Citizen of where?
My online shopping experience sucks pond scum. It appears that Amazon as well as several other companies can't ship anything but books to Puerto Rico. I tried everything to convince Amazon that I had no ill intentions or terrorist plans for the new Cuisinart hand held blender I was trying to purchase. But nada, nothing, no way.No one is able to give me a valid reason for denying my purchase except that I live in a foreign country. What the hell does that mean? Most of these companies ship worldwide. Last time I checked, Puerto Rico was still part of the "world". Sadly we fall into that gray "we can't ship anything but books because we have no idea who or what you really are" category. This is just one of the many pitfalls with our "commonwealth" status.
Let me fill you in on some little known facts. (Just in case someone asks you, or in case you ever need to group together and come save me from the asylum.) Puerto Rico is NOT a foreign country. It is a Caribbean island, whose size is 100 by 35 miles, or roughly the size of Connecticut. Puerto Rico is a commonwealth of the U.S.A. Some reference materials claim we are a "possession" of the United States.
So what exactly does "commonwealth" mean? It means we are a territory/colony. It means we are citizens of the United States. It means we have authority over our internal affairs (as long as they do not conflict with the U.S.) and the United States, well, they pretty much control everything else. The major differences between Puerto Rico and the 50 states are it's local taxation system, exemption from IRS code, and we do not have voting representation in either house of congress nor can we vote for president. The U.S. President is our chief of state ( but we are not a state) and our head of government is an elected governor. (which we do elect).
As citizens of the United States we are subject to military service and most federal laws. We do not pay federal income tax on locally generated earnings but Puerto Rican income tax rates closely parallel federal-plus-state levies on the mainland. Our languages are English and Spanish, our monetary unit is the U.S. dollar, our major industries are pharmaceuticals, electronics, food products and tourism. We use the United States postal system, UPS and FedEx both ship here. So why the hell can't I purchase the lovely new Cuisinart hand held blender online and have it shipped to my home?
So what exactly does "commonwealth" mean? It means we are a territory/colony. It means we are citizens of the United States. It means we have authority over our internal affairs (as long as they do not conflict with the U.S.) and the United States, well, they pretty much control everything else. The major differences between Puerto Rico and the 50 states are it's local taxation system, exemption from IRS code, and we do not have voting representation in either house of congress nor can we vote for president. The U.S. President is our chief of state ( but we are not a state) and our head of government is an elected governor. (which we do elect).
As citizens of the United States we are subject to military service and most federal laws. We do not pay federal income tax on locally generated earnings but Puerto Rican income tax rates closely parallel federal-plus-state levies on the mainland. Our languages are English and Spanish, our monetary unit is the U.S. dollar, our major industries are pharmaceuticals, electronics, food products and tourism. We use the United States postal system, UPS and FedEx both ship here. So why the hell can't I purchase the lovely new Cuisinart hand held blender online and have it shipped to my home?
