painfulgc
05-19 01:04 PM
He did ask, are you a immigration voice member and told many people has called up from this community.
Then I guess IV reps should have one on one with this senator.
Also I recommend all of us calling and requesting/convincing this senator!
Then I guess IV reps should have one on one with this senator.
Also I recommend all of us calling and requesting/convincing this senator!
wallpaper CFDA Fashion Awards
mheggade
10-08 11:56 AM
Till early part of 2004 or latter part of 2003, most of the Indians applied EB3 very few applied EB2. After 2004, it was reverse. I doubt any one appled EB3 in 2005 0r 2006.
If EB3 stays continously in 2001 and EB2 in 2004 (there is 3 year difference in cutoff date between EB2 and EB3 now), the guys with EB3 PD 2002 and 2003 will convert to EB2 by applying new 140 to transfer PD. This flow will balance the cut-off dates. Eventually it will reach a common ground or a break-even point.
I doubt that people try to change from EB3 to EB2 , given the fact that they need get I140 approval which is taking more than 14 months and USCIS announced recently that, they are not bringing back I140 PP in the near future.
If EB3 stays continously in 2001 and EB2 in 2004 (there is 3 year difference in cutoff date between EB2 and EB3 now), the guys with EB3 PD 2002 and 2003 will convert to EB2 by applying new 140 to transfer PD. This flow will balance the cut-off dates. Eventually it will reach a common ground or a break-even point.
I doubt that people try to change from EB3 to EB2 , given the fact that they need get I140 approval which is taking more than 14 months and USCIS announced recently that, they are not bringing back I140 PP in the near future.
gbof
08-05 04:25 PM
When I Spoke to the IO on August 2nd he said that case is assigned to an Officer as of July 28th. I am still waiting.
I think it depends upon where your file is in the Pile of files assigned to a officer.
I agree.... I am told by IO that my case was assigned on 7/23.
I think it depends upon where your file is in the Pile of files assigned to a officer.
I agree.... I am told by IO that my case was assigned on 7/23.
2011 REPLAY SLIDESHOW middot; Lady
nojoke
01-25 04:45 PM
Yes, that is what the trend look like. There is probably another 5-10% fall in the works. Perhaps even more. I agree with you on that.
However, the million dollar question is how do you know the prices have actually bottomed one? Won't you go ahead and buy if its affordable, instead of wasting precious years which shorten the career span and deferring your decision? Its almost like deciding when to have your first child...well..almost. There is never really a good time, is there?
By affordable, I mean its around 'x' times your (dual) income, you have your green card and you are prepared to live in the US for next 5 years at least (even if there is any family emergency, you don't have any compulsion to sell off your assets and move to India for good). Now, 'x' may mean different for different people but generally people seem to agree x = 3. And I also agree with you that it might happen that american housing is always affordable. Yes, it might but for most middle class in SFO Bay area, when x was 7-10, it wasn't affordable at all!
I completely oppose folks like Slumdog doing something terribly rash (no gc, no prospect of gc within a year, single income with a baby, baby having some health issues and to top it all the burden of a heavy mortgage on the shoulders, god, I think his situation is simply awful...) but the way I read it is that these indeterminate immigration waits are making people throw caution to the winds.
And I don't agree with folks who feel that buying your house is like renting it out simply because it is mortgaged. There is big difference, eventually its get all paid off and you start actually owning it. Secondly, for a lot of people that they can sell it during their retirement and use the sale proceeds to cover the retirement life. There is very good chance real estate would have appreciated over long term. Of course, you are just interested in 'flipping' you are asking for big trouble.
If you think renting is not 'quality of life' and you see it is affordable and prepared to lose money go ahead and buy. On the other hand, if you don't mind renting and don't feel like losing your hard earned money wait for the downturn to be over.
The rate of fall is so much that it is better to lose on the rent than buy and lose over the next years depreciation.
However, the million dollar question is how do you know the prices have actually bottomed one? Won't you go ahead and buy if its affordable, instead of wasting precious years which shorten the career span and deferring your decision? Its almost like deciding when to have your first child...well..almost. There is never really a good time, is there?
By affordable, I mean its around 'x' times your (dual) income, you have your green card and you are prepared to live in the US for next 5 years at least (even if there is any family emergency, you don't have any compulsion to sell off your assets and move to India for good). Now, 'x' may mean different for different people but generally people seem to agree x = 3. And I also agree with you that it might happen that american housing is always affordable. Yes, it might but for most middle class in SFO Bay area, when x was 7-10, it wasn't affordable at all!
I completely oppose folks like Slumdog doing something terribly rash (no gc, no prospect of gc within a year, single income with a baby, baby having some health issues and to top it all the burden of a heavy mortgage on the shoulders, god, I think his situation is simply awful...) but the way I read it is that these indeterminate immigration waits are making people throw caution to the winds.
And I don't agree with folks who feel that buying your house is like renting it out simply because it is mortgaged. There is big difference, eventually its get all paid off and you start actually owning it. Secondly, for a lot of people that they can sell it during their retirement and use the sale proceeds to cover the retirement life. There is very good chance real estate would have appreciated over long term. Of course, you are just interested in 'flipping' you are asking for big trouble.
If you think renting is not 'quality of life' and you see it is affordable and prepared to lose money go ahead and buy. On the other hand, if you don't mind renting and don't feel like losing your hard earned money wait for the downturn to be over.
