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Post by Admin on Sept 29, 2017 14:14:27 GMT
Colonial neglect was partly meant to be a positive reinforcement for lesser strict policies to allow said colony to basically “do what they want.” Although, for present day regulations, it’s not going down the right route for Puerto Rico since they cannot participate in any sort of fair elections as citizens and are given no aid for their misfortunes in their economy despite being one of us. One of our own commonwealth’s is being neglected similarly to the extent that Venezuela is by their authoritarian leader, which is insanely unacceptable. “Blame” for the destruction was pushed toward debt and dysfunction of the island, although the same issues lie in the United States and are not taken care of. The difference is, something has actually been done for those further affected by the previous hurricanes that hit the continental U.S. and no fingers were pointed at our underlying problems. Not only is the Trump administration deserting them, but even the Puerto Rican officials are not allowing or providing contact for help. They shouldn’t be under us if we aren’t going to assist them in times of need. Puerto Rico is apart of our nation and needs to be respected as such. They’ve been left at such disadvantages that most residents have moved to the U.S. to reap the true benefits of being citizens rather than just as outcasts. Maria kicked them while they were already down and and we’re leaving them in the rubble, literally; it’s almost entirely uninhabitable at this point due to such mass destruction. Also, upon searching only “is puerto rico…” in Google, the first result is “is puerto rico part of the us,” further proving our current lack of knowledge. My question: (There was apparently an election held in June in Puerto Rico regarding this) After the event of the hurricane, do you think Puerto Rico will still be considered for statehood? |
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Post by Admin on Sept 30, 2017 22:32:20 GMT
Instead of hitting the "Quote" button, simply use @thestudents name to signify your reply, this way we will not take up so much space (Thank you Emily Sarver for this idea)
For example:
@oliviagirdwood I appreciate that you started this discussion.
@meghanmiller very nice job with your reponse to Ricky. You did a nice job synthesizing his points.
Both student replies may appear (but are not limited to appear) in the same thread. Meaning, both of your relies can be made at once like the example above. Please make your replies to your peers longer than one sentence though.
Your efforts thus far are making me really excited and thrilled by your participation! Keep it up!
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Post by Meghan Miller on Oct 1, 2017 1:49:27 GMT
Puerto Rico is a modern day example of colonial neglect and negligence of a mother country toward its territory. Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States that is treated similarly to how the American colonies were treated: A well known example of salutary neglect having no representation having large taxes and tariffs. Puerto Ricans are American citizens, but they can only send one non-voting representative to the House of Representatives. Because of the Jones-Shafroth Act the Puerto Ricans are supposed to be allowed the same rights as American citizens but the neglect apparent after the double threat natural disasters with the lack of aid and news time. This lets them have no control in government, just like the American colonies had no representation. The fact that 46% of Americans don’t know that Puerto Ricans are American citizens doesn’t allow for most Americans to try and give them representation. The American ignorance adds to their lack of power in government, if nobody knows they are affected by regulation then they will not be considered when laws are passed. Trade to and from Puerto Rico is plagued with tariffs, fees and taxes because of the Jones Act. This makes it very costly to both ship to and from Puerto Rico. These tariffs are monumental compared to the tariffs placed on the America colonies and the Puerto Ricans don’t have the economic stability to break away especially after their double wave of natural disasters. The lack of representation and large taxes/tariffs are just two of the largest similarities brought forth in the article. Comparatively Puerto Rico is suffering from worse colonial neglect than the American colonies did.
Q: Do you think other countries should also try and help aid Puerto Rico? Or is aid being turned away by the American government like with many other natural disasters?
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Post by Meghan Miller on Oct 1, 2017 16:30:43 GMT
@makayla At this point in time most Americans don't even know that the Puerto Ricans deserve American rights. Theoretically the Puerto Ricans could receive none of the rights given to Americans and 46% of Americans couldn't give a hoot. According to Wikipedia ( I know, unreliable) Puerto Ricans are not covered by the full Bill of Rights but they still have compulsory military service equal to the mainland U.S. and they have to pay federal taxes (but not always federal income taxes).
