Puerto Rico is Bankrupt

Puerto Rico has filed for the equivalent of bankruptcy protection.  Here is why:

the oversight board appointed to lead the U.S. territory back to fiscal sustainability declared in a court filing that it is “unable to provide its citizens effective services,” crushed by $74 billion in debts and $49 billion in pension liabilities.

And there is more:

The island’s response has worsened matters. Politicians raised taxes, allowed governmental bureaucracy to balloon, borrowed to pay the bills and promised pensions that the island could not afford.

I may not be an economist but I think what they are saying is that taxes, bureaucracy and giving away free money is a bad thing.

What the article above does not mention is the the disability abuse and fraud that goes on in Puerto Rico.  Did you know that some Puerto Rico’s residents qualified for federal disability benefits because they lacked fluency in English? This is the insanity of government.  They are unable to manage these types of programs effectively.  The result is that those Puerto Ricans who are truly disabled are not getting the help they need. 

The whole thing is sad.  It is the real people with real disabilities who eventually get screwed because the money runs out.  I know I see things from my own perspective and how I see this is just another example of the government screwing things up, which eventually trickles down to affecting the health of its citizens.