Location: Somewhere in America
The set-up: A Nigerian green card scam gone wrong
The explanation: This story from Ghana News online, describes how a Nigerian couple that migrated to America in search of a better life and a green card.
“First, the man introduces his betrothed wife to his American darling as his sister to pave way for his marriage to the American lady. When the marriage crashed, his wife marries an American to secure the life ticket. So how did it fail? Attempt by a friend to sleep with his pseudo sister (Nigerian wife) foiled the deal. His ‘oyibo wife realized she was a guinea pig and quit the affair.”
The stuff of urban legend, right? Perhaps, although the news article details many more cases which prove the enduring popularity of the green card scam myth.
What is more telling (and more reliable) however, are the official sources who verify these rumors as fact.
ILW.com - a web newsletter for immigration lawyers - recently published its own research on the phenomenon, stating that more than 2.3 million foreign nationals gained lawful permanent resident status by marrying an American between 1998 and 2007. Two notable bullet points:
- An overwhelming percentage of all petitions to bring foreign spouses or fiancés to the United States illegally (or to help them adjust visa status if they are already in the United States on non-immigrant visas) are approved — even in cases where the couple may only have met over the Internet, and may not even share a common language.
- Marriage to an American is the clearest pathway to citizenship for an illegal alien. A substantial number of illegal aliens ordered removed (many of whom have criminal records) later resurface as marriage-based green card applicants.
And the analysis beyond the anecdotes shows that marriage fraud isn’t new, nor is it going away:
“Although the idea of importing foreign “catalog” spouses dates back to the 18th century, the concept of “mail-order brides” didn’t really take off until after the end of the Cold War and then exploded in popularity after the advent of the Internet, which has done more to facilitate cross-cultural relationships than any other event in human history.”
Cherry Blossoms alone claims to have match-made over 100,000 international couples since its inception in 1974; thousands of other services have got in the game since.
There are cultural biases at play, too, namely that foreign femmes are more likely to feel comfortable in traditional homemaker roles. Enter, GoodWife.com to point out that radical feminazis (their words, not mine) have polluted the potential spouse pool which requires men to look abroad. But there’s more to it, argues the ILW: marriage for money, arranged marriages and harbouring terrorists, also factor prominently in these international relationships.
The authors freely admit “there is no way of knowing what percentage of the 300,000-plus spouses who gain green cards each year through marriage to American citizens or LPRs do so based on a fraudulent relationship, but consular officers interviewed for this Backgrounder offered estimates ranging from 5 to 30 percent.”
While a list of action items for immigration officials concludes the piece, ultimately, opines the writer, ““if the American believes the relationship is real, then it is.”
Dear Readers,
(Well, specifically Mr. Abraxas, but also to all you other readers of the Newlybed.)
Have a lovely, snuggly, vasopressin-and-oxytocin-induced hazy day out there.
And in case you missed it, Examiner.com published a comprehensive exploration of Valentine traditions around the globe.
Who knew that in Scotland the first young man or woman encountered by chance on the street or elsewhere will become that individual’s Valentine or at both Japan and Taiwan celebrate with two Valentine Days or Belarussians(pictured right) were so into the pageantry of it all?
Read the full sweep here.
Take indie rock star Ben Lee, for example. Why he’s a brand-spanking-new newlywed, tying the knot last month to actress Ione Skye.
And not only does he gush profusely about her and they’re awesome nuptials in India, but in this article for Spinner he seems pretty blissed out about his new album, too:
“It’s actually more of a song about the universe,” Lee asserts. “It’s a love song to life. I mean, it can be perceived as a love song to a person, but I really wrote it as a love song to the process of existence. Devotion — it’s all the same whether you have devotion to a person or devotion to music or to nature or to God or whatever you call it.”
Let the swooning begin.
They may be one of the farthest outposts of the Anglosphere, but Aussies still have some important insights to share with us North Americans, especially when it comes to matters of love and lust.
After all, they have more sex than we do. And that’s important, because, as this columnist points out, there extra oomph in the bedroom packs as much of a happiness-boost as scads of extra money would.
Writes Justine Davies, “couples who have sex at least four times per month effectively create happiness worth US$50,000 per year. Apparently Australians, on average, have sex about three times a week, so I think it would be safe to assume that most of us are managing eight times per month on average. That means, with our currently lousy exchange rate, we’re generating about $150,000 of happiness, just from sex alone!” Add this to the boost from being happily married - pegged at about $100,000 a year - and well, a regular roll in the hay can really mean you’re rolling in it.
Are you keeping up with the Aussies? What’s your marital happiness valued at?
Ever wonder about bedroom goings-on in more exotic climes, like Durban, South Africa?
A Times article explores all, so consider your curiosity sated.
The most revealing tidbit of the article wasn’t the comically inept couple who had trouble distinguishing sex organs, but that in the South African Indian community of Durban “men’s G-strings are very popular with the younger Indian girls who buy it for their boyfriends,” according to an exhibitor at the city’s annual Sexpo.
Since the story first broke, even more attention is being paid to the sexercise (insert eye-roll here) routines of newlywed French President Sarkozy.
But don’t feel uncomfortable! In case you forgot or were otherwise misled, couples who exercise (together or separately) and have lots of vigorous sex are more likely to stay healthy.
Sure, the most recent advice on the matter might come from The Examiner, but some of the tips and tricks seem to be, well, sensible.
And, earlier in the decade, Forbes provided a thorough, item-by-item list of all the benefits that come from lots of sex:
“A vigorous bout burns some 200 calories–about the same as running 15 minutes on a treadmill or playing a spirited game of squash. The pulse rate, in a person aroused, rises from about 70 beats per minute to 150, the same as that of an athlete putting forth maximum effort.”
Reduced depression and better teeth are a few surprising ones.
And in case you’re the sort who only believes their eyes, you can plenty of photographic proof by checking out still-glowing newlyweds Fergie and Josh doing some outdoor exercising here.
It’s a chick flick convention that a series of hilarious and endearing misunderstandings is usually enough to keep otherwise contented couples apart.
Dig deeper into the world of fiction, however, and you’ll see a long history of war, famine, religious conflicts, border battles, and family feuds working to divide happy unions. If you’re like me, you’ve probably wondered if these stories are flights of fancy or based on real world examples. Two current cases, taken from opposite corners of the globe, seem to indicate the latter.
In Pakistan, a newlywed couple who married without their parents’ consent now live in the Karachi police station to avoid the inevitable honor killing that awaits them should they return to their home village. They’re not alone in their plight either in Karachi, or worldwide. According to UN research cited in the article, about 5,000 people are murdered in honour killings, mostly women from South Asia and the Middle East. [Note: The article does a great job of providing more exposition on honor killings and the rural/urban divide in Pakistan; check it out.]
Closer to home is a peculiar case of cross border guards kiboshing coupledom. Back in 2007, newlyweds Nathaniel Spinney of Oregon and Sarah Rutherford of Nova Scotia accidentally-on-purpose fibbed about their marital status, telling border guards that they were engaged and not yet married. Spinney explains that the impulsive decision was a cover for the fact that he hadn’t applied for a fiance visa for Rutherford and wanted to square away legal filings once the couple arrived back in Oregon. But before they could, authorities uncovered the lie and were less than pleased: Rutherford is now midway through a 5 year re-entry ban into the US. The couple, unable to secure permanent employment for Spinney in Canada, lives on opposite sides of the continent.
