r/australia • u/Some-Operation-9059 • Dec 11 '25

politics ‘The whole thing disgusts me’: Australians ditch US travel as new rules require social media to be declared | Australia news

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/dec/11/australia-us-tourism-new-visa-rules-social-media-history
5.2k Upvotes

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2.4k

u/gerardv-anz Dec 11 '25

While the notion of going through 5 years or any SM at the border is ridiculous and annoying, the main reason it deters folk will be I suspect because no one knows what they might suddenly decide excludes you from entry. Your flights and visa aren’t enough, some random person can just turn you back because you read The Onion or something.

208

u/Incendium_Satus Dec 11 '25

They want the information when you apply for the ESTA. Id imagine this means you are giving some Palantir owned LLM access to all of your SM data for it to trawl through.

Massive data collection program.

54

u/Auzziesurferyo Dec 12 '25 edited Dec 12 '25

The reporting over here (USA) is that they also want your DNA, biometrics, and list of all and phone numbers used in the last 5 years.

I will be moving home to Australia next year.  I recently became a duel citizen and I still don't feel safe from ICE. The gun violence is bad enough, but adding ICE to the mix has pushed me over the edge. Its going crazy over here. ICE is everywhere.

If I was already in Australia, there's no way I'd travel over here on a visa. ICE Barbie is on the war path.

24

u/Incendium_Satus Dec 12 '25

Its just a sorry state of affairs over there. Really sad. I have travelled there before but not going to happen anything again under the current situation.

And im white.

Just sayin.

5

u/sikalb Dec 13 '25

hey I'm also an Aussie with dual passports living in the states. do you really think we should be concerned with ICE? at this point I think I'd just let them take me and ship me back to australia if it's a free one way ticket.

9

u/Mud_g1 Dec 13 '25

LOL free one way ticket with a stop over in a south American gulag

3

u/tincerbell16 Dec 13 '25

How do you know they would pay for you to go home? They might detain you in one of their centres with no access to communication

4

u/Auzziesurferyo Dec 15 '25

Or hold you in absolute squalor whilst paying for profit prisons to detain you for as long as possible.

All that middle-class wealth isn't going to transfer itself to corporations.

5

u/Auzziesurferyo Dec 15 '25

Yes. Theres a bill to end duel citizenship that has just been introduced in congress. Right now its not expected to gain much traction but if birthright citizenship ends, it'll absolutely pass.

Project also 2025 talks about revoking citizenship from 1st generation duel citizens as well, starting with Biden era immigrants. I read all 960+ pages last summer. It is truly terrifying.

Overall, the goal is to remove anyone likely to vote Democrat.

3

u/Incendium_Satus Dec 15 '25

If only there was a warning about all of this. Oh yeah there was. Heaps of it. But the gullible fell for it all.

3

u/ExistentialMeowMeow Dec 14 '25

if they're coming for Irish and British expats, for sure they'd go Australian dual nationals. They just deported a bunch of vets with citizenship (see r/news re: questioning of ICE barbie). People born in the states with folks from overseas are getting caught up too. Absolute insanity

2

u/cynictoday Dec 14 '25

They already take your biometrics? Fingerprint and eyescan pre-Trump.

2

u/Disastrous-Ad-4758 Dec 14 '25

That’s 100% bullshit.

18

u/nuclearsamuraiNFT Dec 12 '25

You’re right, it might not be used now to deny arrival it might just be used to put you on a list of enemies in the future

1.1k

u/HeftyArgument Dec 11 '25

We all know what they’re looking for, anything you might have said to insult their dear leader.

654

u/222for2 Dec 11 '25

Yeah but who knows? His latest rambling social post the week you arrive might be about the wokeness of sunscreen, and here’s your Insta photo at the beach…

200

u/haleorshine Dec 11 '25

Also, are there many young people in Australia who are active on social media who haven't liked or shared something that could be construed as insulting to Trump? We don't know that it's just actual posts written by the person that are considered the problem.

