Annex a country!

[steven787]

Kasz216 said:

steven787 said:

Kasz216 said:

steven787 said:
Kasz I disagree, we should cut them loose whether they like it or not. Give 'em 50 billion or so, that way they can't complain.

We could do that too...

though perferably it'd be nice if they could vote on it.

I think something like 48% want to be a state... 48% want to be a commonwealth.... with virtually none wanting to be independent.

Remove the commonwealth option.... and i gotta think state wins.

 

There's a big movement starting because residents don't like us useing PR as a shelling practice range for the Navy.  It's up to between 7-10% now... but it doesn't matter if we choose to "give" them independence.

Then we can still use it as a practice range and we won't have to care what they think because they won't be US citizens any more...

 

(Just to be clear, this is me 100% joking.  I think PR is fine as it is or as a state.  Now they're paying taxes with out representation and if they become a state they lose some federal funding but would have representation.)

That's the thing... the funding is better then the representation for most people.  Think about how many people actually vote.

The lack of having to pay US federal taxes alone is probably a big enough bonus for a lot of people.

Heck, if i had the option to not pay federal taxes i probably wouldn't of even voted in the last few elections... and i like voting.

Vote for someone who you agree with 45%, vote for someone you agree with 40% or get like... a few hundred dollars back.

Sign me up for the money!

 

A lot of jobs in Puerto Rico require a person to pay income taxes.  If they work for the federal Gov't or the income is from off the island.  In addition they pay FICA and Medicare (which for about 60% of the popultation is more than half of their taxes), they have "state" tax, and they do not recieve federal funding for many things that the States do get.  Companies DO PAY payroll taxes for their employees (these are the income taxes we do not see and are paid by employers). 

Puerto Rico recieved $14.6 billion in federal money for non-federal related spending (i.e. not military bases, federal services, homeland security).  Puerto Rico contributes to the United States by providing ports, land, and permanent carribean bases.  They have an extremely high rate of graduates who leave to goto the US (Puerto Rican tax dollars educating people who go to live somewhere else). $14.6 Billion is lower than each of the all fifty states but expected since individual citizens don't pay income tax.