NationStates Jolt Archive

What classifies a foreigner? Is it simply somebody who was not born in the U.S.A.? Cause then I see some problems.

I have a friend who is, legally, Japanese. His parents, while pregnant with him, went on vacation from America to Japan. His mother went into labor on vacation and he came out Japanese (legally, anyway). He's only lived in Japan for one week, his parents are both American (second or third or maybe even fourth generation), and he popped to America before he could even speak, but he was born in Japan so he can't run for President (Of the U.S.A.)

Is he a foreigner? Or is a foreigner somebody born of non-American parents? Or something else entirely?

I think we need to nail down what a foreigner is before deciding whether or not they can run for U.S. President.

You raised some good points Klonor. Then again, his parents were vacationing in Japan and they are American citizens and he came to America after a week.

That might be the legal equivalent of splitting hairs, but I'd like to see what a legal scholar would have to say about it.

How can he be legally Japanese with both his parents beeing American?

Because he was born in Japan.........

If you're born in America (referring to the U.S.A.) then you're American, regardless of whether or not your parents were American citizens. So why doesn't it work the other way around?

Because he was born in Japan.........

If you're born in America (referring to the U.S.A.) then you're American, regardless of whether or not your parents were American citizens. So why doesn't it work the other way around?
Cause Japan doesn't have that kind of law. Nor do most countires in the world for that matter. Not everyone born in Japan is automaticly Japanese. At least as far as I know.

Actually, no, he's not a citizen of Japan. Nor is he Japanese.

What he has is joint-citizenship. A friend of mine in my private school from Mexico has it. It means you were born in another nation (in her case America) but your parents were citizens of another nation (in her case Mexico.) Just like my father, who was born in Germany when my grandfather was stationed there during the Vietnam War after the draft. So basicly, he has the citizenship of both nations. A true Japanese-American in a way. Of course, I'm not sure if vacationing counts, as my father I believe is fully American, because he was born on American owned territory (military installation.)

According to the American government he is.

We're not talking about Japan here, we're discussing America. It doesn't matter what Japan views him as, since he's not running for President of Japan. America views him as Japanese.

I'm not saying he's not a U.S. citizen. He is. He votes and pays taxes. But in the eyes of the Government he is a person from Japan with U.S. citizenship.

Just like my father, who was born in Germany when my grandfather was stationed there during the Vietnam War after the draft. So basicly, he has the citizenship of both nations.
German citizenship law up until the year 2000 said: The children of a german national get automatically the citizenship (ius sanguinis - right of the blood): Germany doesn´t have ius soli - right of the ground. That means that children born in Germany are not automatically citizens of it. It is only the case if one parent is a german national. That is a different system than the US has. By the way. Israel has the same system as Germany.

Your friend is a U.S. citizen and is eligible to be President.

http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/8/1401.html

see section (c)

Edit -- as least as far as citizenship requirements go...

German citizenship law up until the year 2000 said: The children of a german national get automatically the citizenship (ius sanguinis - right of the blood): Germany doesn´t have ius soli - right of the ground. That means that children born in Germany are not automatically citizens of it. It is only the case if one parent is a german national. That is a different system than the US has. By the way. Israel has the same system as Germany.
As I said towards the end of my post, I do not belive he has citizenship, as he was on technical American soil.

As I said towards the end of my post, I do not belive he has citizenship, as he was on technical American soil.
That is irrelevant according to German law. Even if he had been born in a german hospital and not on a US military base he wouldn´t be german citizen, because in Germany the citizenship depends on the nationality of the parents and not the place of birth.
There was the legal situation till 2000. There were some slight changes to that in 2000 but the principal remained.
So: different system than in the US.

I'm of the opinion that anyone with more than 40% European ancestry is a foreigner and, thus, should not be able to run for President.

I'm of the opinion that anyone with more than 40% European ancestry is a foreigner and, thus, should not be able to run for President.
Why only European ancestry: What is with people from African or Asian ancestry? The United States were founded by people from European ancestry or even immigrants. That is a historic fact. You have to life with that that you wouldn´t exist as a nation without Europe.
Probably you should be forever thankful to us. Well, that at least is the argument of some Americans who demand that all Europeans should be forever thankful to it.
I think the only thing that bounds nations together are commen interests. Thankfullness is not an criteria and shouldn´t be one.

I have a friend who is, legally, Japanese. His parents, while pregnant with him, went on vacation from America to Japan. His mother went into labor on vacation and he came out Japanese (legally, anyway). He's only lived in Japan for one week, his parents are both American (second or third or maybe even fourth generation), and he popped to America before he could even speak, but he was born in Japan so he can't run for President (Of the U.S.A.)

Yeah, I don't buy this at all.

That "Japanese" kid has duel citizen-ship. He's Japanese because he was born there, but is also American because his parents are American. Pay attention in Civics class. :D

Why only European ancestry: What is with people from African or Asian ancestry? The United States were founded by people from European ancestry or even immigrants. That is a historic fact. You have to life with that that you wouldn´t exist as a nation without Europe.
Probably you should be forever thankful to us. Well, that at least is the argument of some Americans who demand that all Europeans should be forever thankful to it.
I think the only thing that bounds nations together are commen interests. Thankfullness is not an criteria and shouldn´t be one.