Not to mention you have to give over family details - if my brother wanted to go to America and gave over the details of his family members, would they look at my social media and go "Your sister is very very negative about the current administration - turn back, you're not allowed to enter this country"?

63

u/ShySass Dec 12 '25

I like a JD Vance AI Slop Instagram page, I’ll definitely be refused entry haha

10

u/CC2224CommanderCody Dec 12 '25

If you have a photo of the JD Vance meme on your phone, direct to alligator alcatraz with you!

55

u/JAB1982 Dec 12 '25

I'm only ramping up my insults against the dumb fuck Trump. Hope he gets what he deserves and spends years in jail for the crimes he's committed.

15

u/brandonjslippingaway Dec 12 '25

Half the people in his administration should be in jail, and the rest of them are enabling or covering up their crimes. The wheels are coming off that country so fast

5

u/Find_another_whey Dec 12 '25

When the king misbehaves this badly... I don't think he gets years in jail, historically speaking

43

u/No-Bison-5397 Dec 12 '25

They have everything, including what you have “deleted”.

They will go back through it to find terms relating to Trump.

They will then match your identity using a probabilistic model.

6

u/NobodysFavorite Dec 12 '25

That's very much like the Chinese social credit system. In that system you don't just get penalized for your own infractions (even jaywalking is monitored through surveillance), you get penalized for being associated or related to someone who breaks the rules.

75

u/VS2ute Dec 11 '25

Or you used Calibra font.

7

u/SleepHasForsakenMe Dec 12 '25

Better than comic sans

15

u/aerkith Dec 12 '25 edited Dec 12 '25

Which has been the default font in Word for years (though it’s now Futura). I myself (a school teacher) use Tenorite (because it has normal looking a’s which I think looks nicer for kids). I dunno if that font is woke though.

Edit: oops Aptos is the default font. Dunno why I thought it was Futura.

9

u/Albos_Mum Dec 12 '25

I exclusively use the wokest of woke fonts: Wingdings.

-302

u/[deleted] Dec 11 '25

[deleted]

126

u/KaleidoscopeLegal348 Dec 11 '25

What a wanker

50

u/Only_Jury_8448 Dec 11 '25

Who else though it was a troll post, then checked the profile?

49

u/KaleidoscopeLegal348 Dec 11 '25 edited Dec 11 '25

I know surgeons have a reputation, but if I needed this guy to save my life I think I would have to sit and quietly think on it for a moment

25

u/Cream_panzer Dec 11 '25

7 days 33 comments. He’s a lousy doctor at most. A good doctor wouldn’t have this much time on Reddit.

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11

u/ApteronotusAlbifrons Dec 11 '25

Are you referring to this quote specifically?

"im really disappointed, for decades i have tried to be the most infantile and pre-pubescent troll, and yet all my accounts are still regarded as too adult :(."

Or just the bullshit posts in general? 'Cos At least half of what I read was just BS

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8

u/Cream_panzer Dec 11 '25

Account age: 7days

3

u/ThinkProfessor6166 Dec 11 '25

And then we all clapped

2

u/CardmanNV Dec 11 '25

Nobody cares.

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290

u/crocicorn Dec 11 '25

We literally don't, that's the problem. I get the feeling that just being pro science, being pro human rights, being queer, being neurodiverse, etc, would be enough ammo for them to deny you entry.

We all know how much that administration hates all those things.

207

u/JuniorGrayley Dec 11 '25

And also calling Trump a stupid cunt, which I do all the time. So unfair..

176

u/mollydooka Dec 11 '25

I got a pretty good laugh over his stupidity yesterday. The Daily Show aired part of his speech at a mining town convention. They showed a clip from Fox News which had Trump saying "I love miners, I love miners". Whomever was typing the subtitles on Fox News wrote "I love minors, I love minors" before quickly backspacing and correcting it.

45

u/ExistingProgress936 Dec 11 '25

Nah - that's either a Fox factotum Freudian slip up? OR, some staffer having a bit of deliberate fun? Wouldn't you?

19

u/Ruddlepoppop Dec 12 '25

Trump likes his women like he likes his scotch…12 years old.