The rate of fall is so much that it is better to lose on the rent than buy and lose over the next years depreciation.
more...
praharideep
05-29 01:38 PM
Hi ,
I have recenlty (2Months) camre to us and my uncle alsi got H1b recenlty.
I want to bring my wife on H4, for this do I need Paystubs.If yes , How many.
Becuse at this moment I don't have any paycheck and I will be gettiing one by this month end.
Please
thanks
I have recenlty (2Months) camre to us and my uncle alsi got H1b recenlty.
I want to bring my wife on H4, for this do I need Paystubs.If yes , How many.
Becuse at this moment I don't have any paycheck and I will be gettiing one by this month end.
Please
thanks
Lasantha
03-28 10:29 AM
Yes, it sounds bad. Randy what is your PD?
EB3
�MurthyDotCom
It is expected that the cutoff dates in the employment-based, third preference category (EB3) will remain the same during the month of May 2008. However, this depends on the USCIS's processing of cases, as visa numbers are assigned based on I-485 approvals. Therefore, the number of I-485 applications approved by the USCIS determines, to a large extent, the immigrant visa number usage. (The consulates also use EB3 visa numbers, but far fewer than the USCIS.)
�MurthyDotCom
The EB3 cutoff dates moved forward in March and April 2008 in an attempt to avoid a recurrence of the events of the summer of 2007. As our regular readers, in the summer of 2007, the Visa Bulletin reflected current for most categories in an effort not to have an immigrant visa numbers go unused by the end of the fiscal year. They dates are being moved more quickly in the spring, as there is a potential that USCIS will have to reallocate staff from I-485 cases to naturalization cases to address the backlogs with those filings in order to naturalize eligible individuals prior to the November 2008 general election. Moving the dates forward permits case approvals and full utilization of immigrant visa numbers before the end of the fiscal year.
According to murthy's website, May VB will not move for EB3, bad news for us.
EB3
�MurthyDotCom
It is expected that the cutoff dates in the employment-based, third preference category (EB3) will remain the same during the month of May 2008. However, this depends on the USCIS's processing of cases, as visa numbers are assigned based on I-485 approvals. Therefore, the number of I-485 applications approved by the USCIS determines, to a large extent, the immigrant visa number usage. (The consulates also use EB3 visa numbers, but far fewer than the USCIS.)
�MurthyDotCom
The EB3 cutoff dates moved forward in March and April 2008 in an attempt to avoid a recurrence of the events of the summer of 2007. As our regular readers, in the summer of 2007, the Visa Bulletin reflected current for most categories in an effort not to have an immigrant visa numbers go unused by the end of the fiscal year. They dates are being moved more quickly in the spring, as there is a potential that USCIS will have to reallocate staff from I-485 cases to naturalization cases to address the backlogs with those filings in order to naturalize eligible individuals prior to the November 2008 general election. Moving the dates forward permits case approvals and full utilization of immigrant visa numbers before the end of the fiscal year.
According to murthy's website, May VB will not move for EB3, bad news for us.
more...
akhilmahajan
08-06 08:25 PM
I have told them that Im the only bread earner of the family and the cost of living in the area that i live is very high and that I have bills to pay. But they have denied my request. i dont know what other financial hardship should I show them. Maybe I should declare bankruptcy and then send that over to USCIS to show that I really have financial hardship.
I have infopass appointment on 14th I will try to raise the same issue again and see what they will say
Have requested the same thing, lets see hoe it goes. How long did u wait before u opened the SR. I hope u wont mind sharing.
I have infopass appointment on 14th I will try to raise the same issue again and see what they will say
Have requested the same thing, lets see hoe it goes. How long did u wait before u opened the SR. I hope u wont mind sharing.
2010 Icon Award, Lady Gaga
arnet
05-15 12:50 PM
Please check with your immigration attroney as they know it better but here are few things i heard:
EAD+AP:
after 6 mths of I-485 filing, shifting jobs would be easy with EAD. costly because of yearly renewal but worth based on your situation. i prefer renewing this EAD+AP, even in H1 so that you can shift jobs when you got the oppurtunity because EAD takes 3-4 mths approval time and you can travel using AP like H1 when you dont have H1 stamping. Even if you have H1stamping but if you use EAD/AP while entering US then you are no longer in H1 unless you go out and come back with H1.
Cons: Fees is increased by 60-80% this yr for EAD+AP, so costly. Also if for any reason anyone's I-485 is denied then the period he/she used EAD will be out-of-status so applying I-485 again wont be easy with "out-of-status" but still possible, check with your attroney.
Note: But couple of my friends changed jobs using EAD+AP and got GC without any issue. so it depends case to case and your application and how USCIS process it.
H1:
no need to renew EAD+AP but i feel it is always better to have both H1 & EAD/AP unless you want to save money. H1 gives oppurtunityto reapply I-485 even if denied. I think Job shifting is possible with H1 transfer, but check with attroney. Also you need to do H1 renewal and to travel abroad you need H1 stamping while entering US again.
hope this gives an idea.
Which is better-
A. Working and traveling on h1b (stamping at the consulate needed every year)
OR
B. Working on EAD and traveling on AP (EAD and AP to be renewed every year)
Any insights would be graetly appreciated.
