That would be awesome. Although I have to wonder what the difference would be... More cute anime girls? More tentacles?

You're flat out wrong. Kenya has a better pay-by-cell-phone infrastructure than the US or Italy do, and it's a completely homebrewed solution. Their government even has had to develop a proper legal framework for virtual subcurrencies. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M...

Nice! On the subject of weird immigrant stories, here's one -- when I moved to my current home, I introduced myself to my neighbors. One of them asked me if I was some sort of sex offender. That left me a bit puzzled, but it was an old lady, so I figured she was one of those paranoid old people. Then a couple units down someone asks me that again. I'm like "Oh crap, do I look like a known local crook or something". Turns out that nobody here introduces themselves to their neighbors when they move in, UNLESS they are a sex offender and they are obligated by law to do so. That was really odd.

That's basically what I did :) the guy at first thought I was either doing a horrible job of bribing him, or I was quoting some stoner movie or other, eventually I explained that it's a religious thing and he completely changed attitude / relaxed. Anyway, turns out that they're not allowed to have any homemade food, at least in this area.

It was a bit odd is all. I didn't know American police officers aren't allowed to share apple juice and cookies with people while on duty. The guy said that if he ate any of my food and got sick afterward, I could go to jail.

I don't know why any sane government would want to put me in jail in the first place, they'd have to spend a lot of money fixing holes in walls.

In fairness, if you write stuff in steno shorthand, nobody'll be able to read that either....

I go by "be polite, be efficient, have a plan to kiss everyone you meet". With police, that means sound cooperative, but make it clear you don't really want to share information about anything unless you legally have to. If I'm asked why, my answer is that it's what my patent lawyer told me American custom is. If you do want to talk to the guy, remember to always talk to the person rather than the hat. If you're asked a question, answer it then ask something irrelevant/friendly right after. You want to interact with the quarter-italian guy who misses his grandmother's pesto and actually has a use for your pesto recipe, not with the law enforcement officer. I've actually gotten out of a parking ticket because the meter maid asked me what I did for a living, and I happened to have some prototypes in the car, and went into salesman mode until she told me to go away, her head swimming with way too much information about Android-based robotics.

This is hard to do if you've taken a vow of hospitality. I've had a very surreal conversation about that with a cop one time. On one hand, I specifically said that he did not have my permission to enter my house, on the other, since he knocked on my door, he'd get a meal out of me. Fortunately the guy was Catholic and eventually understood what I was saying or we'd still be there looking at each other funny.

"Undue care and attention"? Is that like when you get pulled over for driving too well? (Seen it happens, apparently it's an indication of a drug run. I was actually transporting some lab equipment that cost more than what I make in a year)

First the no-fly list, then this... Looks like the US judiciary got their heads on straight.

Capt. Vasili Borodin: I will live in Montana. And I will marry a round American woman and raise rabbits, and she will cook them for me. And I will have a pickup truck... maybe even a "recreational vehicle." And drive from state to state. Do they let you do that?

Captain Ramius: I suppose.

Capt. Vasili Borodin: No papers?

Captain Ramius: No papers, state to state.

Capt. Vasili Borodin: Well then, in winter I will live in... Arizona. Actually, I think I will need two wives.

Captain Ramius: Oh, at least.

I like the "Constitution as meta-law" concept.

It does, as the law is written; if they want it not to they'll have to make a new law specifically about that. I would feel safer if the freedom to travel was specifically enumerated in the bill of rights, personally... wonder historically why it wasn't.

Now let's hope that the ruling is respected. What are ways by which it couldn't be?