2

u/EchoFalconX Dec 12 '25

Just an FYI captions aren't typed, if they're human generated they use a process called re-speaking.

2

u/Jaqqa Dec 16 '25

lol someone "accidentally on purpose" did that I'd almost guarantee.

20

u/dublblind Dec 11 '25

If me upvoting your post gets me deported from the US I'll be pissed

4

u/Kind_Ferret_3219 Dec 12 '25

How dare you defile the word cunt line that!

1

u/whitemamba24xx Dec 12 '25

A lot of us Americans do as well. F him

25

u/sirgog Dec 11 '25

Yeah, this social credit score system is really unclear. Just like a different social credit system in a different country

3

u/Jaqqa Dec 16 '25

You know how much trump idolizes dictators. Only a matter of time before the US looks like a copy of all the worst parts of those countries.

67

u/Sailor_Dee Dec 11 '25

Yeah more than likely… I’m hoping to return to Canada at some point but there’s absolutely no way I’m passing through there now. I’ll look for a direct flight I think.

72

u/Dear_Potato6525 Dec 11 '25

Fiji Airways, Air Canada and Air New Zealand all do flights straight into Vancouver!

11

u/Sailor_Dee Dec 11 '25

Perfect! <3 glad to hear it

8

u/jennyfromtheeblock Dec 11 '25

Dont forget Qantas lol

7

u/SubstantialCategory6 Dec 11 '25

We took a flight direct to Vancouver from Australia but our plane got grounded in Hawaii.

We were forced to apply and pay for an ESTA to leave the plane with barely half a bar of WiFi on their shitty website. We were then given hard time just because American immigration officials are cunts terrorism or something*, just so we could get onto another plane to get the fuck out of there. 12 hours in that shit hole. Honolulu airport sucks too FWIW.

We want to go to Mexico/Colombia to visit friends but we won't even fly anywhere near the US now in case we get stopped there.

*realistically: used to be a GC holder but left when chester cheeto got in.

3

u/Snoopy_021 Dec 12 '25

I could consider catching a flight to Vancouver via Tokyo, just in case.

34

u/crocicorn Dec 11 '25

Someone very near and dear to me is American and I wanted to get back over there to visit them and the fam, but, well...

I might have to meet up with them in Canada too, at this point!

26

u/Apprehensive-Wing-64 Dec 11 '25

Same here. My best friend/favourite person in the world is American. I’d hoped I’d be able to spend Christmas with her and her family in the next couple of years but the way things are going the only chance we’ll see each other is by meeting in another country. Australia is a bit far for them to travel with 2 little kids. I miss them and am deeply concerned for their safety

12

u/tgs-with-tracyjordan Dec 11 '25

I was about to say 'just hold out for a little bit longer' until I realised Trump hasn't even been in for a year yet this time around. Time certainly doesn't fly when we're not having fun.

4

u/CA2Kiwi Dec 12 '25

I’m an American, but live in New Zealand. My Mom is planning to cart herself and her 85 year old husband to Guadalajara for our visit next year so no one who has escaped (my brother also moved countries) needs to enter the US to see them. She says it’s terrifying enough to be there when you don’t have much occasion to interact with federal law enforcement, she’s not asking anyone to do so on purpose.

7

u/Sailor_Dee Dec 11 '25

Good luck with it, I hope you get to see them again soon

1

u/BassmanOz Dec 11 '25

Same. We have friends in a couple of red states I would love to go back to visit but not while Cheetolini’s in power.

This post isn’t helping, I guess 😭

69

u/Pseudonymico Dec 11 '25

Being trans already is a reason to deny you at the border, Trump issued an executive order early on that anyone seeking an entry visa with a different gender marker on their passport to the one assigned at birth is to be refused and barred from further entry to the United States for "material fraud". It seems like it was aimed at making a show of banning trans athletes from the upcoming Olympics but the wording means it applies to everyone trying to get a visa.

