A somewhat unusual idea for sidestepping U.S. visa practice has been making headlines the past few weeks. Regardless of whether it ends up becoming a reality, the existence of the plan does an excellent job of framing the modern immigration debate.
The program in question is called Blueseed. The brainchild of CEO Max Marty and President Dario Mutabdzija, the idea is a living and office space located in a large boat or barge approximately ten miles off the coast of Northern California.
It would house individuals or corporations of all nationalities and provide the ability to take day trips to California using temporary visas. "Existing visa policies were designed for a different era," Marty told the New York Times.
The cost to live on the Blueseed would start at $1,200 per month. Depositing in escrow a sum sufficient to cover transportation back to ones home country would also be required.
Blueseed residents would have to legally enter the U.S. with a B1 (business) or B2 (tourist) visa, which they could then use to ferry ashore to conduct business. The vessel would be registered with another nation and the residents would be subject to that country's laws.
The cost of the project is expected to range between 15 and 40 million dollars, depending on whether a vessel is rented or purchased.
Blueseed's team points out that the gap between IT graduates in the United States and the volume of job openings requires a startup near Silicon Valley. "Because of the United States' current immigration and regulatory regime," Blueseed's website reads. "Bold and creative entrepreneurs from around the world aren't given the chance to come to Silicon Valley develop technologies that could be creating jobs and propelling the economy forward."
The moral of the story is that our innovative energy is clearly surpassing our government's ability to put forth an adequate immigration system. The fact ideas this off-the-wall are even being contemplated is telling.
We either have to slow our country down to the point where it fits our immigration policy or change the laws to fit our ability to continue to be competitive. One of those two things needs to happen or ideas this ridiculous will continue to pop up.
