probablynish

> None of the gear in this article is particularly cheap.

The $4 baseball cap isn't bad :) Darn Tough socks are also arguably also pretty cheap over a lifetime of use since the company mails you a free replacement pair if you wear one out

Hi Peter - a followup question if I may. Do you think that this kind of "solo entrepreneur" business model would be a good fit for the E2 visa? In particular, where the individual does not envision employing any other people, nor getting large amounts of VC funding (think more like bootstrapped growth). Or does the E2 visa require more 'scale'?

Thank you!

Hi Peter - I understand that it's possible for recent STEM graduates to be self-employed, or a 1-man C-Corp, for the first year of their post-completion OPT. But in the 2 year STEM extension, it seems that you need a distinct supervisor to fill out I-983.

How do you suggest that a "solo entrepreneur" modify their business structure so that they can continue working on their business projects during the STEM OPT period? I've heard some people say that you need to have US Citizen co-owners of the company who own a majority share; others say that it suffices to have US Citizens on the Board, as this technically gives them the ability to remove you. Is there any such setup that is clearly within the bounds of the STEM OPT program?

Also - are there any other options aside from the STEM OPT extension? In particular, if the individual is from an E2 treaty country, is this the sort of business that could qualify for an E2 visa, or do those businesses have to have the potential to employ US Citizens?

This is not really a fair comparison - even without a congestion toll, people have to pay to drive on a road. They need to buy the car, pay for its maintenance, fill it with gas, pay for insurance, pay annual registration fees to help maintain the roads. Presumably some of the money from buying a train ticket goes into doing the equivalent things: purchasing and maintaining the trains, etc.

Not saying the implicit subsidies/taxes on each mode of transport is equal, but it doesn't seem to be as simple as 'one is paid and the other is free'.

What if some AI generated content is...good?

Oops. Didn't mean to push so strongly then. Sorry grecy!

Depending on your background and circumstances, there are ways to opt out of the race to a greater/lesser degree. Moving to a cheaper city in your country, or a cheaper country altogether, is one of them. Finding a less stressful way of making less money is another.

I don't know you but I hope things work out :)

Ah, I see - same question though, I'm curious which citizenship you eventually acquired without stepping foot in the country?

BTW I spent the last 15 mins enjoying your blog, particularly the entries on Tanzania (I grew up there). Glad you enjoyed your time there :)

> I continued to do so because I was working towards permanent residency in another country.

I'm curious, what country let you work towards permanent residency without you being physically present in it? (Sounds like you were driving around different places at the time)

Most individuals like being able to acquire more goods and services. A lot follows from there

If induced demand for housing were accepted, it might expose how weak an argument it is against road use. 'Lets not build more roads because it allows more people to make journeys they want to make'?

> Every foreign employee getting that tech job is a US citizen from the Midwest not getting it.

This concentration of high paid tech jobs would not exist in the first place if it weren't for the foreigners. Look at the number of tech startups founded by immigrants. More broadly consider that if a different country became the global hub for top tech talent, capital would go there, and that country would become the home of high paid tech salaries.

The main input into a tech company is 'human capital' (hard working, highly intelligent, people) - Americans benefit from the spillover effects of having their country be the global nexus of human capital.

BTW, India is seeing significant upwards pressure on tech salaries and a boom in the number of domestic tech companies and jobs. This is at least partly spurred by restrictive American immigration policies forcing Indians to go back home. Purely economically speaking, I don't think America is the winner here.

I interned at a company that can hire H1Bs. They do so often. My manager and several coworkers were not US citizens. I received the hourly equivalent of more than $78k/yr, with a great working environment. I'm not sure what your comment proves?

There are several companies in my area that can only hire US Citizens, and they all pay lower than the company I interned at.

This kind of issue cannot be analyzed anecdotally.