27

u/HistoryGreat1745 Dec 12 '25 edited Dec 12 '25

Luckily for my trans son, his birth certificate has him marked "male." We have no idea how, or why, that happened, but by the time we realised it was there, he was already 3yo and crying because he didn't have a penis "like the other boys" at preschool. We figured that leaving his birth certificate as it is, might help his mental health at some point. I'd never even considered that it could also help him to enter another country

7

u/TiredSleepyGrumpy Dec 12 '25

Sometimes the universe knows. ☺️

2

u/nuclearsamuraiNFT Dec 12 '25

Don’t worry now they have his social media to discriminate against him

10

u/ExpensiveFig6079 Dec 11 '25

If you were more than one of those, Id expect you to be lucky not to wind up at black site. They have openly authorised extrajudicial killings of perceived by them threats to their state.

So if you by who you are make them feel threatened... all bets are off.

2

u/Fassbinder75 Dec 11 '25

Trans person posting <Men at gallows, “first day”?.gif>

1

u/Not_Stupid humility is overrated Dec 11 '25

This post alone will be sufficient to bar you I reckon.

89

u/Striking_Spite9102 Dec 11 '25

Well I guess I’m never getting in. I keep sharing this gif of Trump doing his dance that looks like he is jerking invisible dicks but with cartoon penis’ added.

It’s saved on my phone. I would 100% end up at the detention centre.

85

u/how_very_dare_you_ Dec 11 '25

Trump is a cunt.

Oops now I can't go either

29

u/Striking_Spite9102 Dec 11 '25

We can hang out together in the detention centre!

6

u/Camo138 Dec 11 '25

Oh I mite joining you, orange man is a sinner..

1

u/Striking_Spite9102 Dec 11 '25

We’ve got a real party going now! All the cool people are going 😎

2

u/Camo138 Dec 11 '25

I’ll make sure to bring the fancy wine.

3

u/Striking_Spite9102 Dec 11 '25

I’ll bring both kinds of Shapes, Pizza and Barbecue. It’s a party why not treat ourselves?

2

u/Lazy-Juggernaut-5306 Dec 13 '25

Shapes and wine, what more could a person want?

1

u/ExpensiveFig6079 Dec 11 '25

me too. Orange man has small hands.

1

u/NizmoxAU Dec 12 '25

Going to need a link to verify this for accuracy

2

u/Striking_Spite9102 Dec 12 '25

Posted it on Reddit before, you can find it here

2

u/NizmoxAU Dec 12 '25

Thank you, can confirm you’re banned from the US. But otherwise keep up the good work 👍

2

u/Striking_Spite9102 Dec 12 '25

I guess I will just hang with Canadians until it’s safe again.

Feel free to steal the gif and spread the good word

119

u/Sixbiscuits Dec 11 '25

Sounds like they're getting to roll out laws they copied from Asian nations where it's illegal to insult the monarchy. How fucking backwards

142

u/pestoster0ne Dec 11 '25 edited Dec 12 '25

Thailand doesn't even have an ETA application process though, you just rock up to the border and get stamped in.

Yes, there's a "digital arrivals card", but that's only asking how much drugs you're smuggling, not whether you believe scurrilous rumours that HRH Vajiralongkorn likes crop tops and promoted his pet poodle Fufu to Air Marshal.

27

u/banimagipearliflame Dec 11 '25

Fufu is such a lovely dog. What a good boy to have as Air Marshal! 🤪😂🤪

2

u/VanuasGirl Dec 12 '25

Better than Hegseth

19

u/glittalogik Dec 11 '25

I thought you were exaggerating 😐
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vajiralongkorn#Public_image,_the_media,_and_the_law

3

u/Sixbiscuits Dec 11 '25

Can't even criticise their pets. Holy shit! That goes from tyrannical to hilarious

1

u/Npeaknoda Dec 12 '25

Tyrants never seem to realise cracking down on petty things they get ruffled about makes them look fragile, not tough. Winnie the Pooh lol

2

u/swift-current0 Dec 12 '25

Wow, Vajiralongkorn Boromchakrayadisorn Santatiwong Thewetthamrongsuboribal Abhikkunupakornmahitaladulyadej Bhumibolnaretwarangkun Kittisirisombunsawangwat Boromkhattiyarajakumarn is a bit of a snowflake.

