pddp

2.Should i contact the embassy in Finland to let them know i have changed my address or i should contact NVC instead?

Definitely also contact the embassy in Finland to inform them of your (beneficiary's) address change in Finland. I also changed addresses during the process and my (then)fiance informed the USCIS and NVC of my new address- embassy never got the info and sent my Packet 3 to the old address. NVC is a black hole, the embassy is much smaller and nicer to deal with, plus they are the ones who'll be inviting you to your interview and issuing your visa.

"European countries are as much to blame for the death of migrants as human traffickers."

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2013/11/cloneofwhy-migrants-die-2013111111834984825-2013115105254639529.html

Agreed. This is why moving out of one country to one with more opportunity doesn't help the overall state of countries in this world. Ideally people would stay and demand change in their country. But I personally don't blame them for doing what's best for their family and change can be hard to come by.

Actually, traveling and visiting different countries benefits everyone. People SHOULD travel more to broaden their mind, widen their perspective and lessen their prejudices by interacting with and learning from many different kinds of people. That would actually create a better world, as a whole.

It should also be up to the individual to choose however, and, more to the point, where s/he wants to live. Who are we to dictate where other people should live? There are a ton of reasons why a person might choose to live in a foreign country for varying lengths of time, or the rest of their life. I've lived in several countries over the years, none of which had anything to do with "searching a better life" in the economic or safety/stability sense. I would've been crushed if I hadn't been able to go, because of restrictions and discrimination based on my background. I wouldn't wish that on anyone.

Finally, we need to ask ourselves why is emigrating in search of a better life only acceptable when Western/white people do it? Think about it...

So you are saying that because the British colonised other countries we now have no right to control illegal immigration? You and the other UK haters do realise that exploiting others and gaining resources at the expense of others is not just a British or Northern European trait right? Aztecs, Zulu's, Mongols, Romans, Persians, Moors, Egyptians et al all took what they wanted from their weaker neighbours when they were dominant whether the wealth stolen was in slaves, cattle or gold etc. It's a human trait unfortunately and it continues today more in the form of corporations and big business than via nation states. I'm not proud of my country's role in extracting wealth from others but I am proud that we outlawed slavery first and made other countries outlaw it too and that we bankrupted ourselves stopping Hitler in WW2 when countries like Russia and the US did nothing until attacked. There are far worse countries in the world than the UK and if some of you looked at the world without bias you would realise that.

UK hater??? Where do you get that from???

I stand for justice, fairness and equality of all human beings. I could care less which country violates any of those, I condemn them all equally. And I could care less about ranking countries by their "goodness" or "badness", that's just stupid and counterproductive. People, and the wellbeing of all people on the planet is far more important than some arbitrary creations we call "countries". Don't put words into someone's mouth when you clearly have no clue where they're coming from.

Espoo, Finland

It's sad how fearful, intolerant, hateful and closeminded most people seem to be these days, especially in the US and Europe. I do wish it was different.

I know it's refundable, and I know the article mentions that it's refundable.

Still, it's not fair to present facts on this topic.

pddp is more interested in our feelings, about this, than any facts.

I've already posted my feelings - what are yours?

This is about justice, equality, morality, what's right and what's wrong. I have no idea what you're talking about.

It's hardly prejudice, It's the countries where the most people overstay their Visa's costing the UK millions yearly in extra medical costs and as illegals they don't pay taxes and once these people get here it's virtually impossible to make them leave! UK is only a small island you know....

In all honesty and with a bit of perspective and sense of history, the monies that you mention are a mere drop in the ocean compared to the mountains of treasure the UK robbed and extracted from said countries over a few centuries... And, ironically, it was virtually impossible to make THEM leave back in the day....

We have but one planet here to inhabit, and we desperately need to learn to get along! Compassion and perspective never hurt anyone...

Hmmm profiling? Really?

I view it as counting and statistics - instead.

How would you like to be presumed guilty until proven innocent, viewed with suspicion solely based on your nationality and forced to pay heavy fees for it? People are not statistics, they're human beings, just like you and me. Not chattel.

What a disgusting scheme. Talk about prejudice and profiling. WOW.

