When They Recently Applied for Visas to Visit Brazil, My Friends Got a Sharp Insight Into The Obstacles Erected Against Foreign Tourists to the U.S.A.

Friends of mine are planning a winter trip to Brazil. When the time came for them to apply for visas to make that journey, they got quite a shock. The procedures for obtaining visas to enter Brazil are so cumbersome that they found themselves having to schedule several days for the task. And why is that? It's because Brazil is retaliating against Americans by imposing the very same obstacles with which we confront a Brazilian planning to visit the U.S.A.
 
Take the matter of cost. A Japanese citizen seeking a Brazilian visa pays $25 for the issuance fee. An Australian pays $35, while a Mexican pays $30. And how much do we Yanks pay? A big $140 -- per person. And why so high? On Brazil's website explaining the procedures, it's explained that the $140 per person "is charged in reciprocity for an identical fee paid by Brazilian citizens who apply for a tourist visa to the U.S." Touché!
 
And that's not all. The $140 fee must be in the form of a U.S. Postal Service Money Order made out to the Consulate General of Brazil. Cash, checks, or credit cards are not accepted, and the would-be tourist must make an additional visit to a U.S. post office to obtain money for the payment.
 
Also required: a blank page in your passport for affixing of the Visa, a passport with at least six months to run, an in-person appearance at the Brazilian consulate between the weekday hours of 10am to noon, a copy of your round-trip air ticket to Brazil... and so on and on. When my friends expressed irritation at these burdensome requirements enacted in retaliation against our own policies, they were told that U.S. consulates require even more of a would-be visitor to the U.S.A. -- and take upwards of 90 days to issue the actual documentation. The Brazilians do it in about five business days.
 
We must eventually pay attention to the obvious fact that U.S. visa requirements are robbing our nation of millions of potential tourists, billions of dollars of additional income, and perhaps a couple of million jobs in the industries serving tourism. The whole matter has become a comedy serving no real purpose, and the entire farce is the clear reason why we do not enjoy the enormous benefits that increased foreign tourism to our nation could bring.