Spring Break 2011?

Here's something I'm guessing people don't think about: Puerto Rico. I know I don't. I might even say that most people don't know what Puerto Rico is. Well, it's not a country and it's not a state. It's something in the middle of the two. For those of you readers who don't know, Puerto Rico is a commonwealth of the United States. Think we didn't have colonies? Anyway, what that means is that they are 'owned' by the US, but they pretty much get to do what they want. They have their own government, much like a state. They have a representative in the House, but he doesn't get to vote on anything. Because of that, they don't pay federal income taxes. (You know, they whole no taxation without representation thing) Let's just say they've got a pretty sweet deal. No tax, citizenship, easy access to the US, and they live in they freaking Caribbean!



For many years, ever since we acquired Puerto Rico after the Spanish-American War, the people of the US and the people of Puerto Rico have debated what to do with the island. Should they become a state? Should they become independent? Should they just stay a commonwealth? In 1998, Puerto Ricans actually voted against statehood. But the issue is back. I read this article about it. On Thursday, the House voted to allow the people of Puerto Rico to vote on what they want. Nothing will happen, though, unless the Senate and Obama pass the bill, as well.


I think it's great that they get to decide. After all, we fought for our independence; maybe they want theirs. It's not right to hold a territory if they don't want it. But why would the regular people vote to become a state? Like I said, they have a sweet deal at the moment. They're basically a state, but without having to comply with everything the United States government does. They can enter the country just like a person from Hawaii can. I just don't think they would want to become a state and be bound to the US forever. Plus that whole income tax... icky.

Do we even want or need Puerto Rico? After all, we have fifty states. If we were to acquire a fifty-first state, that would just screw up everything! All flags would have to be remade with an extra star. The song Fifty Nifty United States would just have to be done away with. There are just so many little things that we would have to do to make it legitimate.

The article brought up a good point: will they have to speak English? To me, I don't care. Just make the island a bilingual state. That way, we English-speakers can visit without a problem, and they can keep their culture. I think it'd be cool to have a state that speaks an entirely different language.

If Puerto Rico were to become a state, though, would it be treated differently than the others? Would they be bound forever like the states are? Could they just decide to secede if they decide they don't like the arrangement? I hope they wouldn't be able to deny laws that the US government makes or that the US government would make exceptions for Puerto Rico. These are things that the people of Puerto Rico need to decide before they vote. I'm all for statehood if it is fully done, but if they're not willing, I think it might be time to say goodbye.