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Post by Meghan Miller on Oct 1, 2017 16:55:56 GMT
ricky The terms "stable" and "strong" are very subjective. If we talk comparatively, would Puerto Rico be stable enough when it simply surpasses Venusuala in ability to run a coherent government, or would we compare it to the poorest country in the world( the Democratic Republic of Congo). Would it even be responsible for the U.S. to release Puerto Rico to become it's own country (because lets admit that the United States would do the least amount of work possible to help before it let Puerto Rico become its own country). Would the United States even let Puerto Rico become its own country, like the Washington post Article said, the United States uses Puerto Rico as a source of income.
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Post by Cole Bell on Oct 1, 2017 17:58:35 GMT
Puerto Rico is definitely feeling colonial neglect from the United States. The citizens down in Puerto Rico are struggling big time and it took a week for the United States to say or do anything for them. President Trump used the statement that “it is in the middle of the ocean” and “you can’t just drive trucks there from other states” to cover the situation up. You can fit way more supplies on a big cargo vessel than you can on a truck, so why aren’t we doing this? Puerto Rico is an United States territory, and they should be getting the treatment like we would for our own state. Half of the American citizens don’t even know that people born in Puerto Rico are American citizens. Could you even imagine what the recovery efforts could be if every American knew they could be helping American citizens, and not just some people on an island in the middle of the ocean. President Trump also blamed some of the neglection to help to the debt that puerto rico owed to Wall Street. Does President Trump care more about making more money back from the already downed country, or is he punishing them for letting the debts get this high. Trump is almost trying to make an economic gain off of Puerto Rico to prove a point to them.
My question to you guys is: Is President Trump trying to lessen the debts of Puerto Rico by putting them to shame for it, or is he just putting it out there to almost guilt American Citizens into helping in the relief fund?
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Post by Wyatt Heyl on Oct 1, 2017 21:30:35 GMT
Puerto Rico is not completely neglected. Due to the fact that the marine corp is down there providing hurricane relief. Proof of this is found on the Marine Corp’s social media. However, this still doesn’t answer how only 45% of people in America know that Puerto Ricans are even American Citizens, according to a poll taken by New York Times. Plus, it doesn’t help that the American people don't get any coverage what so ever on the event. As stated by the Washington Post “ The United States may not like to see itself as the type of nation that has colonies, but if you’re not treating Puerto Rico and its American citizens the same way as you treat states and their, that’s the only explanation,”. However even if Puerto Rico was considered a colony it is still the responsibility of America to take care of one of its own. However some people do not believe in sending aid to the island. President Trump even states in a tweet explaining why relied efforts are not what they should be “Puerto Rico is on an island in the middle of the ocean,” where “you can’t just drive your trucks there from other states.” Like some people did for Texas after Irma.
Question: If Puerto Rico were to seek independence, 1) Would citizens born there still be citizens to the U.S.? 2.) Would the U.S. provide relief for natural disasters such as hurricane maria and irma?
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Post by Wyatt Heyl on Oct 1, 2017 21:37:57 GMT
@rickymineo Well it depends on if they can get their economy in line. It also depends on if the U.S. can properly provide the right relief. Its just I don't believe that they will decide to become their own country due to the fact that most likely Puerto Rico born citizens wouldn't be American citizens either.
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Post by Wyatt Heyl on Oct 1, 2017 21:41:45 GMT
@colebell Well President Trump seems to be doing it in a way to almost shame Puerto Rico because why would he even mention it in his twitter post? Why couldn't he just say that Puerto Rico is in dire need for relief from this natural disaster. Plus that twitter post if seen by his supporters would probably turn people away from helping Puerto Rico because President Seems to be putting off a bad vibe towards them.
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Post by Laura Gutauskas on Oct 1, 2017 23:32:21 GMT
@meghanmiller We've already come to rely on celebrities to continue making the effort to aid Puerto Rico (Pitbull & now apparently Jennifer Lopez) so I wouldn't be surprised if anyone tried pushing it onto other countries as well. Asking for such help from any other island around them would be counterproductive for their own sake, since most are still trying to get back on their feet as well. I feel like there are certain countries that realize the severity of the state that PR is in and know that it's being neglected by the U.S. so they might take matters into their own hands. If this were to happen, it would make the Trump administration look even worse than it does now (as if that's more important than 3.5 million people's lives).
I also really enjoyed this statement you made; "The American ignorance adds to their lack of power in government, if nobody knows they are affected by regulation then they will not be considered when laws are passed." This is extremely important to keep in mind and I cannot stress that enough. Lack of awareness = zero change.
