Citizen of The United States of America

Congratulations Sarah! My brother-in-law went through the same lengthy process. It make a native born citizen aware of how precious it really is.

Congrats Sarah with extension to John too. Have a swell time as u climb gradually out of the recesion.

It always takes someone who has become a new citizen to really understand the greatness of the United States.

Bless you for saying just that. It is true, some who have been born here are not every appreciative of their place in the world in which they live..

I am saddened by the way some "actors and activists" in the country embrace villains like Castro, Huge Chavez, and call them "great leaders" of their respective countries..

These are the very people who if they smeared such "great leaders" in their own country, like they did with the Bush administration, would most likely be arrested as political prisoners - or worse..

I don't remember Mr Bush arresting anyone for totally slimming his character. Freedom of speech is our most prized commmodity. It almost seems like they know not where their freedom or their finance comes from.

Also, if you turn on any news cast these days, it seems like our Captialistic system in under assault as well.

I hope that as a new citizen, that the current administration will not produce the type of damage (in the form of taxes - and so called stimulas) that we will bring us back to the days of 70% top marginal tax rates..

This will weaken incentive for sure. Be that as it may, or may not be - welcome to the United States. More then glad that you are here..

Robert C - The Wholesale Products Guy

Congrats to Sarah! John, thank you for sharing this event, and you are right, most Americans take their citizenship for granted.

One of the events I will never forget happened to me while in the U.S. Air Force flying out of Panama. Some of you may remember the mass exodus from Cuba in the early/mid 1990's, right before the situation in Haiti reached a peak. Many of the Cubans seeking asylum were being held at Gitmo waiting to hear what would happen to them. When the Haitians started to hit the water for the U.S., the Cubans were moved to Panama to make room for the Haitians. (I know crazy, but it's the government!)

Once things settled down I was flying missions to return the Cubans back to Gitmo. I had come back from flying one day and a group of Cubans had been separated and put in a small room, they were a little frightened because they didn't know what was going on. After a short while they were told they had been given political asylum in the U.S.!

I'll never forget the cries of joy, hugs and emotional release that happened that moment. These people had risked everything to come to the U.S. Teachers, doctors, engineers, mothers, and fathers. Needless to say, it was a moving experience. Never take for granted the freedom we enjoy.

John,

Congratulations to Sarah and welcome to the USA. I'm a native Californian, and had the pleasure of meeting you and sharing a dinner in Las Vegas with you and the group of merry web 2.0 elders at BlogWorld Expo 2008 ML dinner.

Sarah, enjoy your citzenship, it is well-earned!

Respectfully,

Nicholas Chase
www.twitter.com/nachase

Hello John Chow , I have regularly visits your blog and I am a big fan of your blog. I am very happy that you have become a citizen of The United States. Best wishes for your and your wife Sarah.

Congratulations!

Where do you live? I thought you and your family live in Canada?

I always thought that you need to be living in the US at the time that you become a citizen. Are you living in the US or in Canada?

Thanks, John, for a great post and congratulations to Sarah and to you. It is nice to hear you talk from a place of gratitude and pride and bannish the negativity toward America. Great post, and much appreciated!
~JT

Congratulations to your wife. I received my citizenship in July. Since then I was able to vote for Obama in November and have sat on a jury. I've also traveled to Mexico on vacation without my German passport (I'm German also). Initially I felt naked, but I got over that quickly. Since becoming American, I feel more entitled to complain, yet do that less, since I feel more empowered to act. But maybe that has something to do with Obama and the overwhelm I feel for the after-effects of the Bush years (it's the economy, stupid).

A 13-year wait for a citizenship. Congratulations and salutations to your wife sir. I doubt that anyone else would actually bother being THAT patient in the long run.

Cheers,
Gat

GOD BLESS YOU AND SALLY AND THE REST OF YOUR FAMILY! 88 ;-)

Congrats to your wife John. When my wife received her US Citizenship ( born in Honduras ) a couple years ago, it was an incredible day. Something to be truly proud of, even in these tough US times.

Hope Sarah has already celebrated the event with her friends.

Congrats to Sarah!

I'm still a British citizen living in the States, but I'm getting my dual citizenship soon.

Congrats! :)

I think all of us should be proud to b ecitizens of any country not only US.

By the way is Sarah also has Canadian Citizenship?

Congrats to Sarah.

Freedom is something that cannot be bought with money.It was paid for with blood. Even today, our brave men and women that serve in our armed forces are paying the price.

