Anthem Anathema

   Quick, name your home state's anthem.
   In reporting on the Puerto Rican Day celebrations in Philadelphia, the news anchor referred to the singing of the "Puerto Rico national anthem."
   The island is an autonomous possession of the U.S., and, because it is autonomous, it is entitled to a "national" anthem even though it is not an independent nation.
   The island was ceded to the U.S. by Spain after the war in 1898, and the residents acquired U.S. citizenship in 1917. So far, Puerto Ricans have not yet agreed on whether to move to statehood, or to separate from the U.S. and gain independence.
   New Jersey, Ohio and other states have "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem.
   Some states do not even have state songs, and of those that do, some are marvelously unmemorable. There was a move some years ago to enact a state song for New Jersey, to be sung to a familiar melody. It began:

If you New Jersey, like I know Jersey
Oh, oh, oh what a state.

   It was, mercifully, vetoed.