NEW YORK – The US Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has launched its first ever paid ad campaign urging roughly 7.9 million green card holders to become naturalized citizens. The $3.5 million multilingual campaign will be used for three years and is part of an $11 million allotment from Congress meant to promote integration of immigrants. This year’s campaign in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese will run in print, radio and digital formats between May 30 and Sept 5, primarily in states with large immigrant populations, such as California, New York, Florida and Texas. ”You’ve got to create that sense of urgency, and until they’ve reached that sense of urgency, they’ll just coast,” Nathan Stiefel, division chief of policy and programs for the Office of Citizenship at USCIS, told the Associated Press…

This blogger asks readers to click upon the relevant hyperlinks noted above to read this article in detail.

For those who are unfamiliar with matters pertaining to American immigration it should be noted that those who enter the United States of America on a CR-1 visa or an IR-1 visa are accorded lawful permanent residence (also colloquially referred to as Green Card status). After spending a specified period of time physically present in the United States it may be possible for an immigrant to naturalize to American citizenship. There are many benefits to be had by undergoing the naturalization process including, but not limited to: the right to vote, the right to a US Passport, as well as the various privileges and/or immunities of citizenship. Those interested in learning if they are eligible for such benefits are encouraged to contact a licensed American attorney.

In somewhat unrelated news, it recently came to this blogger’s attention that the government of Japan is apparently preparing to conduct tests on various nuclear facilities in that country. For further insight it is necessary to quote directly from the Channel News Asia website at ChannelNewsAsia.com:

TOKYO : Japan said Wednesday it will run “stress tests” on all its nuclear reactors in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi accident sparked by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami disaster. The ongoing crisis, the world’s worst atomic accident since Chernobyl 25 years ago, has ignited debate in Japan about the safety of nuclear power, which before the disaster accounted for a third of its electricity needs. The centre-left government ordered a round of initial tests on the country’s other atomic power plants after the disaster, and said the new stress tests aimed to reassure the public that the facilities are safe…

The administration of this blog asks readers to click on the appropriate hyperlinks above to read this article in detail.

For those unfamiliar with the ongoing situation in Japan it should be noted that an Earthquake which occurred in March of this year resulted in a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima facility noted above. This situation had tremendous ramifications for both the Asia-Pacific region and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). As this tragic state of affairs continues to play out it is hoped that positive endeavors can mitigate some of the damage caused by this disaster. No doubt the Japanese citizenry remain in the hearts and minds of conscientious people the world over.

For related information please see: Certificate of Citizenship or Certificate of Naturalization.

The Drudge Report, Infowars, Daily Mail, The Daily Beast, RT, CNN, NHK

As always, readers should take note of the fact that this is a developing situation and therefore reports and updates should be viewed with reasonable skepticism in some instances.

Meanwhile, the Thai government has apparently approved an aid package for the Japanese nation. To quote directly from PeopleDaily.com:

The cabinet on Monday approved a 200 million baht (6.6 million U.S. dollars) budget for providing assistance to victims of the earthquake and subsequent tsunamis that have devastated northeast Japan.

In its weekly meeting, the cabinet resolved to send 10,000 tons of Jasmine rice and 5,000 tons of glutinous rice to Japan, a team of medical personnel and medical supplies.

Those reading this blog are well advised to click on the above hyperlink in order to read this story further. The United States of America also appears to be undertaking efforts to assist in relieving the situation in Japan. To quote directly from the Wall Street Journal’s website WSJ.com:

The U.S. military on Tuesday expanded its earthquake relief efforts in Japan, sending equipment to help firefighting efforts at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear-power plant and deploying troops to assist humanitarian relief and search and rescue efforts.

The administration of this blog encourages readers to click on the above link to read the Wall Street Journal’s article further. The United States and Japan have been close allies in Asia for over 50 years and this crisis may prove to be another example of the close American-Japanese relationship.

Concurrently, in the United States there appears to have been a rush to obtain various forms of iodine supplements as some are noting that compound’s possible usage as a preventative for some ailments which could arise as a result of exposure to some radioactive particles. To quote directly from the NBC Bay Area website NBCBayArea.com:

The fear that a nuclear cloud could float from the shores of Japan to the shores of California has some people making a run on iodine tablets. Pharmacists across California report being flooded with requests…

There appears to have been some disagreement regarding the advisability of iodine as a preventative measure, but the article noted above went on to point out that the United States Surgeon General made comments on this issue:

U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin was in the Bay Area touring a peninsula hospital. NBC Bay Area reporter Damian Trujillo asked her about the run on tablets and Dr. Benjamin said although she wasn’t aware of people stocking up, she did not think that would be an overreaction. She said it was right to be prepared.

Those reading this blog are encouraged to click on any of the links above to read these articles further and to research further information regarding the developing situation in Japan.

To view the official website of the US Embassy in Japan please click HERE.

This advisory is for Japanese and other foreign nationals from the Pacific stranded in the United States due to the earthquakes and tsunami devastation. If you have exceeded or are about to exceed your authorized stay in the U.S. you may be permitted up to an additional 30 days to depart.

Visitors traveling under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP):

• If you are at an airport, contact the U.S. Customs and Border Protection office at the airport
• All others, please visit the local U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office

Visitors traveling under a nonimmigrant visa:

• Visit the local U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office
• Bring your passport, evidence that you are stranded (such as an itinerary for the cancelled flight), and your I-94 departure record

For additional immigration relief options, please visit the Special Situations Web page.

As readers may be aware, a recent earthquake in Japan has resulted in possible serious problems at nuclear facilities and displaced many. The Earthquake itself has been categorized between 8.8 and 9.1 on the Richter scale. This tragedy has had reverberations throughout the globe in the form of tsunamis and some even speculating about the possibility that radiation could be leaking from Japanese reactors at the time of this writing. Concurrently, it has also been reported that a volcano has erupted in southern japan which may result in further problems for both the Japanese governmental authorities as well as the Japanese people.

It is this blogger’s hope that this tragedy does not cause further loss of life and injury while Japanese and international organizations take measures to assist survivors and clean up the fallout. Japan has been a staunch ally of the United States in Asia for many years and there are likely to be economic and political repercussions for both the United States and Japan. Meanwhile, similar things could be said about relations between Thailand and Japan as the recent events are likely to have an impact upon economic and political issues pertaining to Thai-Japanese bilateral relations.

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Service is primarily responsible for adjudicating immigration matters and also implementing some immigration policies. It would appear that in light of the recent Japanese tragedy the Department of Homeland Security and USCIS are taking the humanitarian aspects of the overall situation into consideration as policies are promulgated in an effort to efficiently deal with the repercussions of the recent Earthquake in an American context. The Department of Homeland Security took similar measures when dealing with the aftermath of the Earthquake in Haiti.

For related information please see: visa waiver program.