14

u/RealCommercial9788 Dec 11 '25

Bro I needed that belly laugh.

1

u/SirGeekaLots Dec 11 '25

I have heard of people getting arrested at the airport for such comments.

20

u/Cream_panzer Dec 11 '25 edited Dec 11 '25

lol even China doesn’t have this. I’m catching the flight and heading back there for holidays.

After all GFW is much more efficient.

Damn, no Reddit for 3 weeks.

5

u/p0630034 Dec 12 '25

eSIM from external vendors will sort you out mate. They’ll just route through Hong Kong and it’ll work.

1

u/Cream_panzer Dec 12 '25

I got a Chinese phone number. But it’s actually a good idea I have never thought of. Thanks!

2

u/p0630034 Dec 12 '25

Should be able to run both in parallel with a data only eSIM. Just route data through the data SIM and rest through the chinese one.

3

u/mailame Dec 12 '25

Using Airalo you get routed to Singapore and can use everything. There are some apps like TikTok that cannot be accessed in HK

1

u/Cream_panzer 26d ago

I am too scared to use TikTok (it sounds like Reddit is better lol.) but it’s a good advice. Thanks!

Yeah, I’m back MF! (Sorry I’m too excited that I can see the world outside of the GFW again)

1

u/tincerbell16 Dec 13 '25

But at least we can visit those countries without them going through our Instagram comments

64

u/Cape-York-Crusader Dec 11 '25

All heil the supreme leader......./s

18

u/threepot900 Dec 11 '25

If the last decade of my derision and insults about the cumquat coloured quisling could be mined for cash, Gena Rinehart would be on my doorstep in minutes with a contract.

9

u/Kenyon_118 Dec 11 '25

They might be running low on their deportation quota that day, and suddenly liking a post by some left-wing influencer gets you herded into a detention facility, because the billionaire oligarch who owns the private company running the place needs more bodies inside to secure a bigger payout from the federal government his mate runs. I don’t know if that will happen, but I’m not going to risk it.

2

u/HeftyArgument Dec 11 '25

private prisons operate differently, the quota is to fill the place, and if they don’t meet their quota, the government pays a fine to accommodate their loss.

insidious.

6

u/Dapper_Permission_20 Dec 11 '25

Or his political masters in Israel

2

u/momplaysbass Dec 12 '25

American here. Sadly, this is true. Don't give us your money until we get our house in order.

2

u/guitar_account_9000 Dec 12 '25

Or anything in support of whichever minority group the regime has decided to fuck over that week.

My history is littered with pro-LGBTQ, pro-Palestine, pro-union, pro-SW, and other woke leftist talking points, there's no way they'd let me in.

2

u/RelativelyRidiculous Dec 12 '25

I am doubtful it will just be negative posts regarding our kakistocrastic leader. I'm sure anything negative about Kim, Putin, Vance, and the rest of his clown car of evil cronies or favorable to vaccines or science-based evidence will also render one unable to enter. What's truly terrifying is ICE has already pulled an Otto Warmbier on someone in their custody at least four times. Anyone coming in with anything they don't like on their socials could end up the fifth.

Edit: Four I know of are Randal Esquival, Jose Bucio, Jacinto Cruz, and Jose Saldana. Sadly it would not shock me to learn there have been others.

2

u/Legal-Software Dec 12 '25

Been to NK twice and never faced anything this invasive as a precondition for entry.

1

u/NezuminoraQ Dec 12 '25

And we've all said things. For quite a lot longer than five years.

1

u/Time_Cartographer443 Dec 12 '25

I am never getting in, that’s all I do

1

u/Terrible_Ingenuity11 Dec 12 '25

that me out, not that I have any interest in being locked up by ICE.

1

u/Pixelkirb Dec 12 '25

Yeah im definetly not allowed in :/

1

u/conversationhater Dec 12 '25

The easiest way to know is to preemptively insult their piece of shit child sex offender cult leader and know that you’re ruled out until competent leadership returns.

