Proud to be an American...

... where at least I know I can get back into the country if the Department of Homeland Security is in a good mood.

Last week I got an email from Orbitz (the folks I purchased my NWA plane ticket through) which stated the following:

Subject:Important information regarding your trip to the United States
"... We wanted to make you aware that all international visitors planning to the United States from Visa Waiver Program countries are required by law to apply for travel authorization. ..."

Sorry, what was that again? It's a good thing Orbitz sent me this email, as I happened to be planning to the United States. Still confused? So am I. "Planning to _______ the United States" is the problem here - we're missing the word the entire sentence hinges on. Visit? Depart? Later in the email was a link to a DHS site. Apparently we require all foreigners to register themselves online prior to arrival here, so I determined the email was not only impossible to understand, it was inapplicable.

The second interesting thing in that email is the Visa Waiver Program... That specifically relates to the US government's handling of visitors, not the overall agreement between developed nations that allows travellers to show up unannounced and stay for ninety days without prior approval.  (which is exactly what I plan to be doing in Japan)  What I find curious is if the US requires foreigners to register themselves on a website prior to arrival, aren't we effectively making them apply for a visa?  Sure, it's a simpler, less demanding process, but visa-lite is still a visa, so it isn't exactly waived.  Maybe it's time to change the name and be up front about things - Express Visa Program anyone?