EAD+AP:
after 6 mths of I-485 filing, shifting jobs would be easy with EAD. costly because of yearly renewal but worth based on your situation. i prefer renewing this EAD+AP, even in H1 so that you can shift jobs when you got the oppurtunity because EAD takes 3-4 mths approval time and you can travel using AP like H1 when you dont have H1 stamping. Even if you have H1stamping but if you use EAD/AP while entering US then you are no longer in H1 unless you go out and come back with H1.
Cons: Fees is increased by 60-80% this yr for EAD+AP, so costly. Also if for any reason anyone's I-485 is denied then the period he/she used EAD will be out-of-status so applying I-485 again wont be easy with "out-of-status" but still possible, check with your attroney.
Note: But couple of my friends changed jobs using EAD+AP and got GC without any issue. so it depends case to case and your application and how USCIS process it.
H1:
no need to renew EAD+AP but i feel it is always better to have both H1 & EAD/AP unless you want to save money. H1 gives oppurtunityto reapply I-485 even if denied. I think Job shifting is possible with H1 transfer, but check with attroney. Also you need to do H1 renewal and to travel abroad you need H1 stamping while entering US again.
hope this gives an idea.
Which is better-
A. Working and traveling on h1b (stamping at the consulate needed every year)
OR
B. Working on EAD and traveling on AP (EAD and AP to be renewed every year)
Any insights would be graetly appreciated.
more...
bowbow
08-04 02:19 PM
No.
hair the 2011 prize for Fashion
snathan
05-10 09:51 AM
@snathan: Have you checked with your lawyer if he sent an email to DOL. You may have been audited.
Whenever I call atorny...he says it will take time and be patient. Its not FIFO with USCIS...I have seen cases pending from Nov 2007. I really dont know how to push him to send a mail.
Whenever I call atorny...he says it will take time and be patient. Its not FIFO with USCIS...I have seen cases pending from Nov 2007. I really dont know how to push him to send a mail.
more...
sumitpendharkar
06-29 02:18 PM
Thx Macaca for the self-filing option. Unfortunately, that is not an option for many of us. Our corporate lawyers are supposed to handle this and they have out I-140 approvals. So not sure how we can self-file... In most of the cases, these big lawfirms are taking days to respond to us, claiming huge workloads.
hot For the 2011 CFDA Awards, Lady
gconmymind
10-10 12:51 PM
My wife will be in US in December on H4 visa. She has an approved H1B 797 notice starting 1st October 2007. When she applies for H4 to H1, is that under the quota? My understanding is that her H1 approval has already been counted against the quota and the COS will not be subject to yearly cap.
Appreciate your replies.
Appreciate your replies.
more...
house 2011 CFDA Fashion Awards
sandy_anand
05-03 05:04 PM
Some porter gave me red on this post.
Or on second thoughts, they must have clicked it by mistake...
Or on second thoughts, they must have clicked it by mistake...
tattoo Glam Events: 2011 CFDA Fashion
gdhiren
09-20 11:33 AM
sw33t, texanmom, thescadman, nagaraj, mundru, macaca, paskal, pdakwala, ashish, pappu, drona, franklin, paskal, janils, ARC
Kanika, Meenal, Sumita, Vandana, Vijay, Akhil, Ashish, Sapna, Preeti, Atmaja, Sonali, Sujata, Dhiren, Sejal, Prasad, Arun, Venky, Gopal, Jane, Kaushal oh my GOD I am surely forgetting a ton of others (and I can't match them with thier IV handles).. California's huge contingent was so great!!
abhijitp, chanduv, Aman and logiclife, well they have already been household figures around my place, and it was great to see them in action.
Please PM me and remind me if I met you, I really really WANT to remember. Overwhelmed by the warmth and cameraderie of the whole group.
Jaime, Libra, 485_se_dukhi, digital2k are there any pictures where I can spot you?
Thanks needhelp!. it was nice meeting you too. After walking 2 miles on her 22nd week of pregnancy my wife was still fresh after seeing all the enrgetic people around (especially you and your daughter).
Here is one incident, your daughter (obviously her IV handle has to be neednohelp! or IGotIt) was carrying one big placard, heavy for her and bigger than her size, and trying to put it with all other placards after we finished at capitol hill. When I, Bhavesh and vnky asked her if we can help, she said thanks, I got it. Then my wife said no wonder she is needhelp!'s daughter.
Kanika, Meenal, Sumita, Vandana, Vijay, Akhil, Ashish, Sapna, Preeti, Atmaja, Sonali, Sujata, Dhiren, Sejal, Prasad, Arun, Venky, Gopal, Jane, Kaushal oh my GOD I am surely forgetting a ton of others (and I can't match them with thier IV handles).. California's huge contingent was so great!!
abhijitp, chanduv, Aman and logiclife, well they have already been household figures around my place, and it was great to see them in action.
Please PM me and remind me if I met you, I really really WANT to remember. Overwhelmed by the warmth and cameraderie of the whole group.
Jaime, Libra, 485_se_dukhi, digital2k are there any pictures where I can spot you?
Thanks needhelp!. it was nice meeting you too. After walking 2 miles on her 22nd week of pregnancy my wife was still fresh after seeing all the enrgetic people around (especially you and your daughter).
