They let us back in

We successfully jumped another hurdle and got our passports stamped with the new visa. This one expires on March 9 2007. That's right less than seven months to go. And then we go through the whole process again. Is this a sensible use of US resources I ask myself. It worked out well for the Canadians as we stayed dive days in Vancouver but apart from our $100 (in cash) what did America get? $100 wouldn't pay for the administrative and security costs associated with the process especially with the increased security over the past weeks.
The trip did give us the chance to compare and contrast the immigration departments of Canada and the USA. First off although we arrived in Canada only a couple of days after the latest terrorism plot to blow up planes using liquids, there were no lines at immigration. Every booth was manned and the officers were extremely friendly and cheerful. Because we were there just to get our visa from the US consulate the officer asked us to "Do (me) a favour, take a jog left and check in with Immigration Services". They were also delightful and even appeared interested in our responses about how long we'd been in the US, what we were doing. Everything was completed with a smile.
Returning to the US was the exact opposite. As usual the lines were long and only a third of the booths were manned. People were shouted at because they were not moving fast enough to the correct line and when we got to the immigration officer we were greeted with a snarl. Charming. The questions were the same but the tone of voice suggested that the officer didn't believe a word of it. Our fingerprints were taken (again) and our papers were stamped (again) and returned without any form of greeting or instruction about what to do next.
It was a joy to visit Canada and depressing to reenter the US. It doesn't have to be like this. Good manners should be mandatory and a smile costs nothing but goes a long way to engender goodwill. If the problem is understanding, USCIS should invest in more immigration officers. But I don't believe it's that. I think they are afraid that kindness would be mistaken for weakness. And that theory's not borne out by any psychological study or by history. If their attitude doesn't change, I'm not looking forward to reentering the country again next year.