'Israel's Interior Ministry was telling me who to love'

Immigration authorities behave this way in many western countries. Particularely when the prospective spouse is from a poorer country. By the way, the going rate for buying one's legal status by bogus marriage is around. 100,000 Shekels.

That's the way it is here. Everyone is secretly racist.

Worst horror stories I have ever heard are how people were treated in that office

What is demanded by the US Immigration Service is far more demanding and includes surprise home visits, separate questioning of VERY personal matters ("When was the last time you had sex together?") to compare answers by each partner and much, much more. When my non-Jewish Brazilian and I went through the same process a few years ago, it was the same, except for the attitude of the Ministry of Interior people, which is inexcusable. We were lucky enough to get a case officer without such prejudices, but he didn't make the process any easier, just less unpleasant. If the Ministry of Interior people really told him "who he should love", then they were way out of line and he deserves an apology, but the process itself should not. Each and every country has criteria to prevent marriages of convenience that people make to get citizenship or residence in a country they otherwise wouldn't be able to get an immigration visa for.

Why are people so cruel?