"You compilation of birdcage lining"

[bigtree]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez @AOC 12h
Puerto Ricans ARE American citizens you compilation of birdcage lining

Link to tweet

[hatrack]

1. Chef's Kiss . . .

[The Magistrate]

2. I Do Love The English Language, Sir

The phrase as quoted is marvelously ambiguous.

'As an American citizen' could mean rights that a citizen is entitled to, that the ruling said they are not, as other citizens are.

'As an American citizen' could mean a person who is not a citizen, and therefore not entitled to the rights a citizen possesses.

[bigtree]

4. it can certainly be reasoned in theory they are citizens

...but practical observations or experience would lead to the conclusion they're not.

Apriority creates the ambiguity.

[The Magistrate]

5. I Find Amusement Where I Can, Sir

I agree the derogatory meaning is the one most likely intended.

But I do enjoy the slipperiness English admits of. My current favorite is an old headline, announcing what ought to have been the easiest task police were ever presented with: "Eight Armed Men Steal Millions In Diamonds At Antwerp Airport".


"English doesn't borrow from other languages. It follows them into alleys, knocks them silly, and rifles their pockets for spare vocabulary and loose grammar."

[bigtree]

7. I love how Americans' English trashes grammar rules and revels in their/our slang and abbreviations

...where Brits will add their own syllables to almost every spoken word, there's still a discipline in their writing.

Americans misuse and make up words, almost as a rebellion against our own indifference to what it may have meant to someone at some time. Everything is our invention inside our own exceptional minds. I think this explains rap.

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. It is ambiguous, but the rest of the article is the 1st form, and they clarified the headline today

Earliest archive.org save: https://web.archive.org/web/20220422171829/https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10743743/AOC-calls-Supreme-Court-imperialist-rejecting-Puerta-Ricans-access-benefits.html

AOC calls the Supreme Court 'imperialist' for voting 8-1 to reject Puerta Ricans from getting equal access to benefits as American citizens

Supreme Court ruled 8-1 in finding that Congress had the power to exclude Puerto Rico from access to the same benefits as other Americans
It overturns a lower court's decision that the difference was unconstitutional
...
Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez slammed the Supreme Court on Thursday as 'imperialist' after it ruled that Puerto Ricans were not entitled to the same access to benefits as other Americans.

Headline now:

AOC calls the Supreme Court 'imperialist' for voting 8-1 to reject Puerto Ricans from getting equal access to benefits as other American citizens

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10743743/AOC-calls-Supreme-Court-imperialist-rejecting-Puerta-Ricans-access-benefits.html

[TreasonousBastard]

3. I suppose she's talking about the 8-1 ruling about PR and disability. I thought the ruling was...

wrong, but it was about the right of Congress to restrict payments. As a member of Congress, AOC had her chance but choice was taken from her.

Keeping PR as an unincorporated something-or-other does cause problems, and it could be considered racist as we granted statehood to Hawaii. (Alaska is another situation) Puerto Ricans have been offered a half-hearted chance at statehood, but that seems to be past right now. And didn't they vote against it?

Yes, Puerto Ricans are citizens, but citizens without proper Congressional representation and rights that are not Constitutional, but subject to Congress' leanings of the moment.

[brooklynite]

8. Only if they get equal access to tax obligations.

Rights come with responsibilities.

[bigtree]

9. so they should just start paying taxes to the U.S., then?

...just start sending their money to Uncle Sam like Social Security on layaway?

Or maybe Congress could arrange something where they could be afforded those rights before lecturing them about responsibilities.

[brooklynite]

10. Yes, that would be a good idea...

SSI is NOT paid for by social Security tax. It’s funded by general revenue. If they’re getting the benefit of not paying US income tax, they shouldn’t get the benefits of US tax revenue.

[bigtree]

11. it's perverse that they can't vote for the changes themselves in Congress

Last edited Sat Apr 23, 2022, 04:49 PM - Edit history (1)

...SSI's disability benefit was designed to provide a uniform standard of support so disabled Americans could live with some dignity.

It's a safety net that the SC majority insists is exclusionary based on means. To your point, PR resident's inability to pay federal taxes is being perversely used against them, even though the program was basically designed to reduce or eliminate disadvantages for all disabled Americans, including inability to pay for care.

People receiving Supplemental SS benefits already pay very little taxes, if at all. Needy citizens living in Puerto Rico are being treated like second-class citizens because of a law they can't vote to affect.