 0]

My god man, you have been waiting for 3 months and your outraged? My wife and I have been waiting since April 2008 for our NOA2. I have wrote letters to both Bush and Obama. I also contacted my old boss Michael Hayden for help. I have called the USCIS so many times I think I own stock in Verizon now. I have contacted my local Congressman on many occasions and all I ever hear is I am stuck in a FBI background check and as soon as I am cleared then we may proceed to the next phase. I guess this is what I get for 30 years of service to the US Goverment. Get a grip.

[TracyTN 237]

That pretty much sums it up right there! LOL

[John & Nan 0]

the point of this thread is to vent your feelings. Sometime you just need to get it out of your head... right or wrong its nice to have people to talk to that are going though or been though this hard time in our lives.

[AmyStan 0]

My god man, you have been waiting for 3 months and your outraged? My wife and I have been waiting since April 2008 for our NOA2. I have wrote letters to both Bush and Obama. I also contacted my old boss Michael Hayden for help. I have called the USCIS so many times I think I own stock in Verizon now. I have contacted my local Congressman on many occasions and all I ever hear is I am stuck in a FBI background check and as soon as I am cleared then we may proceed to the next phase. I guess this is what I get for 30 years of service to the US Goverment. Get a grip.

I must say, you sound pretty "outraged" to me, and deservedly so. Is there a time-limit as to when you can feel this way - a mark in the sand that once you cross, you're no longer walking in sunlight and are now in the dark? If so, please list this in the user guide so the rest of us will know when we've earned the right to be indignant.

[Michele R 0]

My god man, you have been waiting for 3 months and your outraged? My wife and I have been waiting since April 2008 for our NOA2. I have wrote letters to both Bush and Obama. I also contacted my old boss Michael Hayden for help. I have called the USCIS so many times I think I own stock in Verizon now. I have contacted my local Congressman on many occasions and all I ever hear is I am stuck in a FBI background check and as soon as I am cleared then we may proceed to the next phase. I guess this is what I get for 30 years of service to the US Goverment. Get a grip.

A suggestion -

As we have read on this post today, many people that have been around or been waiting a long time have testified that writing letters of complaint seem to have been ineffective in the past. A slightly different way to approach this would be to write letters to one Senator that has a significant stake in the Vermont Service Center - Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont. He has fought hard in the past to get the UCSIS to assign more people to the VSC (which is in his district) and to ensure that their wages are decent (thereby maintaining morale) and the center operates efficiently. I suggest that letters sent to Sen. Leahy be constructive, rather than negative. As a former federal government employee, I can't tell you how sick government workers get of being characterized as lazy or inefficient. It often is not the case, and when you are hammered with those stereotypes, it makes you angry and demoralized (which won't help our cause at ll). Further, the truth is that we don't know why the VSC is slower than the other centers. My guess is that they have a higher per capita case load than the other centers - given the high population density of the states they cover versus the other service centers. I am just brainstorming here, but I suggest that letters to him include the following points

- we see dramatic differences in processing times between the VSC and other centers

- inordinately long processing times impact our lives in real ways (tell your story)

- as fellow easterners, we do not assume that the VSC is less efficient than its peers, but rather that there are imbalances in the allocation of UCSIS resources among centers

- we are writing to request that he lobby for additional employees for the VSC - both temporary (to eliminate the current problem) and permanent (to ensure that future applicants are treated fairly) - from the Stimulus funds

- why are we doing this? we do not think that a citizen's geographic residence (east versus west) should result in such major discrepancies and personal hardship - we paid the same fees as people living in California and for these fees we are requesting the same level of service

I think letters like this would get his attention. If the problem really is resources (which I suspect is the case) then we are offering to help him create more jobs in his district (which is good for him). He will be able to walk over to UCSIS and dump a stack of letters on their desk and ask what is going on. If there is another kind of problem - he has the most interest in fixing it, as he would not want to see his center's reputation suffer vis a vis the other center.

[R&AINC 1]

My god man, you have been waiting for 3 months and your outraged? My wife and I have been waiting since April 2008 for our NOA2. I have wrote letters to both Bush and Obama. I also contacted my old boss Michael Hayden for help. I have called the USCIS so many times I think I own stock in Verizon now. I have contacted my local Congressman on many occasions and all I ever hear is I am stuck in a FBI background check and as soon as I am cleared then we may proceed to the next phase. I guess this is what I get for 30 years of service to the US Goverment. Get a grip.