Gun violence is a US public health problem:

http://scienceblogs.com/thepumphandle/2012/07/23/gun-violence-is-a-u-s-public-health-problem/

Shame on the pro-gun lobby here. Based on your so-called arguments, you seem to be precisely the type of people that shouldn't be allowed anywhere near a deadly weapon. How is anyone supposed to feel safe knowing there are tons of you running around with apparently no judgment and zero logical reasoning skills- just a mad belief that every situation can be solved by pointing a gun at it? YOU ARE THE PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEM! Add more guns to the equation and those numbers get worse. If you don't get that, then ironically you're not fit enough in the head to carry a gun.

Look here..just the first place I clicked on http://www.englishteastore.com/mawi21bag.html?utm_source=googlepepla&utm_medium=adwords&id=21619610058&utm_content=pla&gclid=CMvor67U4rgCFe1AMgodZB8Ahw

I calculated shipping to Indiana to be $3.95. The company is in the USA

I also found this place in California http://www.britishfood.com/storelocator.asp but didn't check prices.

??????

I don't even know where the heck you're all coming from in this forum.... Nevermind.

sorry, i don't really believe in utopia.

Just quite recently really women owning property was a utopia, black people not being sold as slaves was a utopia, gays being able to legally marry was a utopia, etc. etc. etc. Haven't come to the realization yet that change is constant?

Hmm, I think there are more complicated factors at work than that some men just choose to be abusive. It is true however that there are too many stereotypes that increase unrealistic views of men and women, their relationships and the way we should treat each other.

There are complicated factors in the background to be sure, but actually committing acts of violence comes down to a choice. It's usually a myth that some men "just can't control their anger" and "lash out". Usually they conveniently lash out in private, behind closed doors, with no witnesses. That's not "uncontrolled" anger, it's very controlled- thus by choice.

Unreal. There are PLENTY of non-violent men in the world who treat women with respect. Violence is a CHOICE that the society enables men to make. Why are we asked to take it for granted that some men choose violence? Why is it so unreasonable to ask, or in fact DEMAND that THESE MEN change, instead of focusing on trying to find coping mechanisms for the women victims? Men are NOT inherently violent towards women. If that were the case, ALL women would be raped and battered. Hello?!?

quite the straw man in that first paragraph. i already agreed with your earlier statement - my expansion after that was about the men who don't modify their behavior. i don't advocate leaving women helpless against those who still persist in violence.

So in other words you do advocate accepting a man's choice to not modify his behavior and leaving it up to the woman encountering him to just deal with it to the best of her ability. Why is it an acceptable choice for a man to persist in violence in our society? Sure, it's "frowned upon", but that's about it. Being violent towards women is a choice a man makes. Why is he allowed to make that choice?

Wow I just googled them and found them for $5.49 here in the US. Google Bassett's wine gums, you will get lots of "hits"

Yeah we have, but the shipping charges added to that are always outrageous, $30 or thereabouts. Did you actually find a place that sells them in the US, or doesn't charge insane shipping fees? Hubby would LOVE to hear about that!

my wife isn't involved in this conversation.

fine with me. and for those that don't, how about we allow women the right and ability to defend themselves?

So continue the status quo of leaving women to fend for themselves against "those who don't", instead of affecting real change in society to end violence against women once and for all?

The root cause of this problem is men's behavior, not women's reactions to it.

"When solving problems, dig at the roots instead of just hacking at the leaves." No?

You are actually allowed to use household income, not just individual income, in your credit card application. This just changed recently:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/100720709

Thanks Lynkali! And congrats on your approval, hope everything went well!

I do like the SDCCU website at least so we'll definitely look into that one. We've had an awesome experience with our local bank here so hopefully we can replicate that there!

We're on our last 2 weeks here, about to embark on our road trip with a few sightseeing stops along the way. Will be arriving in San Diego towards the end of this month. We're so excited we're both just bouncing off the walls!

Bassett's wine gums, which I bought for my husband on a whim at the airport last time we were in Europe. He's crazy about them, unfortunately can't find them in the US unless you're willing to pay some serious shipping fees from Europe. He's threatening to bring an extra bag just for his wine gums next time we go. Lol.

I called Senator ####### Durbin's office...they were great!! :-)

Same here, and my AOS got approved within days. Definitely worth it!

maybe we should cut to the root of the problem and ban men?

So having men respect women's human rights and not commit violent crimes against them is out of the question? There's plenty of men who manage to do just that. Why not make that the standard?

what is wrong with allowing women to defend themselves?

What's wrong is that they are victimized in the first place. Why should women have to constantly defend themselves against the men in their lives? It's the men who need to stop victimizing the women in their lives!