Yes, I will be sure to always thank the Europeans for the small pox riddled blankets, systematic and deliberate destruction of our hunting grounds, spitting on every treaty between us leading us to a horrible war, for the alcohol that still poisons our elders, and for our economic destruction leading to some of the worst poverty on US soil imagineable.

THANK YOU, EUROPE!

Oh ... as for Africans ... they didn't have much choice in coming here, now did they? So, my thank you also comes from my 1/8th black blood.

I'm of the opinion that anyone with more than 40% European ancestry is a foreigner and, thus, should not be able to run for President.That's funny. So almost nobody in the US could run for presidency, except those of Asian or African origins and native Americans?

Yes, I will be sure to always thank the Europeans for the small pox riddled blankets, systematic and deliberate destruction of our hunting grounds, spitting on every treaty between us leading us to a horrible war, for the alcohol that still poisons our elders, and for our economic destruction leading to some of the worst poverty on US soil imagineable.

THANK YOU, EUROPE!

Oh ... as for Africans ... they didn't have much choice in coming here, now did they? So, my thank you also comes from my 1/8th black blood.Well, those were the Europeans Europe didn't want to have anymore: puritans and similar retards. I apologize for our failure to kill them before letting them cross the Atlantic.

That's funny. So almost nobody in the US could run for presidency, except those of Asian or African origins and native Americans?

Exactly! The Rich White Europeans have had their go and the country's just been getting worse and worse and worse ... to elect another European would just be a collective "44th one's the charm!"

Makes sense to me.

Well, those were the Europeans Europe didn't want to have anymore: puritans and similar retards. I apologize for our failure to kill them before letting them cross the Atlantic.

Oh sure ... forgot to thank them for pawning their trash off on us. :p

Yes, I will be sure to always thank the Europeans for the small pox riddled blankets, systematic and deliberate destruction of our hunting grounds, spitting on every treaty between us leading us to a horrible war, for the alcohol that still poisons our elders, and for our economic destruction leading to some of the worst poverty on US soil imagineable.

THANK YOU, EUROPE!

Oh ... as for Africans ... they didn't have much choice in coming here, now did they? So, my thank you also comes from my 1/8th black blood.


Humans are cruel. If the Native Americans had gotten around to guns and good enough ships to cross the Atlantic ocean before Europeans... Well, they might still have been killed by all the diseases over here that we Europeans have gotten more or less immune to. I don't know. But you get my point.

And let there never be said that the only people we sent to the New World were the people we didn't want ourselves (though they often were more easy to convince to go.) Basically, anyone who wanted to could go over there, as long as they sent back riches to ol' Europe. No questions asked.

Yes, I will be sure to always thank the Europeans for the small pox riddled blankets, systematic and deliberate destruction of our hunting grounds, spitting on every treaty between us leading us to a horrible war, for the alcohol that still poisons our elders, and for our economic destruction leading to some of the worst poverty on US soil imagineable.
THANK YOU, EUROPE!
Oh ... as for Africans ... they didn't have much choice in coming here, now did they? So, my thank you also comes from my 1/8th black blood.
What are you? Native American?
Well: you wouldn´t be here if those "stupid whites" weren´t coming, building up a nation, developing technologies - on both sides of the Atlantic by the way - which led to the world as it is today. And the US and Western Europe - well and Japan - are the leading nations of the world and the US as the biggest of those the leading power.
Every nation has blood on its hands. Some more, some less. But if we speak about historic guilt: Guilt is always individual, never collective.
I don´t accept the demonisation of any ethinc community. Regardless whether it is a demonisation of Whites or Arabs or Africans or whatever. Guilt is always individual and only indivuals can be blamed but never entire groups.

What classifies a foreigner? Is it simply somebody who was not born in the U.S.A.? Cause then I see some problems.

I have a friend who is, legally, Japanese. His parents, while pregnant with him, went on vacation from America to Japan. His mother went into labor on vacation and he came out Japanese (legally, anyway). He's only lived in Japan for one week, his parents are both American (second or third or maybe even fourth generation), and he popped to America before he could even speak, but he was born in Japan so he can't run for President (Of the U.S.A.)

Is he a foreigner? Or is a foreigner somebody born of non-American parents? Or something else entirely?

I think we need to nail down what a foreigner is before deciding whether or not they can run for U.S. President.

Can't beleive no one has pointed this out yet, but your friend isn't 'legally japanese' for one very basic fundamental reason. He's not Japanese. ( Unless your friends parents are ethnically Japanese. )

Yup, Japan is so racist that unless you have direct ethnicity, you will NEVER EVER be a citizen. Best you can hope for is permanent residency.

Oh, and if you're born to a Japanese and a foriegner couple in Japan, your kids have to go to a 'halfbreed' ( excuse the crude term ) school.

Wonderful no?

Kind of puts the talk about foreigners becoming US president in a new light eh?

( sorry if i did miss someone pointing it out. )