Schwarzenegger refuses to apologize for remarks about Indian casinos

[JI7]

<LOS ANGELES, Oct. 22 (Xinhuanet) -- Despite protests from US Indian tribes in California,Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said Friday he would not apologize for his remarks that the Indians "are ripping us off."

The governor was in response to questions at a news conference held in Los Angeles International Airport Friday about his remarksthat were denounced by the Indians as "racist."

"Read my lips. The Indian gaming tribes with Proposition 70 aretrying to rip off California. I will say it again and again and again because that's what they are doing. And the reason they are upset is because the truth hurts," he said.

Groups representing Indian gaming tribes criticized that Schwarzenegger's comment made last week at a San Diego restaurant was "insensitive."

Schwarzenegger is campaigning against the Proposition 70, whichwould allow tribe-owned casinos to adopt Las Vegas-style gaming, as well as Proposition 68, which would amend California's constitution and statutes regarding Indian gaming compacts negotiated by former Governor Gray Davis and Schwarzenegger. >

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-10/23/content_2129303.htm

[zanana]

1. That's all we need...

A popular politician tells every closeted racist out there that it's okay to feel the way they do and to speak their minds. If Bush wins Nov. 2, every bigot will come out of the closet.

[SpiralHawk]

2. I have heard many Traditional Elders, in particular among the Hopi

say that it is remembered in their oral tradition that widespread gambling was the final straw that brought on the Great Flood (we here on Turtle Island -- which you call North America -- have many stories of the flood that parallel the Biblical and Atlantean tales; over 200 cultures around the world have this great flood as a part of their oral heritage).

By some traditional reckonings, the Great Flood was one of the main events that marked an end to the Third World of the Sun, and initiated the Fourth World of the Sun.

By traditional reckoning, the Fourth World ended around 1987, and we entered a 25 year epoch of transition leading to the World of the Fifth Sun, which will commence Dec. 21, 2012.

Gambling, it is understood in many Medicine Societies, is again playing a part in the Turning of the Ages. As ever, it is poison to the soul for both individual and community, for it stimulates materialism and greed, rather than sharing, caring, honesty and respect, the moral cornerstones that some say will provide the support for the World of the Fifth Sun.

FYI, some related info:
http://www.chiron-communications.com/communique%209-6.html

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Zorra]

23. Do you hate hate other non-white peoples also? Or just Indians?

Your fascist, bigoted, and unfounded generalizations are not appreciated.

[Chicago Democrat]

61. Wow... Dec 21 2012 comes up in this thread...

Apparently the earth is going upside down because the poles are going to reverse.

[madrchsod]

3. i saw that last night

that was fucking shocking to see and hear..thank god i`m in illinois! really i was wtf? this guy is nuts!

[gatlingforme]

7. Rod Blag. has not done the best job either, considering his

GOP appointments to key commission seats throughout Illinois backed by r/w nuts like Tom Cross who has his nose so far up Rod's ass he can't breath..... I am very disappointed in his performance so far. Now that he has stacked the boards with owed favors I hope we can see the Dem in him that he professes to be.

[William Bloode]

4. Well as a Cherokee(eastern)

Phuck him! Native reservations are supposed to soveriegn. Thats supposed to be our gift for almost wiping us out. The attempted genoiced of us was almost complete. Not many years ago this great land was full of people of my color and genotype, and now? To quote Chris Rock "whens the last time you saw a Native family just out at Red Lobster?

[natrat]

5. Jack bet the Mississippi river , Jupiter and Mars

Oh the wind blows cold in the land of the Navajo

[Sabriel]

8. Well, if "they" are ripping "us" off, IT'S ABOUT TIME!

More power to "them." If he doesn't like gambling, then he shouldn't visit casinos.

[Name removed]

11. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[not systems]

14. pathetic racism

Either you are making a joke (that is not funny) or you
have succeeded in one of the foulest displays of racism
I have seen.

Comparing the hunting animals by the first peoples to the
state sponsored genocide perpetrated by the USA is a
disgusting throw back to that very crime.

Disgusting.

You should be ashamed.

[uhhuh]

16. It's pathetic racism

Check his other posts.

Dude's got so much chimp ass all over his lips, it looks like he got a collagen treatment.

[tabasco]

18. Arnie knows as much about sovereignty as Chimpy does.

I wish a reporter would ask him the same question that Shrub bumbled on. Schwartzeneger knows nothing of American history and I hope the good People of California give him the boot at the earliest possible. He is not a moderate if he is supporting the destructive Bush regime. GET HIM OUT !!

