Tourist barred from entering US over image on phone Wow.... sounds like what I'd expect if I visited North Korea... they threatened him with a $3,200 fine if he didn't give them access to his phone, and a blood and fingerprint sample? Is that normal for tourists? Then they seemed to go ape shit over a JD Vance meme that was saved in his photos. FWIW, and to give both sides of the story, although it's not mentioned in this NY Post article, Homeland Security responded and claims that this was because he admitted in a questionnaire to smoking pot in two other countries where smoking pot is completely legal (it's also legal in like 1/2 of the USA)... which sounds like a nonsense excuse to treat an innocent tourist this way. Mikkelsen claims that immigration officials stopped him and quizzed him “about drug trafficking, terrorist plots, and right-wing extremism,” which he said was “totally without reason.” Next, Mikkelsen said that officials threatened to imprison him or fine him $3,200 if he did not grant them access to his phone, so he did. It was at that point where agents made the discovery of a meme on his device that depicted Vice President JD Vance’s face – altered to make him chubbier, bald and cartoonish. Mikkelsen claims he pleaded with agents that the photos were a joke, but they didn’t want to hear it. Instead, they searched him, forced him to give blood samples and supply his fingerprints.
Is this an good thing or bad thing ? I thought we were encouraged to be more like the intellectual Europeans? Hundreds charged with online ‘speech crimes’ under ‘Orwellian’ crackdown Thought Police: Protecting the People from Prayer ━ The European Conservative https://www.hrla.org.au/uk_man_arrested_for_social_media_meme
Huh ... looks like the post took the story down. I posted a right wing source on purpose to prevent the inevitable whining about bias media. Maybe Trump told them to take it down. Here is a link to an approved site that doesn't cave under political pressure. Tourist Mads Mikkelsen Claims He Was Denied Entry to U.S. Because of Vance Meme on Phone
Maybe. I’m betting there is more to the story. Or not. I saw a tsa agent jump all over a 17 year old kid who had crutches. They ran him through the wringer for zero purpose. I got tired of watching it and called the manager o er. She argued for about five minutes to til I brought up he was minor, had zero adult representation and was being singled out for being dark skinned. She ended the interrogation right there and sent the kid in his way. Granted.. I said that all loudly and while recording her on my phone. Some people are just jerks and power hungry. Others write very slanted stories without all the facts .My best guess is this falls somewhere between the two.
I used that word "rando" once, and it got deleted... Thank you for letting that word/description live in GC again. I just want to know why did that "rando" not simply delete that meme from his phone and then take that trip?
Agree. I mean the guy was taken to the holding cell for some reason and it wasnt the meme. He alleges that was found after his detainment. So there is much more to this story.
He said he told them he had smoked pot in the past in two countries where smoking pot is completely legal. Those questions are asked to determine if someone is a possible drug mule. Normally, just saying you smoked pot in the past doesn’t matter to them, unless you say smoked some this morning or something, and they have reason to think you are still carrying it. Not sure why this escalated, but homeland security confirmed this really did happen, and even released the meme pic I posted here… but said his past pot smoking was the reason for his denial. But I do wonder why NY Post took the story down… could be he lied or there is more to the story…
WHY should you have to delete anything from your phone before traveling to the US? The fourth amendment protects us from unreasonable search and seizures. That applies to all who travel here too.