from Hacker News

PhD Timeline

by hexmiles on 4/28/25, 7:33 AM with 105 comments

• by antonly on 4/28/25, 9:34 AM

  Speaking as an academic from the UK, there has been a growing sentiment of weariness about spending time in the US. From hallway jokes about getting snatched at the border and spending two weeks in detention camps, to people re-evaluating their conference and career choices to avoid the US, this marks a major shift in the mindset of the current generation of PhD students and early-career academics that will probably have untold implications for long-term research and innovation horizons...

• by apexalpha on 4/28/25, 10:15 AM

  I don't know if Americans are grasping how much the attitude is changing outside of the US.

  My mom has booked a multithousand dollar vacation on a cruise set to depart from Florida. They would only be there for a few days.

  They are still asking the company to just fly to the first non-US stop and then board. And crazy enough the company might actually accomodate this since hundreds of people have inquired according the agent she talked to.

  People really distrust the US government now.

  As we Dutch say: trust arrives on foot and leaves on horseback.

• by mjburgess on 4/28/25, 9:32 AM

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detention_of_R%C3%BCmeysa_%C3%... -- for the student mentioned in the caption

• by mrguyorama on 4/28/25, 9:36 PM

  If the government does not need to prove to a judge that you are not a legal citizen BEFORE they have any right to move you, there is no such thing as due process.

  ANY violation of "innocent until proven guilty" makes the entire concept null and void. ANY bypass of seeing a judge before punishment means anyone can be punished for anything at any time.

  The Constitution is extremely clear that you cannot harm someone's inalienable rights until you have done due process.

  You MUST treat any suspect of anything as having all rights enshrined in the Constitution until the state has PROVEN otherwise.

  If you defend these deportations at all, you are anti-democratic and anti-constitution. The moment you let the ends justify the means, you threw away democracy.

  Literal serial killers and assassin-wannabees are entitled to all constitutional rights before they have been convicted. The only acceptable option is if everyone is assumed a fully legal resident until you prove otherwise.

  If you support the deportation of these people because they are gang members, whether that is even true or not, without them getting due process, you are the Bad Guys

• by prennert on 4/28/25, 9:31 PM

  Incredible to see this play out here and good to see that this got unflagged now. I only saw this earlier (while this submission was still flagged) due to someone somewhere else mention that https://news.ycombinator.com/active exists.

  Probably worth keeping an eye on it from time to time to get an idea what did not make the cut for whatever reason.

  More on topic, I am wondering if this scenario shows that even wide-spread gun-ownership does not protect against state power (lawful or not). If ICE agents would kept getting shot during these type of arrests by people thinking they are about to get abducted by a gang and using their gun in self-defence, ICE would not do it this way. Therefore I am thinking that the agents are confident that just signalling that they represent a US federal (?) agency is enough to prevent bystanders and arrestees (?) from escalating.

• by pastage on 4/28/25, 9:40 AM

  Nationalism is not compatible with freedom.

  When I was young I thought liberties that we viewed as important were something that was provided to all. That it should not matter where you come from. I still think everyone should strive for this.

• by wesselbindt on 4/28/25, 9:53 AM

  So at what point does it become acceptable to call a spade and spade and point out that this is fascism?

• by spellboots on 4/28/25, 9:58 AM

  I worked for US companies for over a decade, and travelled there multiple times a year. I worked remotely from my home in the UK as a software engineer and and CTO, including as CTO of a YC startup for a number of years.

  I would not travel to the US any longer, it's just not worth the risk. From the outside it's how I imagined Germany looked in the mid 30s, but streamed live in HD.

  For context I'm a white British man, and whilst I wouldn't go out of solidarity and disgust at the treatment of people who don't look and talk like me even if I wasn't worried about myself, right now I would also be seriously concerned for my own safety. I wouldn't trust rogue ICE agents to know exactly what things are permissible on an ESTA visa waiver vs B1 vs B1 in lieu of H1B.

  Genuinely and without hyperbole, if you have the ability and means to leave for a different country, you should consider it in case it becomes something you can no longer do in the future; even if you don't believe your government will prevent you, I suspect other countries will start making it a lot more difficult for US citizens to get visas in the coming years.

• by echelon on 4/28/25, 9:39 AM

  Xkcd hasn't been very political, but this is appropriate.

  Regardless of your political persuasion, what's happening to folks here legally is doing irreparable harm to our country's image and standing.

  We need researchers to remain competitive. China is putting out more advanced research in key sectors than we are. Most of the papers in AI that I read are from Chinese institutions.

  If we think we can compete without immigration, we're going to find ourselves in a world of hurt.

  And on the topic of free speech that predicated all of this: it's great that we get so offended by what other people say. It's the litmus test for how free our speech really is. Once we start punishing people for free speech, whatever their ideology or party affiliation may be, the same tactics can be used against us when the political tides turn. If you advocate for free speech and then do something like this, then you're not a free speech advocate.

• by throwaway314155 on 4/28/25, 5:04 PM

  If ever there were a post that should be unflagged...

• by CogitoCogito on 4/28/25, 10:45 AM

  Every American should feel ashamed by this national idiocy.

• by dira3 on 4/28/25, 4:28 PM

  I see HN has gotten to the point where xkcd gets flagged.

• by tunnuz on 4/28/25, 9:33 AM

  Honest.

• by UmGuys on 4/28/25, 8:28 PM

  We're flagging xkcd now? I can't think of more iconic programmer humor. Who doesn't like xkcd?

• by insane_dreamer on 4/28/25, 4:25 PM

  we're flagging xkcd now? :(