Here is one incident, your daughter (obviously her IV handle has to be neednohelp! or IGotIt) was carrying one big placard, heavy for her and bigger than her size, and trying to put it with all other placards after we finished at capitol hill. When I, Bhavesh and vnky asked her if we can help, she said thanks, I got it. Then my wife said no wonder she is needhelp!'s daughter.
more...
pictures Lady GaGa Glams Up at CFDA
EB3worker
09-25 10:55 AM
Hi friends,
Let me introduce myself as an EB3 applicant waiting for about 5 years in the line!
Not many will probably be pleased with what I would like state. This calls for some dispassionate introspection.
First of all, let us realize that Green Card is not a right. The rules of the game were clear when we applied and all of us were conscious of what was in store. We all applied with the hope (repeat hope) of settling in the USA. The July 2007 fiasco helped many, including myself, to file 485. The US government went out of its way to accommodate us, rolled back their decision and allowed us to file 485 at that time. We must be eternally thankful for that. There is no need for INS to fear us. We all know how many years it takes to receive a reply from any government office, back home.
To avoid wastage of visas, the INS has formulated some rules and many Indian citizens have been benefitted and will continue to benefit. The nos. have also been made transparent now. The problem with us is that we want more and more and more...Wastage of visas is not of relevance to the INS, it is of relevance to us. It is not fair to question the method of distribution or the rules behind the game. The truth is, we do not have any right to even comment, leave alone question the INS. Let us be clear about that.
It is not not correct to assume that INS rules of distribution have been made arbitrarily. Are we the only intelligent people in the world? Is it that no one has thinking capability? Come on friends, let us be patient and happy for the consideration shown by INS. May be there have been lapses in the past. But which country or which organization / individual has been absolutely infallible? So let us stop blaming and critizing INS.This is a negative approach.
Many Indians seem to get irritated when INS wants to enforce the rules. Nothing will ever happen to people who follow the rules in USA. I do not want to write in a public forum about all the tricks many do, to enter and stay here. Let us all listen to our inner voice.
The real solution would be to plead for a visa recapture. That would be a positive approach. This EB3 / EB2 argument will vertically split the forum. If we EB3 people want to push our agenda, the EB2 folks have a right to counter it and appeal to INS. Afterall, today's world is one of cold and ruthless competition. So, let us not pursue this path.
There are many EB2 candidates who have come to the US way back in 2001, but could file their Labor petitions only in 2006 or 2007 becasue they were forced to do bonded labour by the desi companies. In other words, everyone has had their share of the problems.
My humble request : LET US WORK UNITEDLY AND PLEAD FOR VISA RECAPTURE
EB3 friends, be confident. Everything will work out well!
Best wishes
Let me introduce myself as an EB3 applicant waiting for about 5 years in the line!
Not many will probably be pleased with what I would like state. This calls for some dispassionate introspection.
First of all, let us realize that Green Card is not a right. The rules of the game were clear when we applied and all of us were conscious of what was in store. We all applied with the hope (repeat hope) of settling in the USA. The July 2007 fiasco helped many, including myself, to file 485. The US government went out of its way to accommodate us, rolled back their decision and allowed us to file 485 at that time. We must be eternally thankful for that. There is no need for INS to fear us. We all know how many years it takes to receive a reply from any government office, back home.
To avoid wastage of visas, the INS has formulated some rules and many Indian citizens have been benefitted and will continue to benefit. The nos. have also been made transparent now. The problem with us is that we want more and more and more...Wastage of visas is not of relevance to the INS, it is of relevance to us. It is not fair to question the method of distribution or the rules behind the game. The truth is, we do not have any right to even comment, leave alone question the INS. Let us be clear about that.
It is not not correct to assume that INS rules of distribution have been made arbitrarily. Are we the only intelligent people in the world? Is it that no one has thinking capability? Come on friends, let us be patient and happy for the consideration shown by INS. May be there have been lapses in the past. But which country or which organization / individual has been absolutely infallible? So let us stop blaming and critizing INS.This is a negative approach.
Many Indians seem to get irritated when INS wants to enforce the rules. Nothing will ever happen to people who follow the rules in USA. I do not want to write in a public forum about all the tricks many do, to enter and stay here. Let us all listen to our inner voice.
The real solution would be to plead for a visa recapture. That would be a positive approach. This EB3 / EB2 argument will vertically split the forum. If we EB3 people want to push our agenda, the EB2 folks have a right to counter it and appeal to INS. Afterall, today's world is one of cold and ruthless competition. So, let us not pursue this path.
There are many EB2 candidates who have come to the US way back in 2001, but could file their Labor petitions only in 2006 or 2007 becasue they were forced to do bonded labour by the desi companies. In other words, everyone has had their share of the problems.
My humble request : LET US WORK UNITEDLY AND PLEAD FOR VISA RECAPTURE
EB3 friends, be confident. Everything will work out well!
