Stupid Puerto Ricans! Do not pass GO!

StarshipTitanic · Post by **StarshipTitanic** » 2003-07-21 11:31pm

darthdavid wrote:I say state hood or we sever all ties and let em be independant. Lets do that with all territorys (i think there are like 2 others still). They get us citizenship tax free.

US dependencies are American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, and Wake Island.

Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Narvassa Island, and Palmyra Atoll do not have settlements and are typically uninhabited.

Johnston Atoll, the Midway Islands, and Wake Island are military/government bases with no indigenous inhabitants.

Kingman Reef is...a reef.

The Commonwealth of the Mariana Islands* and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico are "commonwealths associated with the US" (CIA World Factbook).

The Federated States of Micronesia*, the Republic of Palau*, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands* are "constitutional governments in free association with the US" (ibid.)

American Samoa*, Guam*, and the US Virgin Islands* are "organized, unincorporated territories of the US" (ibid.).

*Handled by the Office of Insular Affaris.

Puerto Rico is an interesting beast indeed. They seem to be the welfare whore of US overseas dependencies.

Xenophobe3691 · Post by **Xenophobe3691** » 2003-07-22 12:20am

Wow. I didn't know the US actually had islands in the Pacific and the Caribbean besides Guam, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. I wonder what would happen if they became states?

Post by **RogueIce** » 2003-07-22 12:24am

Vorlon1701 wrote:Wow. I didn't know the US actually had islands in the Pacific and the Caribbean besides Guam, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. I wonder what would happen if they became states?

We'd have to make the flag bigger to fit the stars?

StarshipTitanic · Post by **StarshipTitanic** » 2003-07-22 12:31am

Vorlon1701 wrote:Wow. I didn't know the US actually had islands in the Pacific and the Caribbean besides Guam, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. I wonder what would happen if they became states?

Most are just rocks taken from the Japanese and Spanish. Only the Mariana Islands and Puerto Rico are practically one step away from US statehood.

Xenophobe3691 · Post by **Xenophobe3691** » 2003-07-22 12:34am

StarshipTitanic wrote:
Most are just rocks taken from the Japanese and Spanish. Only the Mariana Islands and Puerto Rico are practically one step away from US statehood.

And what are the advantages to statehood?

Well, besides being able to have your own star on the flag, of course.

Howedar · Post by **Howedar** » 2003-07-22 01:27am

Legislative representation in the US Congress.

StarshipTitanic · Post by **StarshipTitanic** » 2003-07-22 01:35am

And taxes...oh wait.

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2003-07-22 01:53am

The only advantage to statehood, from Puerto Rico's view, is that they can't be unilaterarally thrown out. They wouldn't have more than two congressmen, I don't think, and four electoral votes, so they wouldn't have that much say in how the country is run, and the tradeoff would be having to pay Federal taxes. But since they're only a commonwealth, Congress could, in theory, dissolve the local government, impose new laws that it could never force on the states, make them pay taxes without representation, or just throw them out on their own and make them pay for their own defense, and strip all Puerto Rican residents of U.S. citizenship. As a state, Puerto Rico would be legally equal to the other 50 and could never be threatened with explusion from the union. But since there's no realistic threat of that now, why give up the sweet deal they have?

StarshipTitanic · Post by **StarshipTitanic** » 2003-07-22 02:05am

Why is Massachusetts (and Virginia and someother state, I think) called a Commonwealth? What's the difference?

darthdavid · Post by **darthdavid** » 2003-07-22 02:16am

Lets threaten them

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-07-22 02:37am

I thought I read that Puerto Rico would be way below the poorist current state (Mississippi IIRC) in just about everything if they were to become a state. Which is a reason for the rest of the US not to make them a state while having to comply with the many requirements of being a state is one of the major reasons why Puerto Rico hasn't pushed to become a state.

StarshipTitanic · Post by **StarshipTitanic** » 2003-07-22 02:45am

Doesn't Congress have to approve a plebecite if they voted yes? We'd find out then if the rest of the states wanted them in the Union.

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2003-07-22 02:48am

StarshipTitanic wrote:Why is Massachusetts (and Virginia and someother state, I think) called a Commonwealth? What's the difference?

In the case of Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, there's no difference. It's just a name (there's no legal definition of what a state can call itself--if we ever annexed Canada, the provinces would still probably be called provinces even if their legal status changes so that strictly speaking, "province" didn't apply). Used in the context of one of the 50 sovereign entities with a star on the flag, "Commonwealth" is meaningless. It's only when applied to a U.S. territory does it take on a meaningful legal definition.