Love and respect to my Native American Brothers and Sisters !!!

[Skittles]

24. ooh - that quote

in my entire LIFE I have known only one - ONE - full-blooded Native American.

[Art_from_Ark]

70. There is much to be annoyed about with Schwarzenegger

His idiocy knows no bounds, much like his mentor, GeeDub.

By the way, hello from a DU member with Western Cherokee blood in his family:hi:

[w4rma]

6. It sounds like he's declairing war on American Indians. This is more than

just an "insensitive" remark. I am expecting some serious anti-American Indian policy coming down the pike from his office soon and a whole lot more anti-American Indian rhetoric.

[SemperEadem]

19. well, Schwarzenegger is genetically predisposed to favor genocide

this government ripped the Native Americans off when the obliterated the many tribes while stealing their land from up under them. Leave Indian casinos alone!

[PROGRESSIVE1]

27. Sadly True.

The American Indians must understand that Ahhnuld is there enemy just how the Jews RIGHTFULLY saw Hitler as their ENEMY!!!

YES, I just compared the Indians to being victims like the Jews were and Arnie to DAS FUHRER, and I make NO Apologies for this comparison.

Arnold S. is a horrible person!!!

[shanti]

36. i am cosigning your post!

why did so many californians voted this clown into office??? DID this many californians vote him in?? he keeps putting his foot into his mouth with his ignorant remarks! it's shameful that we have to call him governor!

[PROGRESSIVE1]

63. thanks for the support!

[SemperEadem]

75. they elected a movie character into office, not Ahnold..

truth be told, they really should have elected the writers of his movies as governor, since Ahnold has to be told what to say on film.

The people in Cal who voted him in really didn't take the election seriously. Interview after interview blatently pointed out how stupidly they viewed the recall-- they thought it would be 'funny' to elect someone with absolutely no political experience into office, but he's got a lot of explosions and bad lines, so that made him qualified to be their governor. It's a sort of affirmative action with regards to him--he gets the job with no experience whatsoever. Also, he's one who, like those who screw their way to the top, married into the top Democratic family in the country and thought, by osmosis, that he would gain years of political experience just by sticking his johnson into shrivelled-up Shriver.

[frylock]

9. did the indians fuck gramma millie up the ass, arnold..

like Enron did? This tool is a joke. I thought he was going to be THE COLLECTINATOR? Where's my fuckin money, jerkwad?!! :mad:

[pinniped]

12. For the Pet Terminator who touts education as the key...

he seems to suffer from a lack of it.

The Pet Terminator is a sock puppet alright.

[The Zanti Regent]

13. Send Girly Man a Message VOTE YES ON 70!

Californians, vote YES on 70 and leave the Native American Casinos alone!

Fuck you Arnold, go back to squirting steroids in your veins so your kidneys will fail!

[uhhuh]

15. Yes on both

If Ahnold is against it, I'm for it. I'll go with him on the stem cell thing, though.

[Robbie67]

20. NO on 68

68 has nothing to do with tribes or tribal gaming

[madmom]

17. yeah when are those indians...

gonna stop taking things from us REAL Americans? I hate Aaaarnold!!!!!!!!! Always have now even more.

[mitchtv]

21. Sorry Groper I can't read your lips

too much pancake makeup you fucking twit. try being a man and not a godamn movie queen.

[Zorra]

22. Good. That should result in a net gain of 10,000 votes for Kerry. n/t

[DemoCrusader]

25. Impact of Native American Votes

Does anyone have information about the impact of Ahnold's statement may have on shifting NA votes to Kerry?

[PROGRESSIVE1]

26. ADOLF ARNOLD Stikes Again!!!!

Gee, Arnie, maybe you should deny the Haulocoust too. :eyes:

Somehow or the other, we MUST OUST Arnold in 2006!!!

Maybe he should go back to "Hitler Land" where he came from!!!

:grr:

I HATE ARNOLD!!! When a sitting politician supports bigotry in any manner, they are saying to all the people that it is O.K. to be a bigot!!! :scared:

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

[happynewyear]

28. point thy finger at thyself!

<< I will say it again and again and again because that's what they are doing. And the reason they are upset is because the truth hurts," he said. >>

What do you know about THE TRUTH HERR GROPENATOR? I loath you, you big liar from hell. Some day Ahnuld, karma is going to bitch slap YOU right in the ass.