Best wishes
dresses Cfda-fashion-awards-2011-
actaccord
02-14 08:45 AM
to go...contribute early for better planning...
more...
makeup Lady Gaga came out in a
santb1975
04-08 04:01 PM
We should..
girlfriend 2011 CFDA Fashion Awards was
breddy2000
01-14 10:07 AM
Wall Street's Rigged Casino
http://www.financialsense.com/fsu/editorials/barry/2009/0113.html
Last year was certainly a turbulent one for investors. Not only did good assets and companies sell off with bad, but the very integrity of the U.S. markets was brought into question. Financial firms spend millions of dollars convincing the average citizen that investing in stocks is necessary and prudent, yet the playing field is far from level. Fraud, naked shorting and other forms of manipulation are now endemic to the American markets. As Overstock's lawyer, John O'Quinn points out, “You have more chance to be treated fairly in a casino in Vegas.” How can you invest if you can't trust the system?
Jim Puplava, Mike Schneider and a few other journalists have exposed the prevalence of naked shorting on Wall Street. While selling short is a legitimate activity, naked shorting occurs when parties sell shares they don't own and don't intend to borrow, causing more shares to be traded than actually exist. Approximately 7.5% of the trades reported by the DTCC fail to deliver each day, and this agency is private and not at all transparent. Furthermore, 96% of all stock transactions are completed outside the official system and are totally unregulated.
Regulation SHO was enacted in 2005 by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to supposedly eliminate chronic settlement failures by forcing brokers to close out positions after thirteen consecutive trading days. However the regulation doesn't cover small and micro cap companies, or failures to deliver (FTDs) that are below a certain numerical threshold. Market makers were exempt from this regulation until last fall, and old FTDs were allowed to remain open. Some corporations remained on the threshold list for over a year consecutively with no relief from the SEC.
Chairman Cox admitted in July 2006 that there were many large loopholes in Regulation SHO which allowed predatory shorting to continue. Few firms were investigated, and even those brokers who were caught paid minimal fines. Almost nothing was done until naked shorting threatened “the stability of financial institutions,” according to Cox. In July 2008, the SEC banned naked shorting of 19 select financial firms. With this rule and the subsequent emergency order banning all short selling in 799 financial institutions, Cox admitted that naked shorting was a serious problem, but the SEC would only enforce the rules for certain institutions that deserved the effort.
The Commission has demonstrated where its real allegiance lies, and it’s not with the small investor. For years, hedge funds, brokerages, and investment banks soaked up fat profits by naked shorting promising companies to death. These shorts never have to be covered if the company is delisted and goes bankrupt, so it’s a very lucrative criminal practice. When some of these same corporations that preyed on small cap stocks suffered share price drops due to their hideous balance sheets, the SEC moved in to give them special protection.
Even with some of the loopholes closed, market manipulation still goes on. As Allan Young points out on his website, naked shorting is in effect another derivative like credit default swaps or mortgage backed securities. Predatory brokers can sell more shares than exist, as if they are buying a put (a bet that prices will go down). Sell enough shares and you can ensure your bet is correct. These brokers can later close out their naked shorts and avoid censure from the SEC.
Although the most egregious violations of the naked short rules have been eliminated, with corporations like Overstock now off the naked short list, much of the damage has already been done. Many solid businesses have been naked shorted out of existence, leading to unemployment and destruction of wealth for millions of taxpayers. U.S. citizens are angry and scared as they watch their stock portfolios shrink, and see their pensions in jeopardy.
This begs the question as to why the U.S. government would prop the markets up on one hand using the Plunge Protection Team, while allowing naked shorting on the other which pushes the share prices down. I can only conclude that the system is designed to redistribute wealth from small investors to elite bankers and hedge fund managers. Perhaps the stock markets were allowed to decline so the politically connected shorts could cover profitably. With the close relationship between Wall Street, regulators, Congress, and the Treasury Department full of former Goldman Sachs executives, it's clear that the average worker with retirement money invested in the market is at an extreme disadvantage.
The SEC suffered another embarassment with the revelation that Bernard Madoff ran a US$50 billion Ponzi scheme disguised as a hedge fund for several years. Only a tip from Madoff's sons to the FBI unraveled the scheme. In fact, the SEC investigated Madoff's company eight times over more than a decade and failed to find any fraud. A former SEC attorney is now married to Madoff's niece, raising doubts about his objectivity in examining Madoff's books. Even when Harry Markopoulos, a private whistleblower, produced evidence that Madoff's trading results could not be replicated, no one at the SEC took him seriously.
Congress has been quick to blame Commissioner Cox, a former colleague for the Madoff scandal. However, missteps and inadequate enforcement predate Cox, who has only run the SEC since August 2005.
Obama's pick to replace Cox, Mary Schapiro has many flaws of her own. She previously appointed one of Madoff's sons to a disciplinary board, making her judgement look very poor. Schapiro is currently chief of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, a self regulating body which has been even less willing than usual to crack down on Wall Street abuses during her tenure. She ran the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) under President Clinton, an agency that has been unable or unwilling to perceive the manipulation in the precious metals markets while pursuing collusion in other commodities. Schapiro stated she was inspired to pursue a regulatory career by watching the Hunt brothers' silver moves, so we know where her biases lie.
As an analyst, I spend hours each week poring over balance sheets, and reading financial statements of companies I may want to recommend to my subscribers. My task is made very difficult by the widespread financial fraud. While Madoff's results were too good to be true, other forms of deception are extremely hard to detect. Satyam is the latest scandal to hit Wall Street. Although the corporation is headquartered in India, Satyam has Fortune 500 clients in the U.S. and is listed on the NYSE. It has to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley regulations just like any American company, rules that are supposed to enforce honesty and transparency. Satyam – which is Sanskrit for truth - was awarded the Golden Peacock award for corporate governance just three months ago, in an amazing bit of irony.