StarshipTitanic · Post by **StarshipTitanic** » 2003-07-22 02:55am

Ahhh. The last time I thought of it was in 2nd grade and my teacher mentioned there was a difference...

Gil Hamilton · Post by **Gil Hamilton** » 2003-07-22 03:23am

StarshipTitanic wrote:Ahhh. The last time I thought of it was in 2nd grade and my teacher mentioned there was a difference...

As far as I know, in the case of Pennsylvannia, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Kentucky, it's just a fancy way of saying state.

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2003-07-22 03:24am

StarshipTitanic wrote:Ahhh. The last time I thought of it was in 2nd grade and my teacher mentioned there was a difference...

As far as the Federal Constitution is concerned, there isn't. There might be some minor procedural or (state) constitional differences, but PA, MA, and VA all have bicameral state legislatures with representation divided by district, a legally recognized two-party system, county governments below the states but above the municipalities, and a governor, same as most other states.

EDIT: And Kentucky. Forgot Kentucky.

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2003-07-22 07:15am

has anyone seen this anywhere other than the Moonie paper? The Washington Times has about as much journalistic crediblility as Ari Fliesher. As much as i would like this story to be true, i have seen some tall tales in the Washington times in the past.

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2003-07-22 07:17am

damn lack of an edit button.

Even Matt Drudge hasn't picked this up, and this is the kind of story he would be all over.

Ryoga · Post by **Ryoga** » 2003-07-22 03:51pm

Well, see, part of the problem with Puerto Rico is this: I live in Florida, see, so there's a pretty hefty Hispanic population here. Mexicans, Dominicans, people from South America and Central America all congregate here...since, short of the Southwest, it's one of the easiest locations for them to reach. What pisses me off about the Puerto Ricans is this:

There's a quite healthy contingent of them who think that Puerto Rico is the be all, end all of the world. That Florida, and anywhere else that they've lived, is inferior in all ways to Puerto Rico. Now, I'm not saying that everyone from the island is like that, but PR sure as hell seems to be the only one who generates any fucktards like that. I think, like others have said, it has to do with them being a commonwealth. And some people get the impression from that that they're better.

Although, to be fair, it really only seems to be a teenage thing. I don't know anyone in my current age group like that, but it was sure common as a teenager. Kinda like the 'South Shall Rise Again' crowd.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-07-22 04:07pm

Vorlon1701 wrote:Wow. I didn't know the US actually had islands in the Pacific and the Caribbean besides Guam, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. I wonder what would happen if they became states?

There total populations totally up to only around 200,000 IIRC, with Saipan and Samoa holding something like 2/3' of that. I don't think the US government would let them become a state.

Stormbringer · Post by **Stormbringer** » 2003-07-22 04:13pm

Col. Crackpot wrote:has anyone seen this anywhere other than the Moonie paper? The Washington Times has about as much journalistic crediblility as Ari Fliesher. As much as i would like this story to be true, i have seen some tall tales in the Washington times in the past.

Might it be no gives a damn that Peurto Rico shot itself in the foot? It's not exactly big news.

Post by **RogueIce** » 2003-07-22 05:08pm

Ryoga wrote:Well, see, part of the problem with Puerto Rico is this: I live in Florida, see, so there's a pretty hefty Hispanic population here. Mexicans, Dominicans, people from South America and Central America all congregate here...since, short of the Southwest, it's one of the easiest locations for them to reach. What pisses me off about the Puerto Ricans is this:

There's a quite healthy contingent of them who think that Puerto Rico is the be all, end all of the world. That Florida, and anywhere else that they've lived, is inferior in all ways to Puerto Rico. Now, I'm not saying that everyone from the island is like that, but PR sure as hell seems to be the only one who generates any fucktards like that. I think, like others have said, it has to do with them being a commonwealth. And some people get the impression from that that they're better.

Although, to be fair, it really only seems to be a teenage thing. I don't know anyone in my current age group like that, but it was sure common as a teenager. Kinda like the 'South Shall Rise Again' crowd.

I know some people like that. Make me want to kill them all who act like that...

Ace Pace · Post by **Ace Pace** » 2003-07-22 06:04pm

the reason why no one picks this up, is that half the US has no idea where Puerto Rico is, or thats it part of the US.