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PaperclipPerfector  6d ago (text post)   23184 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of November 10, 2025

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The best and brightest aren't getting kicked out by a 100k charge. As lovers of subcontinental culture we should be thankful that the happy medium tier remains and is given opportunities to affect systemic reward. It would be a tragedy and an utter betrayal of one's fellow man to abscond to go play zero sum games in the West

The best and brightest aren't getting kicked out by a 100k charge.

Not per se, no. But it will reduce the relative attractiveness of the US as an immigration destination.

Also, the fee is only the tip of the iceberg. It is clear that the Trump administration -- and the people who voted for him -- really get off on kicking foreigners out of the country. Sure, he is unlikely to send random knowledge workers to some El Salvador megaprison without any due process, but most people would prefer not to go to countries which do not want them, all things being equal.

I think a lot depends on the specific migrant and their relative prospects in different places. There are very likely fields where someone who could become a world class researcher in the US can only hope for a meager career outside the states, and Trump can squeeze these people's balls as hard as he wants and all they will say is thank you. In other fields, things are different, and the impact of Trump plus visa costs are enough to make Cambridge more attractive than Harvard. The fact that the universities are generally on Trump's shit list will not help matters, here.

For companies, the calculation is rather similar. The answer to "do we open another research campus in the US or elsewhere?" might be different under Obama and Trump.

A large portion of people get dissuaded from making significant purchases based on a single extra click being required (hence the huge amount of money platforms like Amazon pour into optimizing their process). This effect isn't particularly dependent on intelligence either, smart people also get put off by a significant degree due to needing one more click to buy a product.

Similarly even the fact that there's discussion of a 100k charge going around will be enough to dissuade some of the best and brightest on the margins, let alone actually implementing a policy like that.

Dissuade the best and brightest? Not the employers? It's not like the bestest and brightest are the ones paying directly.

I thihk the best pathway would be for the best and brightest to go back to places of origin and work super hard to develop their own competing paradigms. Every best and brightest who's working on product management or consulting or zero sum finance nonsense is somebody who could be making an active difference in the future. Sadly most lack the personal courage to build a future for themselves.

I thihk the best pathway would be for the best and brightest to go back to places of origin and work super hard to develop their own competing paradigms.

This is going to bite the US in the ass so hard in the next 15-20 years. It's already happening with China etc., see how good Kimi K2 Thinking is as well as GLM-4.6 etc.

  • -14

China has the benefit of a capable, talented hardworking base with motivations beyond their own immediate paycheck. Unfortunately other potential players are needful of the same dedication and commitment.

If the USA keeps importing the "best and the brightest" it will eventually turn into the country you are so desperate to run away from in order to get to the USA.

Or I am mistaking you for some other Indian commentator who constantly goes on about how they want to get to the USA for the big bucks and freedom of opportunity, are instead stuck in the UK which doesn't pay half as well, and there's a snowball in Hell's chance you'll go back to your native country because it's too poor and full of not-the-best-and-brightest?

Nah, I'm happy here in the UK, I'm in one of the few industries where the pay disparity between the US and UK is tolerable (plus the pay is high enough anyways). Since the Trump election (and even for a while before then) I've found the charms of Old Blighty (minus the people) growing on me.

You are, actually. Burdensome has a different pattern (and iirc is Pakistani, not Indian).

Ah, right. I knew someone was complaining about being Indian and not being let into the USA, but I didn't make any particular notes of user names.

Sure, sure, we'll totally regret it. Just stay out.

You and @HereAndGone both - stop taking personal shots at people however annoying you may find them.

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