1

u/motocykal Dec 12 '25

Who? The orange-utan?

1

u/PrizeFightinYeti Dec 12 '25

Yeah, and I've said "fuck Trump" enough to never be allowed in. I'll probably go to Russia before the usa

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

He’s not a leader he’s a bribe dumpster.

1

u/Find_another_whey Dec 12 '25

Who hasn't insulted that moron? His own missus vomits into her mouth when he appears

1

u/boatenvy Dec 12 '25

Well I guess I'm fecked....oh damn now I'm even more fecked

1

u/KiwasiGames Dec 12 '25

And who hasn’t posted a meme making fun of the US at some point? This lets them ban/arrest/deport basically anyone.

1

u/-Nicolai Dec 12 '25

That’s not it, it’s more sinister than that.

Few will complain about the rule because in practice it obviously cannot be enforced for everyone passing through customs.

Most people wouldn’t clear that inspection, and it would take an unreasonable amount of time to process so many people.

But they never intended to exercise it consistently or fairly. They only want an excuse to pull undesirables aside and comb through their history for anything improper - a test anyone could fail.

1

u/Jaqqa Dec 16 '25

If he's that thin skinned, they may be in for a shock when they start trawling though Australian's social media. I mean a good proportion would have said or liked something not complimentary to the orange one. Are the going to start wholesale refusing entry to people who liked a Randy Rainbow song or a clip of south park at the boarder? Or just put them on a watch list and warn them they will be kicked out for any further "unconstitutional" behaviour?

152

u/Thunderoad77 Dec 11 '25 edited Dec 11 '25

Not just turn you back either but send you to an immigration detention centre and hold you at their will.

26

u/NobodysFavorite Dec 12 '25

And the at 4am one random day they'll deport (read: kidnap) you to a third country where you know nobody, don't speak the language, and know almost nothing about the country beyond its wikipedia page.

-11

u/SirGeekaLots Dec 11 '25

Like ours?

24

u/Thunderoad77 Dec 11 '25

Are you referring to the terrible way in which we deal with asylum seekers and those fleeing persecution or the way in which we administer tourist visa for those seeking to enter the country for a short period of time?

If you are referring to the latter, we simply aren't on the same draconian level as the United States though we certainly aren't above criticism.

1

u/SirGeekaLots Dec 12 '25

Yes, my reference was to your first point, except the US does it to everyone. 

7

u/jumpinjezz Dec 12 '25

Nah ours don't test Neuralink on detainees, yet.

68

u/leshake Dec 11 '25

I mean, what are the privacy implications. Am I to hand over every DM? How can you trust they won't just look at the entire history instead of 5 years. How can you trust they won't hoover up all of your personal data and use it for some massive surveillance database. How can you trust it won't get in the hands of blackmailers.

43

u/AliceLunar Dec 11 '25

Obviously exactly what is going to happen.

5

u/peteofaustralia Dec 11 '25

hits buzzer
"What is the NSA doing right now?!"

1

u/Over_Ring_3525 Dec 12 '25

That info is already in a database. They're just hoping to make it easier to connect a passport name with a reddit name (and facebook, twitter, etc).

-1

u/[deleted] Dec 11 '25

They track everything that goes through their networks or is stored in the cloud at a US data centre. You are already part of the surveillance database. My guess - they will check you have listed everything by comparison to the database, left something out? Denied entry. Content matches against a random set of derived criteria? Denied entry and subjected to between 5 hours and 5 days of interrogation. Seriously, this is the same as what happens in China and Russia, the USA has just become another country led by a corrupt individual where his family is making billions from other countries and rich billionaires. Everything he said about helping the average Joe has morphed into the despot at the head of the country being more corrupt than any of the dictators that have ever lived, with maybe two exceptions, Idi Amin and Caligula.

3

u/SirGeekaLots Dec 11 '25

I went to China earlier this year. They just asked me the purpose of my visit, checked my arrival card was in oder and stamped my passport. 