With all these scandals, no wonder Merrill Lynch reports that rich customers are demanding gold coins and bars instead of shares in “paper gold” like ETFs. Credible stories indicate that the COMEX warehouses are experiencing record activity as receipt holders seek delivery of their gold. Brokers are apparently attempting to discourage this activity to squelch metal demand. When trust is eroded, people naturally seek safety in an asset without counterparty risk like gold.
If you are a stock investor despite all these perils, how to you separate the wheat from the chaff? First you have to find industries with impeccable fundamentals. While commodities suffered greatly in 2008, I believe they will see a strong rebound in 2009.
Second, check the track record of management and look for any hints of impropriety. Third, read the financial statements and look for unnecessarily complicated structures or conflicts of interest: these are red flags. Fourth, if results seem unbelievably excellent, they may be fictional. Fifth, while you can no longer take delivery of shares in the United States, you can contact the companies you invest in to determine if you are on the list of legitimate shareholders or a victim of naked shorting. Sixth, diversify into several different companies so if one is fraudulent you don't lose all your money. With the danger inherent in stocks, I recommend only investing capital you can afford to lose.
http://www.financialsense.com/fsu/editorials/barry/2009/0113.html
Last year was certainly a turbulent one for investors. Not only did good assets and companies sell off with bad, but the very integrity of the U.S. markets was brought into question. Financial firms spend millions of dollars convincing the average citizen that investing in stocks is necessary and prudent, yet the playing field is far from level. Fraud, naked shorting and other forms of manipulation are now endemic to the American markets. As Overstock's lawyer, John O'Quinn points out, “You have more chance to be treated fairly in a casino in Vegas.” How can you invest if you can't trust the system?
Jim Puplava, Mike Schneider and a few other journalists have exposed the prevalence of naked shorting on Wall Street. While selling short is a legitimate activity, naked shorting occurs when parties sell shares they don't own and don't intend to borrow, causing more shares to be traded than actually exist. Approximately 7.5% of the trades reported by the DTCC fail to deliver each day, and this agency is private and not at all transparent. Furthermore, 96% of all stock transactions are completed outside the official system and are totally unregulated.
Regulation SHO was enacted in 2005 by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to supposedly eliminate chronic settlement failures by forcing brokers to close out positions after thirteen consecutive trading days. However the regulation doesn't cover small and micro cap companies, or failures to deliver (FTDs) that are below a certain numerical threshold. Market makers were exempt from this regulation until last fall, and old FTDs were allowed to remain open. Some corporations remained on the threshold list for over a year consecutively with no relief from the SEC.
Chairman Cox admitted in July 2006 that there were many large loopholes in Regulation SHO which allowed predatory shorting to continue. Few firms were investigated, and even those brokers who were caught paid minimal fines. Almost nothing was done until naked shorting threatened “the stability of financial institutions,” according to Cox. In July 2008, the SEC banned naked shorting of 19 select financial firms. With this rule and the subsequent emergency order banning all short selling in 799 financial institutions, Cox admitted that naked shorting was a serious problem, but the SEC would only enforce the rules for certain institutions that deserved the effort.
The Commission has demonstrated where its real allegiance lies, and it’s not with the small investor. For years, hedge funds, brokerages, and investment banks soaked up fat profits by naked shorting promising companies to death. These shorts never have to be covered if the company is delisted and goes bankrupt, so it’s a very lucrative criminal practice. When some of these same corporations that preyed on small cap stocks suffered share price drops due to their hideous balance sheets, the SEC moved in to give them special protection.
Even with some of the loopholes closed, market manipulation still goes on. As Allan Young points out on his website, naked shorting is in effect another derivative like credit default swaps or mortgage backed securities. Predatory brokers can sell more shares than exist, as if they are buying a put (a bet that prices will go down). Sell enough shares and you can ensure your bet is correct. These brokers can later close out their naked shorts and avoid censure from the SEC.
Although the most egregious violations of the naked short rules have been eliminated, with corporations like Overstock now off the naked short list, much of the damage has already been done. Many solid businesses have been naked shorted out of existence, leading to unemployment and destruction of wealth for millions of taxpayers. U.S. citizens are angry and scared as they watch their stock portfolios shrink, and see their pensions in jeopardy.
This begs the question as to why the U.S. government would prop the markets up on one hand using the Plunge Protection Team, while allowing naked shorting on the other which pushes the share prices down. I can only conclude that the system is designed to redistribute wealth from small investors to elite bankers and hedge fund managers. Perhaps the stock markets were allowed to decline so the politically connected shorts could cover profitably. With the close relationship between Wall Street, regulators, Congress, and the Treasury Department full of former Goldman Sachs executives, it's clear that the average worker with retirement money invested in the market is at an extreme disadvantage.
The SEC suffered another embarassment with the revelation that Bernard Madoff ran a US$50 billion Ponzi scheme disguised as a hedge fund for several years. Only a tip from Madoff's sons to the FBI unraveled the scheme. In fact, the SEC investigated Madoff's company eight times over more than a decade and failed to find any fraud. A former SEC attorney is now married to Madoff's niece, raising doubts about his objectivity in examining Madoff's books. Even when Harry Markopoulos, a private whistleblower, produced evidence that Madoff's trading results could not be replicated, no one at the SEC took him seriously.