Ahnuld has not a clue of the struggles that we as Indian people face. Isn't he damn lucky? Maybe someday things won't be so sweet for you Herr Gropenator!

:argh:

:kick:

[Utmost Certainty]

29. How was what Arnold said even racist...?

[clover]

35. how is it not?(nt)

[shanti]

37. buy a clue, dude!

:grr:

[chum]

30. I'm voting witrh Arnold

Sorry - Arnold is right. I'm not supporting casinos - which have NOTHING AT ALL to do with native american tradtions.

[clover]

34. you just go ahead and vote "witrh" him (nt)

[dave502d]

31. Arnold Schwarzenegger can go to hell.

Maybe he don't like people that were hear before him.

[Clovis Sangrail]

32. ahnuld happens to have a point

he's a frickin' embarrassment, but he's right that 70 is a scam.


70 essentially says that tribal casinos will be taxed like any other corporation in the state, and in return:

-ANY tribe that requests gaming permits for ANY tribal land in Ca MUST be given one.

-ALL LIMITS on types of games and the number of machines allowed are REMOVED from ALL tribal casinos.

-If ANY GAMING rights are EVER given to anybody other than a federally recognized tribes, tribal payments STOP... but, apparently, they get to keep all the extra machines.

This is a honey pot for tribal casinos.
They get unlimited expansion and a guarantee they will never have any competition.

This isn't happening in the middle of the desert, as some people think, nor is this a purely tribal venture.

There are already court cases regarding casinos in the SF Bay area (Richmond AND Hillsborough); and the developers and financiers are often the same ones that bankroll casinos in Vegas.

Yes, the US screwed the native americans.
That doesn't give them the right to now do whatever they want.

For better or worse, there are lots of other people in the state other than native americans who will be affected by what they do... so the decision should not be made on the basis of an emotional argument.

[clover]

33. well now

"Yes, the US screwed the native americans.
That doesn't give them the right to now do whatever they want."

oh. yes. it. does.

entire generations decimated. land stolen. promises broken. no apologies. no talk of reparations. the dead defiled : their remains exploited and displayed for financial gain.

whatever. whatever they want.

[MisterP]

38. Governor Nipples says: "Vee vea hea fust!"

[shanti]

40. yes!

:thumbsup: :hi:

[clover]

43. aren't you just sick of:

"well, the past has passed."

"the" indians just have to get over it. sweet God, such arrogance and intentional forgetting! but still these deniers of history and stark truth make and sell and buy their pathetic yarn "dream catchers" and dance at "powwows" in their jogging suits and pay lipservice to the Spirit they cannot comprehend without accepting that their affluence is built on the crushed bodies of the native dead, a fact that is too terrible to embrace.

[Clovis Sangrail]

41. thoughtful

my people were screwed, do I get to do "whatever" I want?

HEY! I know those whales are endangered, but that tribe got screwed!
Let's let them hunt the whales anyways... it's their right.

Never mind that they'll soon be extinct.

Never mind that not a single member of the tribe was even alive when the last one was traditionally hunted.

Never mind that this "traditional" hunt is carried out with 50 cal rifles.

Never mind that the reason the tribe wants to hunt whales is so they can sell the meat to the Japanese.


yeah... let them do whatever they want.

[clover]

45. you advocate for whales; i advocate for my grandmother (nt)

[shanti]

39. sorry, but i believe it DOES allow

native americans extensive rights. karma, you know...

[Clovis Sangrail]

44. not karma

5000 machine/ 500 room casino/hotel with only a 2 lane road for 80 miles in either direction.... sewage, pollution, and traffic happen.

If you think that the people who now live on a far more dangerous road just "have to live with it", what about the environment?

or is it all somehow OK because it's "tribal"?

[clover]

46. oh. so "your" land is being threatened now?

you require a four lane highway? "your" environment is being threatened?
you are right: tribal concerns carry no weight. capitalist concerns and the concerns of land"owners" are paramount.
do you honestly believe that "indians" prefer to run casinos? isn't it possible that generations of humanity have been crushed beyond redemption--so far--with a parallel reduction of career and lifestyle alternatives?
don't gamble. prohibit your children from gambling. stop kicking working folks when they are trying to rise to the affluence you enjoy.

[Clovis Sangrail]

49. what "indians" prefer

do you honestly believe that "indians" prefer to run casinos?

I think "indians" have about the same mix of geniuses, assholes, and idiots as any other group.

