U.S. Military Will Offer Path to Citizenship

[getthefacts]

Source: NY Times

“Stretched thin in Afghanistan and Iraq, the American military will begin recruiting skilled immigrants who are living in this country with temporary visas, offering them the chance to become United States citizens in as little as six months.

Immigrants who are permanent residents, with documents commonly known as green cards, have long been eligible to enlist. But the new effort, for the first time since the Vietnam War, will open the armed forces to temporary immigrants if they have lived in the United States for a minimum of two years, according to military officials familiar with the plan”


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/us/15immig.html?_r=1&hp

[BlooInBloo]

1. About fucking time. If they're willing to die for our country, the least we can do...

is offer them fucking citizenship.

[Captain Hilts]

2. That's always been US military policy, actually. Not new. nt

[getthefacts]

4. You are right but

before, immigrants on a temporary visa could not enlist. Only green card holders (perm residents). I f I'm not mistaken, the waiting period came down down from 2 years to six months under Bush.

[babylonsister]

5. Not true. Did you read this?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/us/15immig.html?_r=1&hp



Immigrants who are permanent residents, with documents commonly known as green cards, have long been eligible to enlist. But the new effort, for the first time since the Vietnam War, will open the armed forces to temporary immigrants if they have lived in the United States for a minimum of two years, according to military officials familiar with the plan.

[LakeSamish706]

6. How do they prove that they have been in the US for two years if they are illegal? n/t

[getthefacts]

8. Temporary is not the same as undocumented

A Temporary visa holder can be someone on an F1 visa (student), an R1 (religious worker), etc. These people are in status. Current policy does not allow for undocumented migrants to register.

[getthefacts]

7. Sure,

During Vietnam. I also believe the same thing was done during the Great War. But this was not the current policy. You had to be a green card holder to enlist, although the army asks any men over 18, regardless of his immigration status, to register with selective service.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=ed6948afcb41e010VgnVCM1000000ecd190aRCRD&vgnextchannel=2f719c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1____

[BlooInBloo]

11. Are you like 200 years old or something?

*Who* still calls WW1 "the Great War"??

Who?

:rofl:

[getthefacts]

13. LOL!

... :)

[Posteritatis]

16. Most of the Commonwealth? (nt)

[Captain Hilts]

21. English, Canadians, Aussies...so, laugh at yourself fuckhead. nt

[Captain Hilts]

20. Agreeing to join the military was often a means to get a green card. It was a carrot used.

These laws - like the status of gays in the military - are VERY situational and vary from era to era.

[Posteritatis]

9. They've really sucked about the implementation lately, though

A lot of people have had to wait years or more for theirs in the last several. It sucks.

Anything that makes it more likely that people who serve actually get their citizenship eventually is a good thing in my books. I don't care what someone's status was when they enlisted; if they did a full term of service in any country's military they deserve full citizenship on the hour of their discharge.

[getthefacts]

10. Absolutely!

"...if they did a full term of service in any country's military they deserve full citizenship on the hour of their discharge.

[Captain Hilts]

3. They actually recruit overseas. nt

[Thothmes]

22. Have done that for years

The Navy used to recruit at Subic Bay in the Philippines. The normal quota for each week was a couple of dozen new enlistees. Thousands would come from all over the Philippines to try and enlist.

[Captain Hilts]

24. We've also recruited in India. nt

[defendandprotect]

12. That could really be dangerous . . . imagine what you could ask

someone waiting for you to approve their citizenship to do for you .....!!!!!

[getthefacts]

14. You mean

dangerous for the guy who enlisted right?

You better stop that bullet, private...

[defendandprotect]

15. Well. . .

lots of things come to mind cause they've happened before ---

dirty assignments -- torturing people -- sexual favors -- leaning on people in

any way those in charge feel like it.

[notesdev]

17. The US Foreign Legion?

Doesn't it say something about our foreign policies that we can't round up enough people in a country of 300+ million to fight for them?

[provis99]

18. more like the Roman Empire

well, if you can't get the local Romans to fight for Rome, I guess recruiting has to be done among the barbarians...

[conspirator]

19. Yep. When you need cannon fodder, you open vacancies in the foreign legion nt

[ShortnFiery]

23. Good luck in recruiting/retaining the Company Grade Officer Ranks (LT, CPT) to lead them.

:thumbsdown: