Okay perhaps I was a bit hasty in my reaction to Daryl's email; if as Shari has conveyed Mr. Panahi needed a visa despite what others sources told him (sources I would think would be knowledgeable in this matter), and that because he didn't have one, procedure dictated fingerprinting and photographying, then perhaps Mr. Panahi's position is less clear than I thought. Moreover it may be that he was trying to use his position to get special treatment, though I think his refusal could be attributed to cultural factors (is this how they process internationals in Iran?), including the very sensitive situation that still very much exists between Iran and the US, i.e. Americans distrust of Iranians (and Middle Easterners in general, another misconception, i.e. lumping all Middle Eastern countries together) and Iranians distrust of Americans. That alone it seems to me would suggest a more sensitive handling of such a situation. And, in any case, whether this is the norm or not, whether others have experienced this type of abuse in other countries or not, whether the INS are overworked and underpaid, none of this it seems to me excuses the excessive actions taken, and indeed, if this is INS policy, I think it should be changed (not necessarily the fingerprinting and photographying but the treatment they apparentlyl espouse). I find it a bit appalling that we just take this kind of treatment for granted. Perhaps that is why the country in general seems so apathetic to the extreme use of force or other coercive tactics by law enforcement agencies in other areas, and here I am thinking of minorities in our country, particularly African Americans, the past and current treatment of illegal immigrants, and the recent incidences of abuse to protesters (Seattle, Philadelphia, Costa Rica, etc.; and I am not referring to the rabid radical types). And I would add here that I think at the very least Shari and Daryl are being a bit shortsighted to at least not consider that race was a factor here (would someone from Britain or France have been treated this shabbily?), especially in light of the indiscretions I mentioned above (racial profiling, beating immigrants that cross over, etc.). Further it seems in general that the INS would be a little more sensitive to international guests considering how our own reputation abroad is less than stellar, registering from distrust and distaste to outright disdain. Best, Reagan ---- For past messages, visit the Screen-L Archives: http://bama.ua.edu/archives/screen-l.html