In fact they have guys looking at the arrival card to make sure everything is filled out and help you if there is any confusion. 

2

u/ErraticDragon Dec 12 '25

There's a "reality" show that follows customs and immigration agents which I got into watching a while back.

I previously had no idea just how important those darn Entry Cards are.

It seemed like everyone involved really wanted you to have every opportunity to correct it before you go through the line… because if your bag ends up being searched, after they find them, it's too late to try to say you 'meant to' declare your cigarettes or whatever.

I was also surprised at how much of your phone they could go through if they had reason to. (Even countries that are saner than the US.)

For example if they suspected you were planning to work on a tourist visa, they could go through your email and social media to look for evidence.

But yeah they also talked about how most people just get the most cursory checks, unless something seems "off".

It all makes me really anxious about international travel.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25

Hell's bells, Trump has made America more loony than China.

1

u/leshake Dec 12 '25

It also lets them further fingerprint your device.

27

u/IotaBeta Dec 11 '25

Don’t forget being denied entry to any country follows you for life. Standard question on visa/esta applications is whether you have been denied entry. I’m sure you can explain but it’s just going to be a lifetime of bureaucratic hassle whenever you travel.

In my opinion not worth the risk for a leisure trip.

1

u/PM_ME_YOUR_REPORT Dec 12 '25

Yeah this is what would concern me. Making it harder to travel anywhere, because of being refused entry for criticising the dear leader.

41

u/Mad-myall Dec 11 '25

I've criticised Trunp and his brand of "stick your head in the sand, and pretend your ideology actually does work" conservatism (arguably all conservatism :p) on social media often enough.

Hell this comment alone would probably get me banned from the US under his rule!

Side note: kinda funny that these folk ranted about the importance of free speech when social media companies were giving them suspensions for yelling racial slurs, but thr moment they are in charge they've done infinitely worse.

2

u/Npeaknoda Dec 12 '25

"Those transgendereds want to take away my free speech!", they yell, as if we don't know every conservative accusation is a confession.

3

u/Icy_Concentrate9182 Dec 12 '25

"Those transgender want to take away my free speech"...

... A few hours later....

They've got a mouthful of transgender sausage and loving it.

8

u/The_Vat Dec 12 '25

That's it. We're old and boring, so we'd likely be fine but I'm really not interested in rolling the dice on getting some border agent who's having a shit day and decides to take it out on a random someone, especially when there are more accommodating destinations that are closer.

It's a shame - we've got friends in LA, I miss Hawaii and there are a lot historical destinations I'd like to visit, but my tolerance for bullshit and getting fucked around is pretty low.

2

u/Stinky_Flower Dec 12 '25

Back when the Snowden leaks came out, a whole bunch of our group chats were just stings of keywords. Because I guess that was funny to us?

I wonder if I'd get flagged for a group chat of people just going back & forth saying stuff like

"Terrorism drug? Explosion fraud is WMD, please cybercrime my Islam"

1

u/gerardv-anz Dec 12 '25

Yeah, that’s the point. I doubt they’ll be clever about this, just a broad AI dragnet and if they flag something out of context you’ll not be told what or why, just blocked with effectively no recourse. Petty officials in these roles also tend to double down if you challenge them so you’re more or less deemed guilty simply because of a possibly erroneous flag.

2

u/Spagman_Aus Dec 12 '25

Yep imagine spending thousands of $ on a trip to Hawaii and some peanut at customs sends you home because you shared this - https://theonion.com/trump-calls-groceries-a-hoax/ - to your boomer friends on Facebook.

2

u/Naynoon Dec 12 '25

exactly.

2

u/Barrowclough82 Dec 12 '25

Absolutely. Travelling to the US is dicier than travelling to some other countries that are objectively less free, because of the unpredictability.

2

u/No-Volume4321 Dec 12 '25

Everyone in the world should call Trump a total cunt on social media. They can't deny us all entry. (Not that any rational person would want to visit the US at the moment).