A suggestion -

As we have read on this post today, many people that have been around or been waiting a long time have testified that writing letters of complaint seem to have been ineffective in the past. A slightly different way to approach this would be to write letters to one Senator that has a significant stake in the Vermont Service Center - Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont. He has fought hard in the past to get the UCSIS to assign more people to the VSC (which is in his district) and to ensure that their wages are decent (thereby maintaining morale) and the center operates efficiently. I suggest that letters sent to Sen. Leahy be constructive, rather than negative. As a former federal government employee, I can't tell you how sick government workers get of being characterized as lazy or inefficient. It often is not the case, and when you are hammered with those stereotypes, it makes you angry and demoralized (which won't help our cause at ll). Further, the truth is that we don't know why the VSC is slower than the other centers. My guess is that they have a higher per capita case load than the other centers - given the high population density of the states they cover versus the other service centers. I am just brainstorming here, but I suggest that letters to him include the following points

- we see dramatic differences in processing times between the VSC and other centers

- inordinately long processing times impact our lives in real ways (tell your story)

- as fellow easterners, we do not assume that the VSC is less efficient than its peers, but rather that there are imbalances in the allocation of UCSIS resources among centers

- we are writing to request that he lobby for additional employees for the VSC - both temporary (to eliminate the current problem) and permanent (to ensure that future applicants are treated fairly) - from the Stimulus funds

- why are we doing this? we do not think that a citizen's geographic residence (east versus west) should result in such major discrepancies and personal hardship - we paid the same fees as people living in California and for these fees we are requesting the same level of service

I think letters like this would get his attention. If the problem really is resources (which I suspect is the case) then we are offering to help him create more jobs in his district (which is good for him). He will be able to walk over to UCSIS and dump a stack of letters on their desk and ask what is going on. If there is another kind of problem - he has the most interest in fixing it, as he would not want to see his center's reputation suffer vis a vis the other center.

This is something that we can build on. We have a name, and we have an idea for the letter.

Let's keep up the constructive ideas.

[unreliableuscis 0]

To start off... here is a tip... ask yourself... H1 (work) visa holders and F1(student) visa holders can bring their wives immediately to the US... all their spouses have to do is go to the embassy... For an american citizen?? they have to go through USCIS, NVC and then embassy .. on top of that.. they take for ever and do not explain anything to the applicants... ..... why not have a visa available to spouses american citizens ..just like those available to the spouses of H1 and F1 visa holders... The visa may just be a temporary one.. so atlease we can see each other...

I have voiced this so many times.. I have written letters to senators and the president.. no one cares.... It drives me crazy... i dont understand what they want.. hey I have a job in the united states just like H1 visa holders do.. want me to be a student? I will can be that .. I can be whatever you want me to be.. just let me be with my family...

[Krikit 1,165]

To start off... here is a tip... ask yourself... H1 (work) visa holders and F1(student) visa holders can bring their wives immediately to the US... all their spouses have to do is go to the embassy... For an american citizen?? they have to go through USCIS, NVC and then embassy .. on top of that.. they take for ever and do not explain anything to the applicants... ..... why not have a visa available to spouses american citizens ..just like those available to the spouses of H1 and F1 visa holders... The visa may just be a temporary one.. so atlease we can see each other...

The difference is that those spouses are applying for non-immigrant visas. They cannot work and they cannot immigrate. Different visa, different process.

[DanielParul 50]

Not discouraging the OP. Seems like he will only read what he wants to read. Telling him that patience will help as this is a waiting game is not discouraging. Write the letter already! Edited July 21, 2009 by DanielParul

[jpcanon 0]

My god man, you have been waiting for 3 months and your outraged? My wife and I have been waiting since April 2008 for our NOA2. I have wrote letters to both Bush and Obama. I also contacted my old boss Michael Hayden for help. I have called the USCIS so many times I think I own stock in Verizon now. I have contacted my local Congressman on many occasions and all I ever hear is I am stuck in a FBI background check and as soon as I am cleared then we may proceed to the next phase. I guess this is what I get for 30 years of service to the US Goverment. Get a grip.

WOW- that is a long time to be stuck waiting for the NOA2- sorry to hear that, man. Sounds like you have pursued all the avenues to try and get answers, and still nothing? I have been on AP (Administrative Procedure) since our K1 interview end of April (of this year). I kinda feel that they might be doing FBI check or something, too- who the hell knows.... Good luck....

Joe