I also think that while some tribal councils do take care of their people, others "prefer" to do whatever is most profitable for themselves, just like any other "board members".

Be it strip mining for uranium, hunting whales, or building a casino.

stop kicking working folks when they are trying to rise to the affluence you enjoy

YOU FOUND MY BAG OF MONEY!?!?!?!?!?!?!
This is GREAT!!!!
I've been waiting to be "affluent" my whole life and now I happen across the person who found my bag of money!

[clover]

50. you have a computer. you have electricity.

you are angry over financial issues. you can locate the undisturbed graves of your grandparents. your great-grandparents. you define affluence as "a bag of money." you want "a bag of money."
i stand corrected: you are not affluent. you envy those that are.

NATIVE AMERICAN CODE OF ETHICS

1. Rise with the sun to pray. Pray alone.
Pray often. The Great Spirit will listen,
if you only speak.

2. Be tolerant of those who are lost on their path.
Ignorance, conceit,anger, jealousy and greed stem
from a lost soul.Pray that they will find guidance.

3. Search for yourself, by yourself.
Do not allow others to make your path for you.
It is your road, and yours alone.
Others may walk it with you, but no one
can walk it for you.

4. Treat the guests in your home with much
consideration. Serve them the best food, give them
the best bed and treat them with respect and honor.

5. Do not take what is not yours whether from
a person, a community, the wilderness or from a culture.
It was not earned nor given. It is not yours.

6. Respect all things that are placed upon this earth
- whether it be people or plant.

7. Honor other people's thoughts, wishes and words.
Never interrupt another or mock or rudely mimic them.
Allow each person the right to personal expression.

8. Never speak of others in a bad way.
The negative energy that you put out into the universe
will multiply when it returns to you.

9. All persons make mistakes.
And all mistakes can be forgiven.

10. Bad thoughts cause illness
of the mind, body and spirit.
Practice optimism.

11. Nature is not FOR us, it is a PART of us.
They are part of your worldly family.

12. Children are the seeds of our future.
Plant love in their hearts and water them
with wisdom and life's lessons.
When they are grown, give them space to grow.

13. Avoid hurting the hearts of others.
The poison of your pain will return to you.

14. Be truthful at all times.
Honesty is the test of ones will within this universe.

15. Keep yourself balanced.Your Mental self,
Spiritual self, Emotional self, and Physical self -
all need to be strong, pure and healthy.
Work out the body to strengthen the mind.
Grow rich in spirit to cure emotional ails.

16. Make conscious decisions as to who you will be
and how you will react. Be responsible for your
own actions.

17. Respect the privacy and personal space of others.
Do not touch the personal property of others -
especially sacred and religious objects.
This is forbidden.

18. Be true to yourself first.
You cannot nurture and help others if you cannot
nurture and help yourself first.

19. Respect others religious beliefs.
Do not force your belief on others.

20. Share your good fortune with others.
Participate in charity.

[Clovis Sangrail]

52. wow... impressive

you are angry over financial issues. you can locate the undisturbed graves of your grandparents. your great-grandparents. you define affluence as "a bag of money." you want "a bag of money."
i stand corrected: you are not affluent. you envy those that are.

what are you, some kinda pop psychologist?
yeah... you "get" me after 5 posts on an internet board.
How the hell do you know if I can or can't find the "undisturbed graves" of my ancestors?
You don't.
You don't know what I envy or what I want, nor I you.
Let's dispense with the speculation and stick with the issue.

I am currently concerned with casinos and the direct affect they on the communities around them.

You put forth the "NATIVE AMERICAN CODE OF ETHICS".
That's wonderful, but it seems that not all tribal councils adhere to it.

5. Do not take what is not yours whether from
a person, a community, the wilderness or from a culture.
It was not earned nor given. It is not yours.

Building a large casino in the middle of some small farming valley is very definitely taking from a community and the wilderness.

6. Respect all things that are placed upon this earth
- whether it be people or plant.

Pushing large amounts of traffic, for your own profit, down a 2 lane road through rural communities is not what I would call "respectful" to either the residents or the local flora.

[clover]

54. why the quotation marks? i never wrote that i "get you"

i know that the land owned by anglo farmers--myself among them--was stolen. that is a fact. you know it is. important things happened long before you and i were born. you seem--more speculation-- threatened by traffic and the invasion of your space, your wilderness.

perhaps this is some kind of justice. i do know a pissing match when i see one, and so i do apologize for whizzing in your cyberspace and taking up your time unnecessarily--my time, too, i suppose--and i wish you well as you fight the indians who are intent on stealing your comfort and safety. you will most likely win.