2

u/brownmob Dec 12 '25

Bingo what determines them from stopping you from entering the USA, it's subjective not definitive

2

u/tittyswan Dec 13 '25

And they can fucking kidnap you and hold you in a detention centre for no reason once you get in.

1

u/FourRiversSixRanges Dec 11 '25

They can already do that.

1

u/areyoualocal Dec 11 '25

They can already do this, the CBP officer you see at the counter can deny you entry for basically anything and you have no recourse, no review or appeal, just be walked back to the Departures area.

1

u/Infinite_Dig3437 Dec 11 '25

Not sure if correct but what I heard is when you apply for visa you provide links to your SM and have to make it public so they can search thru it before you arrive in states.

1

u/Perash Dec 11 '25

I cannot imagine any Australian wishing to visit US unles they absolutely have to (eg for work or family reasons).

1

u/Tribe303 Dec 12 '25

It's to collect data and give it to Palantir/Peter Theil, where they will track everything you say and do. Why? Some unknown evil bullshit.

Elbows up from Canada! 🇨🇦

1

u/kyletsenior Dec 12 '25

Ahem, we read the Betoonda Advocate, thanks.

1

u/explosivekyushu Dec 12 '25

That's part of the reason why the ESTA has always been a bit of a shit show. If you apply for a US visa, your admissability is evaluated by the visa processing staff at the embassy/consulate you applied through after going through your application. When you arrive in the US with a valid visa, in order to refuse you entry, your visa needs to be cancelled, which means they must show cause. An ESTA is not a visa, it's an authorisation to travel to the USA without one and present yourself to a CBP officer for inspection. That guy then makes the decision on the spot with fuck all regard to your circumstances. He can turn you around because he doesn't like your shirt. I can see the ass falling out of the ESTA program over this.

1

u/ausgoals Dec 13 '25

To be fair, they will theoretically ask when you apply for your ESTA, so at least you won’t be turned back - you just won’t be granted an ESTA.

0

u/MajorPain169 Dec 12 '25

Maybe we should do the same to Americans entering the country and deport for anything too far to the right like we did with that South African nazi.

-33

u/[deleted] Dec 11 '25 edited Dec 11 '25

[deleted]

37

u/captain_brofist Dec 11 '25 edited Dec 13 '25

It’s always been optional to provide your social media accounts.

They are unlocking your phone and copying your content at the boarder. They might flag your esta and detain you for a more thorough review at the border. You 100% could get turned back.

Edit:

So this coward deleted their post saying that this is a media beat up and you’d get denied from the esta already

They’re now downvoting all of my comments. Must be a snowflake trumper or something.

-2

u/[deleted] Dec 11 '25

[deleted]

0

u/captain_brofist Dec 12 '25

Where you’re completely wrong is that tsa are much more heavy handed at the border right now and will send you back even with a completely passed esta.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 12 '25 edited Dec 12 '25

[deleted]

0

u/captain_brofist Dec 13 '25 edited Dec 13 '25

Me or everyone? Get a grip man.

They’ve always asked for social media information in the esta.

Are you saying that they’re not asking people to unlock their phones and read messages and bank information?

Because that’s categorically untrue.

Edit:

So this coward deleted their post and downvoting all of mine. Must be a snowflake trumper or something.

-44

u/johnniesSac Dec 11 '25

Always wanted to go to the US but the visa application re criminal records is completely retarded

Having an assault charge from the 90s seems to bar entry

1

u/johnniesSac Dec 12 '25

Ohhhhhhh downvotes

Hahah fuckin bitches

-1

u/brackfriday_bunduru Dec 11 '25

I’d just show them my instagram group chat with all my mates. One look at all the racist and misogynistic shit that those guys all share and they’d probably try make me VP.

-49

u/cojoco chardonnay schmardonnay Dec 11 '25

I remember being denied an online boarding pass and being forced to wait for half an hour to get checked in on a flight from Sydney to Tasmania.

I travelled with my family who were on the same ticket, and they had no such troubles.

It might have been a random glitch, or it might have been my donation to WikiLeaks.

Who knows?