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"If you had the exclusive 'American Flag' concession on Puerto Rico, you'd starve!"

Well, 4Freedom, you sure didn't come to Puerto Rico after September 11, 2001, or during July 4, 2002. Guys were selling American flags out of the backs of trucks, and business was so good they kept running out (I had to order a flag through the Internet). Things have calmed down a lot since then (as they have throughout America---it's been almost a year and a half since 9/11), but you'll still see more U.S. flags on cars (both flag decals and mini flags on the car antena), front porches, apartment buildings and even lamp posts than practically anywhere else in the U.S. Maybe a few small towns in Bush Country fly Old Glory as much as we do here in Puerto Rico (I was in New Hampshire a few months ago, and there were a couple of towns that had no problem showing their pride), but I dare you to find a large metropolitan area in the U.S. with as many U.S. flags as San Juan, Puerto Rico.

As for your economic argument against statehood, you are correct that, being a poor state, Puerto Rico would receive more in federal funds than it would pay in taxes. But that is not a good argument for two reasons. Number one, probably half the states receive more in federal funds than their taxpayers give the IRS. Are you going to kick West Virginia or North Dakota out of the Union? Without those porklovers, Bush wouldn't have gotten to 270 electoral votes and we'd be stuck with Al Gore as president. And number two, the federal government sends between $12 and $18 million a year to Puerto Rico, and all it receives from us in return are social security taxes and a few other payments (although, of course, our contributions to the national defense, even without the Vieques bombing range, certainly have great value). If Puerto Rico became a state, the amount of money sent here by the feds would increase by maybe $4 billion, but Puerto Rico would pay much more than that in federal taxes. Thus, statehood for Puerto Rico is much more beneficial to the U.S. than the present colonial status.

And finally, as to your political concerns, while I have no idea who would be out 2 Senators or our 6 Representatives if we were a state, I concede that, being a poor state, several of them may well be economic liberals. But one thing I am certain about is that we will send 2 pro-lifers to the Senate and 6 pro-lifers to the House. And it would not surprise me one bit if, because of cultural, federalism and defense issues, Puerto Rico becomes as Republican a state as Oklahoma or Mississippi (two of our poorest states, by the way).

And, oh yeah, I forgot, the House of Representatives has 435 members because of a law passed during the Theodore Roosevelt administration, not because of any constitutional requirement. When Alaska and Hawaii were admitted as states, the number of Representatives was increased until the next Census, when it went back to 435. This wasn't such a big deal, since Alaska only had one Rep and Hawaii only 2 Reps after the 1960 Census (same as today). But if Puerto Rico becomes a state and temporarily increases the size of the House to 441 members, there is no reason why Congress couldn't amend the old law so that the House stays at 441 members (or increases to 445, or whatever) after the next Census.

I was on #22 (the de Diego Expressway), #18 (the Las Americas Expressway), #26 (Baldorioty de Castro) and #52 everyday after 9/11 and I was appalled by the lack of American Flags in Puerto Rico.

You want to walk around the tourist areas of the Condado, Isla Verde and Old San Juan and imply that the American Flags in their windows, if any, are in some way indicative of what's going on in the rest of the island then you're only kidding yourself.

Try looking around Bayamon, Rio Piedras, Puerto Nuevo, Ponce, Yauco, Mayaguez, Lares, Guaynabo, etc.. You're not going to find any American Flags there, except on the Post Offices and other government buildings. And not all of them.

Carlos Pesquera was recently arrested for trying to put an American Flag back in a government building.

Even the recycled U.S. Taxpayer's dollars that Puerto Rico sent to New York after 9/11 were only for Puerto Rican victims.

You really intend to argue that we need another state that receives more in federal funds than it pays in taxes, because we already have 25? That's the crazy for someone to say even if they're in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico would pay no net income taxes.

They are almost all below the taxable threshold. Almost all Puerto Ricans would qualify for an 'Earned Income Tax Credit' check. Do you know what that is? It's more welfare, that's what.

Independence for Puerto Rico is much more beneficial to the U.S. Taxpayer than any other status for Puerto Rico.

We don't need a few thousand Puerto Rican mercenaries in our military that cost us $18 billion dollars plus each year.

I, too, laughed when I saw the headline in the Orlando Sentinel that PR wanted the navy base to stay open even though they opposed the bomb range. Gee, nobody saw that coming </sarc>

While I don't think anybody doubts the PR contribution to the nation's defense, I don't see much flying of the American flag among the PR residents of Orlando.

With a sizable PR population here, all I see are Puerto Rican flags being flown. Hanging from rearview mirrors, decals on the windows, flying from houses (though to tug their chains I ask them why they fly the Texas flag) etc. But, nope. No American flags. Maybe the ones that truly enjoy being part of America are still on the island (or in New York).