I am proud to be an American, always have been , always will be.

Congratulations to Sarah. My husband is a naturalized citizen, and at the ceremony I was not sure which I was more proud of--my husband or my country. It was truly a moving experience.

Are you planning to move to the United States? I'm a little confused as to why your wife would become an American citizen, unless that's the plan.

John,

That is wonderful news indeed. Congratulations to you, your wife and family.

I agree with you. Most Americans take their citizenship for granted and it's a shame. In fact, most of us take the opportunities we are afforded for granted as well. That's why there are so many immigrant success stories: folks that come to the US with a dollar to their name and then end up with a million dollar net worth. They see the opportunities; we are blinded by mediocre paychecks. It's terrible.

Congratulations again and safe travels to you!

Joe.

John, congratulations to Sarah for becoming US citizen. It's a great honor I'm sure.

Peter Lee

John, congratulations to Sarah for becoming US citizen. It's a great honor I'm sure.

Peter :ee

Hi John from Point Bob;
This is an island of Canada in the USA.
Close to Vancouver yet rural.
Run your US business from cute cottage here.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0408/feature...

Murray
only-in-canada.com

Congratulations! I am an American and people do take it for granted. I also think that in these times Americans need to pull together and not apart as we have been doing slowly since the late 80's.

It is no longer OK to go to a neighbor and ask to borrow a couple eggs without getting funny looks or you might not even know your neighbors name.

We are a great country lets all pull together and make it great again.

Excellent John congratulations ;)

Congratulations to Sarah! For all of USA's problems, it's still an amazing place to be... and citizenship is a great accomplishment.

Does that make you an American as well? Some Americans are scared of immigrants thinking they'll take their jobs. Personally, I want the smartest people from everywhere to become Americans. They can only raise my personal standard of living.

My sincere congratulations to Sarah!

Congratulations! I remember that when I became a U.S. citizen I knew more about History, Politics, etc, than most American friends I know and 15 years later I STILL know more than most Americans I know. It's amazing how many people take many things for granted.

Thought there were higher titles one could achieve as an American, whether or not you were a civilian or military. Lol what do I know though, I'm just a Canadian.

How come Sarah got her US Citizenship? I'm confused!

This is a great post. For some reason I always thought you hated the US.

Congratulation Sarah! And also you John :-D I hope you have a better live in US :-)

Btw, I'm proud as a citizen of Indonesia. This is the best country to grow and live for me :-)

Welcome to The US john.

This is the event ! I think she really was eager to get it.The dream came true! Hurrah!

We do take it for granted the freedoms we have, although I can't see too much difference between a Canadian and an American other then the stereotypical differences. I'm born/live in America but I do love Canada.

SELAMAT....ITS MEAN " CONGRATULATION "IN INDONESIA.

Disclaimer: The preceding comment was not meant to offend present resident citizens of the United States of America, prospective seekers of American citizenship residing in the United States and around the world, and American citizens living as expatriates around the world that may still have to pay US income taxes on their worldwide income simply because they are Americans.

I offer my congratulations to Sarah and you John as well, and I hate to be the only one that sounds like a spoiler here, but from what I know I have to say that being an American citizen is more of a potential liability than an asset, especially if one doesn't intend to live there.

My reason for saying this is based on the fact that Americans are taxed on ALL of their worldwide income WHETHER THEY ARE RESIDENT IN THE USA OR ABOARD.

Sure, Canada has tax treaty agreements with the US covering things like residency status and double-taxation, but even still, being under the yoke of the Canada Revenue Agency is bad enough...compound that by inviting the Internal Revenue Service will just complicate any future tax planning situation.

My wife is an American citizen and I am Canadian living in Vancouver. I have grown up here and lived here my whole life but i'm not so sure it is still the best place to live. Congrats to Sarah though.

awesome!! congrats to sarah! =)

why did she apply for American citizenship in the first place?

Welcome to the company. I hope you know about the coffee rule. You kill the joe you make some mo' - Terry Tate. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzToNo7A-94

Congrats..!!!

Excellent! Congrats!

Congrats, that's awesome!

By the way John, I don't know if it's just my connection, but I can hardly get that video to load.

:(

That is so awesome! Congratulations Sarah!

I don't know if Vancouver is necessarily the best place in the world to live, John. 5 gang-related shootings there in the last week, as well as multiple deaths. The crime rate also continues to rise. It's also among one of the most expensive cities in Canada to live in, second to Toronto.

Congratulations to Sarah though! Will she hold dual citizenship or just American?