Rico State

Do you think the people of the US would like to see Puerto Rico become the next state or not?

Recently there has been some talks in Puerto Rico to see if the status of the island changes. It has to change to either statehood or indipendence. I for one am Puerorican and proud of it but I am also an american citizen and I am serving in the ARMY and proud of it too. I would like my little island to finally become part of the US instead of just a territory of the US. The problem is that there are three political parties, one tha is pro statehood, one that is pro indipendence and one that just wants to stay the same way they are now and for the past few years they have being frightening the people of Puerto Rico telling them how bad it would be if Puerto Rico becomes either a state or a republic. I think the US should give Puerto Rico the option to choose only between statehood and/or indipendence to get the issue resolved once and for all.

Most people don’t know that this question comes up in PR *all the time* and Puerto Ricans consistently choose the status quo. Why? They are part of the US, they receive federal development assistance, but *they don’t have to pay federal taxes*. I would say this is a pretty sweet deal for PR, and since PR represents only a tiny part of the U.S., the vast majority of other Americans don’t care one way or the other.

In referendums to decide status, the vote is almost evenly decided whether to become a state, or to stay the same (the latter has won, obviously). About 5% vote for complete independence. So it’s clear that the vast majority of Puerto Ricans enjoy being part of the U.S.

Trips to PR from the mainland are considered “domestic” (not international), PR is served by US Mail and has US Zip codes, the phone & electrical system are the same as in the U.S. However, they have their own team in the Olympics and other international competitions (then again, England & Scotland are separate teams in the World Cup…)

But the most important takeaway is that the U.S. *DOES* allow PR to choose what it wants for itself and will abide by whatever PR chooses. The fact is that Puerto Ricans seem to want to continue the current status.

Sunshine State by Rico Monaco & Sol Sons