A good case for future statehood for Puerto Rico was made in a letter by Rep. Paul Simon. D-Ill. to his constituents. Puerto Rico is a commonwealth and that status means “second class citizenship” just as it formerly did for Hawaii andAlaska. said Simon. “The day will come,” he asserted. “when Puerto Rico will either be the 51st state or an independent nation. Faced with that choice, public opinion polls show that the residents of Puerto Rico overwhelmingly prefer statehood.” President Reagan has declared that if statehood is the choice of the Puerto Ricans. he supports it. Govemor Carlos RomeroBarcelo of the commonwealth has been a statehood advocate but speaks of a need for equality and civic dignity for ”a people as profoundly democratic as are Puerto Ricans.” There have been many pro and con arguments on statehood from time to time–economic, political and otherwise. Simon put his finger on an exceedingly realistic point when he said; “Creating an independent nation would make Puerto Rico a tempting target for the less stable elements of the Caribbean, Cuba particularly. That would not be good for Puerto Rico, nor for the United States.” On the other side of the ledger, statehood would insure Uncle Sam a door to Central and South America and be a source of cultural enrichment for other states. Simon thinks the move would be good for the economy of both the island state -and the U. S. as a whole. The Illinois lawmaker cited two cases to back his reference to Puerto Ricans as “second class citizens” under the commonwealth status: A recent tax increase measure hit Puerto Rico harder than it did the 50 states; and a few months ago when food stamps were reduced, Puerto Ricans were cut more than the states. This came about, Simon said, because American citizens who live in Puerto Rico do not cast a vote for the presidency; and in the Senate and House there are no votes cast by representatives of Puerto Rico. “That island has one nonvoting member in Congress, a fine public servant, Baltasar Corrado, who gets a vote in committee, but nothing more.” Puerto Ricans, of ‘ course, pay no U. S. federal income tax. But they pay a Puerto Rico income tax which, accordintg to a Simon aide, excee s the, federal tax combined with that of the state of Virginia. in other words, it is argued that they should not be penalized for not being federal income tax payers. The topic of statehood should receive continuing attention. Meantime, Washington officials should weigh carefully any future actions that might invite resentment where we should be cultivating friendship, understanding and loyalty.