Congress has been quick to blame Commissioner Cox, a former colleague for the Madoff scandal. However, missteps and inadequate enforcement predate Cox, who has only run the SEC since August 2005.
Obama's pick to replace Cox, Mary Schapiro has many flaws of her own. She previously appointed one of Madoff's sons to a disciplinary board, making her judgement look very poor. Schapiro is currently chief of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, a self regulating body which has been even less willing than usual to crack down on Wall Street abuses during her tenure. She ran the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) under President Clinton, an agency that has been unable or unwilling to perceive the manipulation in the precious metals markets while pursuing collusion in other commodities. Schapiro stated she was inspired to pursue a regulatory career by watching the Hunt brothers' silver moves, so we know where her biases lie.
As an analyst, I spend hours each week poring over balance sheets, and reading financial statements of companies I may want to recommend to my subscribers. My task is made very difficult by the widespread financial fraud. While Madoff's results were too good to be true, other forms of deception are extremely hard to detect. Satyam is the latest scandal to hit Wall Street. Although the corporation is headquartered in India, Satyam has Fortune 500 clients in the U.S. and is listed on the NYSE. It has to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley regulations just like any American company, rules that are supposed to enforce honesty and transparency. Satyam – which is Sanskrit for truth - was awarded the Golden Peacock award for corporate governance just three months ago, in an amazing bit of irony.
With all these scandals, no wonder Merrill Lynch reports that rich customers are demanding gold coins and bars instead of shares in “paper gold” like ETFs. Credible stories indicate that the COMEX warehouses are experiencing record activity as receipt holders seek delivery of their gold. Brokers are apparently attempting to discourage this activity to squelch metal demand. When trust is eroded, people naturally seek safety in an asset without counterparty risk like gold.
If you are a stock investor despite all these perils, how to you separate the wheat from the chaff? First you have to find industries with impeccable fundamentals. While commodities suffered greatly in 2008, I believe they will see a strong rebound in 2009.
Second, check the track record of management and look for any hints of impropriety. Third, read the financial statements and look for unnecessarily complicated structures or conflicts of interest: these are red flags. Fourth, if results seem unbelievably excellent, they may be fictional. Fifth, while you can no longer take delivery of shares in the United States, you can contact the companies you invest in to determine if you are on the list of legitimate shareholders or a victim of naked shorting. Sixth, diversify into several different companies so if one is fraudulent you don't lose all your money. With the danger inherent in stocks, I recommend only investing capital you can afford to lose.
hairstyles Lady Gaga Reveals Herself at
SGP
04-10 06:15 AM
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$GOOD MORNING GC$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Deadline = April 30th, 2011
Goal = 5000 votes on survey (see I-485 filing w/o current PD thread) and momentum to continue with this campaign.The survey is a platform to gather and push for launching action items. Based on response by 04/30/2011 - IV will decide whether to even proceed with initiative or not.
Actions - 1) Vote on survey.
2)Email ivcoordinator@gmail.com with PD, ph#,email & subject "I485 filing impacted�,
3)Print/Circulate Fliers and spread FB, wiki link (see "support thread")
This is a supporting thread to the "Want to File I-485 without Current Priority Date? Gather here" thread started by pappu.
As suggested by pappu/starsun, this supporting thread provides impacted members with additional information and tools to help the initiative.
Visit Immigration Voice Wiki (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/index.php/Employment_Based_Green_Card#Process_.28EB1.2C_EB2. 2C_and_EB3.29) - for overview of Employment Based - Green Card process
Visit I485 Filing w/o current PD Wiki (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/index.php/Current_Grass-Roots_Initiative_-_I-485_Filing_without_Current_Priority_Date) - for overview of this initiative
As pappu stated in the first post of the above referenced thread - some of the ongoing efforts include finding how many IV members would get benefit from such a provision and get basic details such as username/Priority Date of impacted members. Future action items might include drafting documents and letters to support this provision. There maybe actions such as sending emails etc. However we would not be able to open a public action item unless we can have thousands of our members willing to participate in a grassroots action item. This survey intends to understand the needs of our membership for this provision and collect grassroots information.
The fact is we have a dedicated group of volunteers (and we need more) who have been trying their best to spread the message about this initiative so that a strong grass-roots support can be created leading up to launch of the public action items. So far we have around 1100 people who have responded. Based on quick calculations carried out using PERM data, it is estimated that there are at least 60K-70K EB applicants waiting to file I-485/EAD/AP (this is a very conservative estimate..the actual number could be much more). Grass-roots initiatives require time and patience and we request maximum number of impacted folks to participate actively.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What can you do to participate?
1) Vote on the poll/survey created by Pappu.
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/forum14-members-forum/1599353-want-to-file-485-when-pd-is-not-current-gather-here.html
Then please send an email to ivcoordinator@gmail.com (starsun) with subject - "I485 filing without current PD - Impacted Member". Include your a) IV username b) Email address c) Phone #, d) State of Residence e) Priority Date - so that grassroot efforts can be coordinated
2) Print out below Flier and circulate at all asian/indian malls/groceries/theaters. Forward the flier to your friends/co-workers and ask them to do the same.
