Just read today, digital photos and digital scans of each index finger will commence for all foreign visitors entering the USA. (Canada and Mexico excluded).

I know. I for one shall probably not to travelling to the US for the foreseeable future, because I object to being photographed and fingerprinted as though I were a criminal.

Obviously every country is free to implement whatever immigration checks that it chooses, but equally every potential visitor to that country is free to decide whether or not to subject themselves to those checks.

I choose not to.

Regards,

Chris

Hi Fellow Travellers,
I know how you all feel but think on the positive
side at least you are safe.
My feelings was just like you Chris.
I was finger printed & photographed when I applied for the visa and also felt like a criminal.
However, they have to tighten their own security after 911.
Our country also started their own finger print identity on their own citizens when I returned from UK & Europe just 2 months ago.
This identity was not done when I returned from the States a year ago.
So our country went ahead before others do.

Just heard from CNN the terrorists that blew up the train in Madrid also blew themselves up when they were cornered in their apartment.

So with so many uncertainties, security has to be tightened especially just before you board the plane.
Cheers.

This is most likely the reason why there has been a massive drop in visitors to the US..... I was reading in our paper last month how there has been a drop of approx 78% of people visiting or passing through the States. Going on the treatment we received while passing through LAX last year I think I can understand why!!

I'd be inclined to ask all American visitors to be given the same treatment when they visit other countries, and especially government officials, to see their reactions.

There was an amusing story on the BBC News web site saying that apparently Brasil _has_ introduced a "tit for tat" fingerprinting scheme for Americans as a result of this new measure.

Whereas the American scheme is an electronic scanner which only takes a few seconds, the one in Brasil is a man sitting with an ink pad and paper who takes 20 minutes to process each passenger .

Regards,

Chris

glasgow: I've been pondering the value of fingerprinting, too. Is this just an airport procedure or does it extend to other means of transit also? It wouldn't make any sense to fingerprint those who fly in whilst ignoring those who enter by bus/train/car/ship. In any case, as you point out, what good is having the prints after a catastrophe?
Perhaps they are trying to establish a sort of general-purpose database of who is coming and going. The reality is that it would be a task of monumental proportions to actually track everyone who entered the country, and unless that can be done effectively, these Band Aid measures are a waste of time and resources, designed more to make us feel better than to provide any real security.
Caitie

The data obtained is electronically compared with records in government anti-terrorism and crime databases.

About 200 persons barred from entering the USA have been detained since the program went into effect for travelers arriving under a visa. Most of those apprehended were felons or fugitives. This new screen is intended to bring immigration control into the digital age.

Don't know how it will work entering by bus, car or train. How do current foreign visa holders clear security now via these modes of travel? I am sure there is a procedure for them, not being a Canadian or Mexican with a 72-hour border crossing card.

Since the "shoe bomber" incident, I find taking off my shoes more of a pain. Imagine if this guy hid the bomb in his underwear?? We really all be in big touble!

Seems to me if we are going to fingerprint, we should also fingerprint those entering from Canada and Mexico. It is well known that terrorists are trying to enter from there. Doesn't make sense to exempt them. Might as well not bother at all.

As far as feelilng like a criminal--I feel like a criminal when I am patted down, my bags are searched and I am ordered to remove my shoes. I don't think adding a fingerprint to the above would bother me much.

I respectfully disagree with the statement that it is well-known that terrorists enter the U.S. through Canada and Mexico. I'm not aware of any terrorists that have arrived in the U.S. from these two countries. Certainly terrorists infiltrate every country in the world but it's probably worth noting that all of the terrorists of 9/11 entered the U.S. directly.

There was an incident not long ago where a female customs agent stopped a car heading into Canada from the U.S. where there was a grenade found in a woman's car. Apparently it was discovered that the woman's husband was in the U.S.military and it was an unloaded grenade. The woman was detained then released. It seemed a strange incident!
There was an incident some years ago in British Columbia where a man was arrested trying to cross the border into the U.S with some explosives in his car. If I recall, that didn't amount to anything either. Since 9/11 Canada and the U.S. have cooperated in tightening up the border against the possibility of terrorists using it to infiltrate our two countries.
It's always a possibility that sometime a terrorist might use the border to cross into the U.S. However to date, that just hasn't happened. That's not to say there aren't terrorist cells here - they're present in every country and there have been arrests here of suspected terrorists.

Apparently the woman was heading for Vancouver, Washington BUT took the wrong exit and wound up headed to Vancouver, British Columbia and found herself (and her gernade) at the border crossing.

I'm Canadian and our security makes me a little nervous. I just saw a report (on a reputable news channel) the other day that there are a large number of passports unaccounted for (can't remember the exact number) and that the customs agents don't have a list of these "lost" passports. They also said that the time it takes to get data re:terrorists, bad guys, etc to the appropriate places (customs @ airports or borders, etc) is some outrageously long period of time (I can't remember the exact number). Kind of scary. It's hard for customs officers to screen if they don't have the information necessary to do their jobs effectively.

berk

PS...found a link http://www.canada.com/saskatoon/story.asp?id=C8FE9403-2...A9-9012-A32259F1B7E2

I certainly do not mean to offend anyone in Canada. I am very fond of our Canadian neighbors. But I have read numerous articles about terrorists moving to Canada and how easy it would be for them to cross the border. I do know that Bin Laden was behind a terrorist who tried to enter Washington State from Canada a few years ago, but they were caught at the border. It just seems like we should cover all our bases or none at all.

"I'd be inclined to ask all American visitors to be given the same treatment when they visit other countries, and especially government officials, to see their reactions."

Joeseph,

This American would just take it for what it is and continue visiting all the wonderful countries that I have in past. It would be a pain, but it would not stop me from what I love so much....traveling and seeing first hand all the beauty that I have seen outside my own beautiful country. I think of all the people I have met in my travels and the many more out there to meet....fingerprint away.

What a sad state of affairs the world has come to.

The cost of freedom and security is not free, and sometimes we have to endure procedures that we normally would rather not participate in.

After driving home from work on Route 17 in NJ on 9/11, and seeing the enormous clouds of smoke billowing out from the crippled remains of the World Trade Center (6 miles from my home), I have absolutely NO problem taking off my shoes at the airport, having security guards go through my luggage or being fingerprinted at the border. (any border, any country)

Do I feel like I'm being treated like a criminal when I do this? No. But I would rather indure a little "inconvenience" than ever go through 9/11 again. If even one person who could have done that is stopped by this method, I'm all for it.

Sorry Chris, the point is we don't think you're a criminal, but the person who could be deterred from turning your flight somewhere into a gigantic fireball by this procedure, may have been.

And as a post script, I've spent hours at borders in Eastern Europe waiting while my passport was checked.