puerto rico: People say that Puerto Rico is a poor island and its not I live in Puerto Rico and they have almost everything that the U.S. have.Heck the girls are even hotter here.Why do people discriminate Puerto Rico?|||We are becoming a Banana Republic.|||Puerto Rico is not a country but a U.S. territory and all Puerto Ricans are natural-born U.S. citizens. They are definitely NOT a "third world island". According to Puerto Rico's tourism website, "Gross National Income (GNI per capita) (formerly GNP per capita): $53.4 billion; per capita: $13,675.1 (2006) Puerto Rico is classified as a high income country, high income countries are defined by the World Bank as countries with a Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of $11,116 or more."|||Ignorance of the definition of the term "third world" developed during the "Cold War" era.. Discrimination against puertorricans and using the term "third world" in a pejorative way. Third world country: The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO (which along with its allies represented the First World), or communism and the Soviet Union (which along with its allies represented the Second World). This definition provided a way of broadly categorizing the nations of the Earth into three groups based on social, political, and economic divisions. First World: the United States and its allies. Second World: the Soviet Union, China, and their allies. Third World: neutral and non-aligned countries. Puerto Rico is : * economically aligned with capitalism, * politically is a territory of the USA, technically speaking PR is not "part" but a "property" of the USA. * socially we are a western culture, with strong hispanic roots and also (since 1898) with USA influence. Puerto Rico is (according to the definitions) part of the "First World" (US and its allies) not part of the "Third World" (not aligned with the US, and not aligned with the previous URSS).|||I live in Puerto Rico and am Puerto Rican as well and I can tell you that we are NOT a third world country. It's completely obvious that we aren't and despite having some flaws in our society, give me a country in the world that does not have social problems. We actually have one of the highest standards of living in the Americas and the world. 隆Qu茅 viva Puerto Rico independiente!|||I have never heard anyone say that. My friends and I took a trip to Puerto Rico just months after I became an American citizen (I am a dual citizen, Sweden and US). I didn't even need a passport:) It is very beautiful...the island and its people. I think PR is very advanced and its people are very educated. When I was there, I felt like I was just in another US state, but I never forgot that I wasn't. They have freeways, their own license plate, and have great and beautiful architect just like New York, California, Hawaii. They have running water and electricity everywhere. Stores that are in the US can be found in Puerto Rico, like JCPenney's, Radio Shack, Claire's, etc. Lots of Puerto Ricans run their own shops like the people from the other 50 states. Puerto Rico is definitely not a third wold...but I wouldn't consider it a first world either. I would love to go back there sometime soon.|||I'm not sure why people would say that and I don't think that Puerto Rico is considered a 3rd world country. There are definitely things that set it apart from the "states", but Puerto Rico is much different that say, Mexico or some other Latin American countries.|||Can't tell you why it is considered "3rd world". I can say that having visited Hawaii, Guam, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Malta and numerous islands in the Caribbean I think Puerto Rico is one of the prettiest and nicest islands an individual can enjoy.|||there are two reasons why someone would say PR is a third world country 1. they are stupid and have no idea how and where puerto rico is located and how the government runs things as a modern world country, so they repeat or say whatever comes to their stupid mind. 2. someone who might be jealous of puerto rico and talks junk about the island.|||I have never heard anybody say that. I think this comes from ignorance about Puerto Rico.|||I have never heard anyone say that, so I dont know.