SYDNEY, Australia (The Adobo Chronicles) – It is not uncommon for the U.S. State Department to issue travel advisories to Americans visiting or living in countries where there is violence, safety concerns, or terrorist threats.  But it seems the tides have turned.

At least a dozen countries (and the number is growing) in Asia and Europe have issued travel warnings to their citizens to postpone if not altogether cancel their scheduled business or leisurely travel to the United States because of serious and credible concerns about their safety.

The Foreign Affairs Departments of these countries issued the travel warning following the latest mass shooting that killed 14 and injured scores of others in San Bernardino, California.  It was the latest in a pattern of gun violence in the U.S., and was the 355th mass shooting for the year.

The foreign governments have indicated that their travel advisories will only be lifted if and when the U.S. Congress passes a comprehensive legislation banning assault weapons and instituting more stringent regulations on gun ownership.

Republican legislators and presidential candidates appeared unfazed by the travel advisories, threatening instead to completely eliminate the U.S. visa waiver program which grants citizens of certain foreign countries a visa-free visit to the U.S. for business or pleasure.

Wall Street investors are now nervous about the impact of the travel advisories on their respective businesses and fear that another stock market crash is in the offing.