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Post by Barbie Cessar on Oct 1, 2017 23:46:35 GMT
I was all in for believing that Puerto Rico was a victim of colonial neglect until I read Derek Vandyke’s post. I saw the situation from a whole new perspective. The United States is slow to respond to the hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico but this does not mean that Puerto Rico is a victim of colonial neglect. Colonial neglect is the idea of totally abandoning a territory but this is not the case in this situation. Although, almost the entire population does not have power which affects clean drinking water, communication, air quality, food supply and many other things that are important to everyday life. Not to mention the island is already in debt before this natural disaster. We need to worry about our country before we are able to fund other territories. We are currently using federal money and resources to rebuild Florida and Texas so how then are citizens in those states able to help Puerto Rico when they have matters of their own to fix? I think we would have been able to help Puerto Rico if we were not also affected by this hurricane. Our resources are stretched and their location makes it logistically challenging to even send them what they need. And it’s not like we are totally neglecting them in fact, “Some 4,500 troops and National Guard members are on the ground in Puerto Rico”(Vox.com). It may not be enough at the moment, but at least the United States is making an effort. My Question: What do you think the long turn affects will be on our nation from this Hurricane? My Response: I think we are too focused at the matter of hand to even think about the long term effects or worry about the next hurricane season. But if it were to happen all over again the United States would not be able to recover from the damages economically. @derek Vandyke I believe Puerto Rico will not become it’s on country in our lifetime because it was already facing debt before these hurricane and now it is too far gone to even sustain basic needs. ricky Mineo |
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Post by Maddy Crighton on Oct 2, 2017 1:18:22 GMT
It is no question whether or not Puerto Rico is a victim of colonial neglect, the obvious answer is yes. One definition of neglect is the state of being uncared for. Even though the island is obtaining some resources, they are not enough. Citizens of Puerto Rico are considered US citizens, therefore the US and Trump should be treating this natural disaster the same as if it was in our own country. People of Puerto Rico are experiencing major power outages, shortage of fresh water and food, and fuel. These factors can ultimately increase the death toll, which may I remind you are in fact US citizens. President Trump has addressed the situation in Puerto Rico, however the way he has done so was not in the best of ways. On Sept. 25, the President had said, "Texas and Florida are doing great but Puerto Rico, which was already suffering from broken infrastructure & massive debt, is in deep trouble..."Instead of making light on the situation, he made it seem like the island was already worthless.
Question: Why is President Trump so reluctant to help Puerto Rico? Both the island and the US are already in debt that we are most likely to never recover. The United States is considered a leader to across the world, if we will not even help our own citizens, what are other countries going to think of us?
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Post by Jonah Foster on Oct 2, 2017 1:18:34 GMT
Puerto Rico is dealing with colonial neglect. It is an American Territory with American citizens just like the ones in the Continental US. Many people in the continental US didn’t even know puerto ricans had citizenship. And these citizens are just like the ones in Texas and Florida and they are not getting the support they need. With nearly 3.5 million people without power and 1.5 without clean water President Trump blames Puerto Rico’s poor infrastructure for not being able to support itself. Also manly Puerto Ricans do not have the means to communicate with anyone on or outside the island. So that means that loved ones anywhere on the island in the continental US are unable to see if they are okay. Not only is the power outages inconvenient it could also mean the lives of hundreds of citizens. Another major problem for Puerto Rico is they are an island. This meaning people who were left with nothing after the storm had past they are unable to refuge at an adjacent state for relief. And to add to puerto Rico being an island President Trump says it makes relief efforts hard. How does that make it harder when ships work just as well as cars and trucks?
My question is: What do you think is the best way to provide relief to Puerto Rico? Should other countries help aide the American Territory?
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Post by Jonah Foster on Oct 2, 2017 1:22:30 GMT
@colebell President Trump didn't have to say about how the infrastructure of Puerto Rico was bad but he was kinda guilt shaming American citizens to help and what better way than to to say bad the Puerto Ricans already have it. On the other hand he is also having Puerto Rico for there already previous debts and maybe making them feel bad about where they came from.
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Post by Jonah Foster on Oct 2, 2017 1:27:52 GMT
@wyatt 1) If they became independent then they would no longer be a US territory therefore the citizens born will not be US citizens anymore 2) If Puerto Rico was independent and it REQUESTED help from the US the US might help out but it is not gareenteed to happen because it is not in direct correlation with the US.
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