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Comment by saiya-jin | Hacker News Reader

This, plus also if you change passports because they happen to expire or you lose them, the trail is completely broken. US immigration doesn't have a clue, not from global flight data, not from your IDs. The negative side is you have to lie on ESTA form which sucks, but the whole US approach to Iran is plain stupid and amoral so I didn't mind it.

I went to Iran, it was the most amazing 1-week trip vacation I've ever done (Damavand, Isfahan, Yazd, a bit of Tehran). Amazingly friendly people, everybody spoke english, most signs are dual farsi/english, and the best part - its completely untouched by mass tourism. Feels surreal in current world, in the best way possible.

Even if this trip would ban me for life from US which is practically impossible with current tech, trips like these are 100x worth it. Can't recommend enough.

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The problem with the U.S. and Iran is between the governments and small sections of the population, not the general population. Of course you met friendly and amazing people!

Iran is on my list of places I'd love to go though. I can't imagine how awesome it is. There are so many sites I'd love to visit but I know as an American it's not a good idea to go right now, unfortunately.

> the whole US approach to Iran is plain stupid and amoral so I didn't mind it

What about the Iranian approach to the U.S.? What if Iran stopped development of nuclear weapons and attacking U.S. forces in Iraq and elsewhere, or sponsoring organizations that are destabilizing the Middle East? It's not like they're not also agitating the situation. It's in their best interest because that way they can maintain power.

I'm more and more becoming of the opinion we need to take away all the toys of these governments (U.S., Iran, and others).

> What about the Iranian approach to the U.S.? What if Iran stopped development of nuclear weapons and attacking U.S. forces in Iraq and elsewhere, or sponsoring organizations that are destabilizing the Middle East? It's not like they're not also agitating the situation. It's in their best interest because that way they can maintain power.

It takes threee to tango in this situation

Provocations and aggressions that maybe the US should perhaps stop doing:

- presidential candidates gleefully parodying beach boy songs about bombing Iran. [1]

- spending many 10s of billions of America’s hard earned tax dollars surroinsing Iran with several dozen military bases. [2]

- Assassinating or supporting Israel in assassinating Iranian scientists abroad.[3]

- or assassinating Iranian military leaders [4]

- Organizing violent military coups to replace democratically elected governments with Radical Islamist puppet dictatorships [5], [6]

- Gatekeeping nuclear power by releasing destructive viruses into the world to destroy Iranian Nuclear research labs [7]

1. https://youtu.be/U7s5pT3Rris

2. https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1XmUD73hHQVBbdm8UcI...

3. https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/29/middleeast/iran-mohsen-fa...

4. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Qasem_Solei...

5. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1953_Iranian_coup_d%27état

6. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/cia-assisted-cou...

7. http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2015/ph241/holloway1/

I can list out lots of dumb and bad things that Iran is doing too, but that's besides the point. There are multiple agitators and lots of dirty hands, and that is the point.

Your frame of reference is something something U.S. bad. Others have a frame of reference that is something something Iran bad.

Both governments are bad and both continue to provoke and attack each other. For Iran it's in the current regime's best interest to stay in power. For the U.S. it's multiple other reasons.

Again, we need to take away the toys of these childish governments.

> US immigration doesn't have a clue, not from global flight data

They may not be actively checking, but the information is definitely available for them. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27275163

Some info, yes. Definitely conclusive? I don't think so. It can be ie in form of my name & passport number. Which after changing the passport can suddenly point to number of persons from my area.

Even if it includes my address (which I highly doubt), it will be different than it was 10 years ago.

Eventually, they'll get there. But I am fairly certain today they are not there and they don't bother for average Joe anyway. For me personally, the experience, especially in hindsight for what it offered, was/is well worth this minimal risk.

1 week in Iran sounds like torture. I spent 6 weeks there and felt like it was not nearly enough. Trip of a lifetime.

Not at all, highly enjoyable and very intense. No plans beyond Damavand, I just let it all roll as things and people were coming

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