Puerto Ricans (excluding government workers) do not pay a federal income tax. While they are a U.S. commonwealth and there are some benefits to that, they are not an equal state and they are not intended to be a United States charity case. When you talk to Puerto Ricans, they do not want to pay federal income tax. They don’t like paying any other federal taxes, and they don’t like paying their (newly increased) sales taxes. When you don’t pay taxes, you don’t get the benefit of that revenue paying for your infrastructure and other improvements.

Now we have this new island-wide power blackout, and same as last year's hurricane fall out, there is a huge outcry that the U.S. government isn't holding up their end of the bargain.

Are Puerto Ricans trying to get too much out of the federal government? Where do they think all this money comes from?

EDIT: https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/18/us/puert ... index.html

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

Don't worry, Luis Gutierrez has got this.

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

If they don't pay taxes then we should do the humane thing and cut them lose and let them have self rule. if not make them a state and all the trappings that go with it.

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When I am stuck and need to figure something out I always remember the Immortal words of Socrates when he said:"I just drank what?"

Fuck him

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When I am stuck and need to figure something out I always remember the Immortal words of Socrates when he said:"I just drank what?"

Yes, if only to compensate for their(lack of) voting records in the houses of Congress. Or their ability to stop the land and water around there from being used as a long term bombing range and weapons testing area.

Or now, by having federal tariffs placed on goods and services "imported" from the island.

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

Didn’t PR vote for statehood last year? And Congress denied?

Make them a state already!

I’m sick and tired of this 50 Star flag. I hope in my lifetime we can get to 54 states so we can have the canton uniformed again like the good ole 48 Star flag.

Biggest mistake by Esienhower was signing EO 10834. The current 50 Star flag should be 5 rows of 10 stars nicely uniformed on the canton. Not this checkerboard bullshit.

Sort of. And no.

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics ... -explained

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

Loose.

I always see lose spelled as loose, but I've never seen it the other way around.

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Should be a state or nothing. We shouldn't have different classifications of citizenry.

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

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Rick Hahn is the best GM in baseball.

See, I don't find him that attractive.

Ricky Martin, maybe.

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

Yeah but that would give 2 more Senate votes to brown people and we can't have that.

They should get full bennys just like illegal Mexicans.

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Elections have consequences.

They are a colony, and if you're a person who believes colonialism by the European powers is a crime then you should be in favor of cutting PR free to self determination.

Kind of an interesting history into how PR got so screwed up economically. Not surprisingly the U.S. government played a huge role in their downfall.
http://www.businessinsider.com/puerto-rico-debt-2017-10

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“Mr. Trump is unfit for our nation’s highest office.”- JD Vance
“My god, what an !diot.”- JD Vance tweet on Trump
“I’m a ‘Never Trump’ guy”- JD Vance

If they voted for independence the United States would oblige happily and readily. They are not captive in this union, if they dont like they are absolutely free to leave.

We more or less sabotage Puerto Rico's economy with the bullshit protectionist Jones Act. Government interference in free markets is bad, m'kay

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“When I walked in this morning, and saw the flag was at half mast, I thought 'alright another bureaucrat ate it.'" - Ron Swanson

Much like the aviation industry Ogie knows next to nothing about, he has similarly steadfast under-informed opinions on the maritimes. If Puerto Rico doesn't like the Jones Act they are free to have it not affect them at all by becoming their own country.

That's your answer for everything.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Would never have guessed they were that level of pro-Republican.

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Power is always in the hands of the masses of men. What oppresses the masses is their own ignorance, their own short-sighted selfishness.
- Henry George

Remove the racism that hit the party post 2008 and they probably would have drifted that way.

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“When I walked in this morning, and saw the flag was at half mast, I thought 'alright another bureaucrat ate it.'" - Ron Swanson

Change that to around 1968 and you would be spot on.

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During the Bush years, the party was gaining a ton of Hispanic voters. That stopped after the Tea Party hijacked the party.

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“When I walked in this morning, and saw the flag was at half mast, I thought 'alright another bureaucrat ate it.'" - Ron Swanson

So that's why Bush won Florida.

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Power is always in the hands of the masses of men. What oppresses the masses is their own ignorance, their own short-sighted selfishness.
- Henry George

Well that and his mom was Eva Braun

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Proud member of the white guy grievance committee

It aint the six minutes. Its what happens in those six minutes.

There are not two classes of US citizens.

If a dude living in Puerto Rico moves to California, he votes in a California election.

If you move to Puerto Rico, you vote in the Puerto Rican elections.

If you like the Puerto Rican tax system so much, move there, you won't pay federal income tax either.