this post was submitted on 30 Oct 2024
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[–] [email protected] 31 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

Until Puerto Rico is a state, I believe they shouldn't have to pay taxes. No taxation without representation.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

They are exempt from federal income tax.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 7 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago)

While a good start, they do still pay other kinds of federal taxes (without representation), such as payroll taxes

https://espaciosabiertos.org/facts-does-puerto-rico-really-not-pay-federal-taxes-a-common-misconception/

And paid $4 billion in federal taxes in 2021 https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/puerto-rico-us-territory-crisis#chapter-title-0-4

[–] [email protected] 126 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 14 hours ago) (6 children)

No, this is what we do. 51=17x3. 52=26x2. 53, however is a prime number so it can't be divided.

We make PR a state, Guam, and DC.

AND WE BECOME.... One nation, indivisible.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 12 hours ago

This needs to be a meme.

[–] [email protected] 30 points 15 hours ago

You have . . . a point.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

Squish the Dakotas together and make PR a state, we wouldn't even need a new flag.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 13 hours ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 12 hours ago
[–] [email protected] 12 points 14 hours ago (3 children)

No silly, we COMBINE some of the 18 low-population states so we can go back to 48! One nation 6x8, with a better balance in representation! Or 45 could be nice as well.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 14 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

overly positive elementary school teacher voice* "okay low pop states find your buddy." "to make it easier for some of you if your state starts with a cardinal direction congrats you've already got a preassigned merge buddy and new name!"... "ah no Kansas, 'Ar' is not a direction, you and Arkansas wont work you don't even share a border hun" "...unless" Kansouri-Oklasas

[–] [email protected] 10 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

Why combine extant states? Just pull a colonial Europe and draw a whole new map over it! Nuts to "natural boundaries" or "cultural similarities", everyone on the east coast from DC to King's Bay is now part of the State of Midlantic.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 12 hours ago

Gerrymander the state borders!

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 hours ago

Just break a pool cue and force them to fight tbh

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[–] [email protected] 38 points 13 hours ago

God you can't even have colonies anymore, another victim of wokeness

[–] [email protected] 36 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

I'm not sure that more than 50% of Puerto Rico wants to be a state.

[–] [email protected] 37 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

They vote on it rather frequently. They do at the moment but it does waffle a bit.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 13 hours ago

The last vote had a very huge abstention ‘vote’, which was the only reason the ‘for’ vote out performed the ‘against’.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

What are the downsides to becoming a state?

[–] [email protected] 16 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Puerto Rico doesn't pay federal taxes

[–] [email protected] 15 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago) (1 children)

PR is so poor that very few there would pay income tax. The majority of people would actually receive money due to the EITC.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 7 hours ago

Poor people voting against their own interests because a rich asshole told them to is an American tradition, I guess they’re definitely ready!

[–] [email protected] 17 points 15 hours ago (2 children)

They can become a state if they want to. They have voted against it in the past.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 15 hours ago (4 children)

Their most recent vote in 2020 results in favor of statehood (not by much). However, Congress has to make it happen, not Puerto Rico.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 15 hours ago

came to say this. Its kinda their own fault. Which more than anything indicates how american they are.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

My understanding is that many Puerto Ricans don't even want statehood.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

About 50-60% want statehood, it’s the majority opinion, but a lot of people like not having income taxes

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

They just want independence iirc

[–] [email protected] 4 points 13 hours ago

That’s actually a pretty fringe belief on Puerto Rico

[–] [email protected] 3 points 11 hours ago

If we really cared about PR we would have pushed for this a long time ago. This is news because of a joke but we live in the united states of amnesia, by next monday this will all be forgotten.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

I am surprised conservatives don’t want to add PR as a state, Republicans would definitely get more reps voting along religious lines in congress

[–] [email protected] 9 points 14 hours ago

It's because racism

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

Didn't they recently vote to not become a state?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 hours ago

Not as such, but it wasn't clear cut either. Partly due to the ballot language, it says.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rico_statehood_movement

Although the previous two referendums (November 2012 and June 2017) also had ostensibly pro-statehood outcomes, The New York Times described them as "marred, with ballot language phrased to favor the party in office".

For example, the fourth referendum, held in November 2012, asked voters (1) whether they wanted to maintain the current political status of Puerto Rico and, if not, (2) which alternative status they prefer. Of the fifty-four percent (54.0%) who voted "No" on maintaining the status quo, 61.11% chose statehood, 33.34% chose free association, and 5.55% chose independence.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 17 hours ago (4 children)

I honestly don’t think this would ever get support. Puerto Rico is very republican last I checked so dems aren’t exactly incentivized to vote it in. And republicans don’t want it because that would be fair treatment to a minority so

[–] [email protected] 44 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

I’m more interested in PR having representation then how it affects my own opinions.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 15 hours ago

Yeah I agree, I meant more the actual lawmakers aren’t terribly incentivized

[–] [email protected] 4 points 16 hours ago

If they have enough people for four representatives, then if they stay a territory they ought to get more than the single delegate they have in the House. I don't even care if that would add more siding with Republicans, they deserve more than they have.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

Irony of the situation that the same Republican Party hates Puerto Ricans so much. I hope PR folks understand that when repubes say migrants are rapists, druggists, and murderers they also mean you - even though you’re not migrants - MAGA doesn’t give a fuck to the fact that you’re citizens.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 15 hours ago (3 children)

"No no no....he's talking about Haitians, those savages.

We Puerto Ricans are the exemption. We're special."

[–] [email protected] 5 points 15 hours ago

We're the good ones

[–] [email protected] 3 points 13 hours ago

first they came for the LGBTQ and we said nothing for we were not them, then they came for the couch cushions and we laughed... wait.

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 16 hours ago

Which is why, like in all past state additions, you do it in a way that is balanced based on contemporary divides, like slave vs free states. Puerto Rico and DC at the same time.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

Surprised at 18, but guess it's not that surprising.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 16 hours ago

It's not hard to beat Wyoming in population especially.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago) (1 children)

why not oppose US colonialism and support Puerto Rican independence instead of statehood?

[–] [email protected] 13 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

What do the Puerto Ricans want?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 hours ago

Awesome point. Give them a real choice.

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