Confrontation with immigration official

I had a bit of fun this afternoon...

I questioned authority.. They couldn't answer.

To try to set the scene, I'll explain a few things first.

1. entrance to country stamp in passport Auust 2006
2. Final visa extension expires August 2007
3. Left country, returned two weeks later.
4. Entrance to country stamp in passport Aug 2007
5. Final visa extension expires August 2008

At the end of each year, you must leave the country. To do this you must apply for an exit visa.

August of 2007 I did not do this. I just paid immigration controlk ath the airport a 1500 peso fine and they let me leave. No problem no big deal..nothing to worry about.

This year (today) I thought I'd do it officialy to save myself a 1000 pesos, but at the cost of having my thumb prints taken (which I made every effort to smudge..no idea if i did though)

Anyway, upon being asked to submit my thumb priunts I asked 'why'?

The immediate reply was 'for your security'
To which i responded, 'how does giving my thumb prints provide me with better security"?
Then came the "Are you refusing, because then you wont be able to leave the country"?
Me, "I'm simply asking how does it provide security"?
The immigration official then tried to hand my passport back to me to get rid of me. and mumbled on about if I refused thenI can't go home.. drivel blah drivel..
Me, "I don't mind so much but please answer my question"
IO, "It's a new company policy".
Me, "Oh, really, then why did this not affect me last year"? (He didn't know I had not applied before or paid the IO's at the airport, but I was enjoying myself and wasn't going to tell him)
IO, "You've been here two years and you must give you r thumb print because of the new policy".

Well, this took another twist to the 'argument'. I had not been there two years. I had left the country and officialy only been here one year. So, I had asked how he can explain the difference between two seperate entry/final extension stamps and the need for providing thumb prints in a new policy.

More official claptrap ensued, to which i enquired when did the new policy come into force....

IO, "the year 2000"
Me, "I'm sorry, but a new policy issued over 8 years ago does not give me much confidence in your methods especially when I had no problem last year."

He contiued to rant about me not going back to my own country...little did he know that i have no interest in going there anyway.. but hey..it was funny.

Then he mentioned it was necesary because of terrorism.

I laughed in his face.

Me, "you're telling me that a 'new' policy that is 8 years old was to combat terrorism, which just happens to be a huge scam and nothing more".

there was a stoney silence from the IO.

I then proceeded to inform him that the red cross had just declared bush a war criminal and that a federal judge declared Bush a felon.

To this, he obviously realised he was beaten and began to walk away to get some help.

Fun over, I told him that I had no problem with him doing my thumb prints, but could not understand why he would not answer my questions.

Basically, he couldn't as he had no answers and just kept digging an ever deeper hole for himself.

All that to get an exit stamp that I don't really want, to be able to return to a country that i don't want to go back to... and several unanswered questions from an Immigration Official...

Such fun... What made me giggle even more was the look on everyones faces.. I don't think they've ever seen anyone question an Immigration Officer like that before. Most of their faces looked as though they were expecting me to pull out an AK or something... I guess many sheep don't question the shepherds.

Up until I met this guy, i have had no previous problems with the officials in that office, most of which, including security (of what little there was) seemed to have no idea as to what to say or do with me...

I think they were glad I left...

Good job by trying to keep them on thier toes...

Ive done something similar, but not nearly as persistaint as you were...

Good job... but, it probaly got you on the terror watch list....

I'm sure I could have strung it out a bit further.. but I made my point and got a message out to everyone there that the world's situation is not as it would all seem.

I'm sure they were, and some may still be, talking about it..which I hope they are.

With a bit of luck, somebody there may be doing some research inot the claims i made about Bush.

Might have got lucky there too..

As far as being on the terror watch list, it is of no real major importance to me. I know who and what I am and most police forces today treat everyone as a potential criminal rather than a public citizen.

You deserve that from me too.
You've got guts, that's for sure..
now you better watch your back though...

Reminds me of a nightclub I was frequenting occasionaly when I was last back in the UK.

They were selling draught canned Guinness for 4GBP a can when it clearly had 75p-a-can-pack printed on the side of the can.

I made a few 'what a rip off' comments to the clubs manager.

He replied that he bought them at a cash and carry and could sell them at any price he so desired.

Now, I'm not too up on the particular law behind that but to me, it just was not on.


With revenge in mind, I waited..and watched..
Then spider man 2 came out in the cinemas.

That very same night, this exact same nightclub had the exact same film playing on the main dance floors video screen.

Gotcha, i thought..

Next day I approached the local police beat officer. I made the complaint of what was going on with the clear and obvious piracy of the film and the public displaying of it too.

The officer said "Not my problem, nothing I can do, not our department"

I was stunned. So I questioned him further... he did explain why but I forget now..

But it seems that for the public to report piracy, the police can't do anything, the public have to first report it elsewhere, then those elsewhere report to the police and ask for involvement.

This literally means anyone can have pirated video/music, even a police officer and legally sit there and watch/listen to it and not get in trouble..
It's only whenthis 'official group' decides to step in and actually make a complaint direct to the police that anything will happen.