Stephan:   If I were a Puerto Rican I would be a passionate activist for independence. Puerto Rico could do so much better as an independent Caribbean nation; they could hardly do worse than their current situation as an American colony. At one level this is the story of  the grotesque incompetence of the Trump administration; a complementary story to what has gone on in Houston. At another even more important level Houston and Puerto Rico are telling us that we, as a nation, are woefully unprepared for what is coming with climate change. At either level it is a story of pain, and suffering, and death. Months after Irma and Maria almost a third of Puerto is still without power, and thousands still lack reliable safe water and food. The fact that the media is not covering this is yet another wakeup call.