I485 Filing Initiative Flier (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/images/a/a8/Flier_I485_latest2.pdf)
3) Volunteers have created a facebook community and an Immigration Voice WIKI page to spread the message about this initiative. Please circulate these links among your friends/co-workers who will be helped.
Please "Share" and "Link" and "send to friend" the facebook community via your Facebook account. Also include these two links when you post on the IV forum.
Facebook - IV I485 filing w/o current PD initiative community (http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Immigration-Voice-Grass-roots-Campaigns/150562351660693?v=info)
(Just FYI that you might have to be logged in for the above link to direct to the facebook community. Alternately, search for "Immigration Voice Grass-roots Campaigns" to find the community after logging in. Search "Immigration Voice" to go to the IV's main facebook page)
Immigration Wiki -
I485 Filing Initiative - IV Wiki (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/index.php/Current_Grass-Roots_Initiative_-_I-485_Filing_without_Current_Priority_Date)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PM these members for additional info:
nmdial ; geevikram ; vbkris77 ; ashwin_27 ; snathan
Dedicated members can also join the leaders group: http://groups.google.com/group/485-filing-iv-initiative
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Deadline = April 30th, 2011
Goal = 5000 votes on survey (see I-485 filing w/o current PD thread) and momentum to continue with this campaign.The survey is a platform to gather and push for launching action items. Based on response by 04/30/2011 - IV will decide whether to even proceed with initiative or not.
Actions - 1) Vote on survey.
2)Email ivcoordinator@gmail.com with PD, ph#,email & subject "I485 filing impacted�,
3)Print/Circulate Fliers and spread FB, wiki link (see "support thread")
This is a supporting thread to the "Want to File I-485 without Current Priority Date? Gather here" thread started by pappu.
As suggested by pappu/starsun, this supporting thread provides impacted members with additional information and tools to help the initiative.
Visit Immigration Voice Wiki (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/index.php/Employment_Based_Green_Card#Process_.28EB1.2C_EB2. 2C_and_EB3.29) - for overview of Employment Based - Green Card process
Visit I485 Filing w/o current PD Wiki (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/index.php/Current_Grass-Roots_Initiative_-_I-485_Filing_without_Current_Priority_Date) - for overview of this initiative
As pappu stated in the first post of the above referenced thread - some of the ongoing efforts include finding how many IV members would get benefit from such a provision and get basic details such as username/Priority Date of impacted members. Future action items might include drafting documents and letters to support this provision. There maybe actions such as sending emails etc. However we would not be able to open a public action item unless we can have thousands of our members willing to participate in a grassroots action item. This survey intends to understand the needs of our membership for this provision and collect grassroots information.
The fact is we have a dedicated group of volunteers (and we need more) who have been trying their best to spread the message about this initiative so that a strong grass-roots support can be created leading up to launch of the public action items. So far we have around 1100 people who have responded. Based on quick calculations carried out using PERM data, it is estimated that there are at least 60K-70K EB applicants waiting to file I-485/EAD/AP (this is a very conservative estimate..the actual number could be much more). Grass-roots initiatives require time and patience and we request maximum number of impacted folks to participate actively.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What can you do to participate?
1) Vote on the poll/survey created by Pappu.
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/forum14-members-forum/1599353-want-to-file-485-when-pd-is-not-current-gather-here.html
Then please send an email to ivcoordinator@gmail.com (starsun) with subject - "I485 filing without current PD - Impacted Member". Include your a) IV username b) Email address c) Phone #, d) State of Residence e) Priority Date - so that grassroot efforts can be coordinated
2) Print out below Flier and circulate at all asian/indian malls/groceries/theaters. Forward the flier to your friends/co-workers and ask them to do the same.
I485 Filing Initiative Flier (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/images/a/a8/Flier_I485_latest2.pdf)
3) Volunteers have created a facebook community and an Immigration Voice WIKI page to spread the message about this initiative. Please circulate these links among your friends/co-workers who will be helped.
Please "Share" and "Link" and "send to friend" the facebook community via your Facebook account. Also include these two links when you post on the IV forum.
Facebook - IV I485 filing w/o current PD initiative community (http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Immigration-Voice-Grass-roots-Campaigns/150562351660693?v=info)
(Just FYI that you might have to be logged in for the above link to direct to the facebook community. Alternately, search for "Immigration Voice Grass-roots Campaigns" to find the community after logging in. Search "Immigration Voice" to go to the IV's main facebook page)
Immigration Wiki -
I485 Filing Initiative - IV Wiki (http://immigrationvoice.org/wiki/index.php/Current_Grass-Roots_Initiative_-_I-485_Filing_without_Current_Priority_Date)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PM these members for additional info:
nmdial ; geevikram ; vbkris77 ; ashwin_27 ; snathan
Dedicated members can also join the leaders group: http://groups.google.com/group/485-filing-iv-initiative
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
texcan
07-11 06:55 PM
We should thank Ms. Lofgren, Congresswomen for action taken to ask USCIS about visa bulletion fiasco.
Atleast someone with authority cares to do things right.
Thankyou Mr. Lofgren.
Atleast someone with authority cares to do things right.
Thankyou Mr. Lofgren.
vishage
11-22 05:41 PM
I got is renewed in Chicago in 7 days, i was shocked when i received the mail, i thgt it has come back for some error , but it was the new PP.