On Nov 11, 2014, at 7:51 AM, Loa Andersson <loa(_at_)pi(_dot_)nu> wrote:
Looking at the Chinese example, there are 119 registered from China,
and about 70 (maybe 80) of those are here. The main reason is that
they can't travel because of visa.
It appears to be the case that visa applications were being handled fairly
quickly from China for a couple of years, and people got used to it, so got in
the habit of applying later. And then there was an unexpected increase in
processing in time that coincided with this IETF. IOW the timing of visa
applications isn't predictable by the IETF. If we make it possible to apply
earlier and people don't apply earlier because they have expectations as to the
speed of the approval process that wind up not being met, we can't do anything
about that. And this can happen with any country: visa approval speed can
vary depending on politics, staffing, a flu outbreak at the wrong time, a
problem with the information systems at the embassy, etc.
Also, when I've talked to my colleagues from other continents about this, I
hear from a lot of them that despite the visa difficulties, coming to the U.S.
is actually an attractive thing, because they can do business here that they
couldn't do elsewhere.
So while it would definitely be easier if we just had a barge outside the
250-mile limit with an airstrip, I don't think "choosing a location where
getting visas is easy" is actually a practicable suggestion.