[Clovis Sangrail]

57. stolen land and pissing matches

I am well aware of what was stolen and how it was done; I don't, however, see how that is a justification for those who were wronged to now wrong others.


why the quotation marks? i never wrote that i "get you

...and I never wrote that it was my environment, nor did I advocate a 4 lane highway

you require a four lane highway? "your" environment is being threatened?

you are correct that this has degenerated into a pissing match, and though I am sorry it has, I agree it should now end.

I wish you well in your battles as well, though, FYI, I am not currently focused on fighting "the indians" (regardless of how opressed you wish to feel).

If a prop comes up that is fair to the tribes AND fair to the people of Ca I'll support it all the way, but till then...

[NVMojo]

51. what most including ahnold are missing here is this ....

most Indian casinos are developed and managed by rich white people who do the investing and deveoping and then managing of the casinos for Indians. Who else is usually behind low or no taxes on the corporate rich??

[Clovis Sangrail]

53. exactly /nt

.

[George_S]

42. Link?

And is that for both of them?

And why is Swartz so popular?

[Clovis Sangrail]

48. Richmond

If you're not familiar with the bay area, Richmond is right above Berkeley.

http://casinomagazine.com/managearticle.asp?c=280&A=11893
http://www.smdailyjournal.org/article.cfm?issue=08-19-04&storyID=33937

I'll post a link to the Hillsborough one when I find it.
It was on my radar about a year ago. If I recall, a tribe was trying to put a casino in Hillsborough on land that they had recently purchased. The city said no, and the tribe was going to take them to court.

As for why Ahnuld is so popular... people are really stupid.
...I really can't think of a more succint explantion.

[Heidi]

47. Why should this surprise us?

Ah-nold is, after all, of the same party as Oklahoma Senate candidate Dr. Tom Coburn, who recently insisted that Cherokees are not really Indians, that treaties are primitive agreements, and that lesbianism is running rampant in rural Oklahoma. Ah-nold is after all, of the party that seems to endorse genocide by trotting out nuts like Ann Coulter, whose policy on Iraq is to kill all their leaders and convert the rest to Christianity.

Too much power in the hands of the intellectually and spiritually deficient. It's comforting though, to know that "what comes around, goes around," and come Nov. 2, we'll all get to see karma in action.

End of rant.

[Divine Discontent]

55. I have native blood in me from North America

and I wish to give my 2 cents. On their own reservations, I don't think anyone has a right to tell them what they can do on their land. They could be for the oddest customs imaginable, but we could say nothing to their governing council. We could only work with their ambassadors to try to stop something we may think is wrong, but ultimately, they decide it.

If it is on non reservation land, I believe that whatever they can work out between our gov't through the courts, voting, and congress is the best that they can ask for.

I know gambling is really really bad, I've done it a lot, and really really hurt myself, so I sort of wish they wouldn't do something I think of as an unhealthy vice to better themselves, but, it's not my decision.

Arnie is not a good governor from what I can tell so far.

[Tight_rope]

56. Adolf Arnold and Keyes just keep putting their feet up their own asses!

[Chicago Democrat]

58. I don't like gambling and feel it is wrong...

So in this case I'm in agreement with the Jerk Gropenater. Native Americans should be limited casinos only on their own land and they should seek redress of thier historic grievences through other means, like the courts. In many states they open Casinos far from their land, sometimes in the middle of major cities.

From what I see the money from Indian Casinos helps some Native Americans while ignoring the vast problems of 95% of the rest. Gambling is a parasitic business which ruins lives and the profits go to the few and the connected. There is also ample evidence that that organized crime is involved as well.

[leesa]

60. And how is this different from other corporate businesses?

[Chicago Democrat]

66. It provides no "good" or "service"....

The entertainment value is similar to a game of Russian Roulette. People become gambling addicts and loose everything. The United States has a right to protect its people from gambling because it is a vice. I don't like gambling and it has nothing to do with the historic wrongs against the Native Peoples.

If Native Americans want to have every vice under the sun legal on their own sovereign land; its their business. But what they have been doing is setting up casinos in Non-Indian lands and when they do they are under US laws; isn't that fair?

The Europeans killed and stole from the Indians all of America. They did it by agreeing to treaties and then the US broke them. In addition there are other tribes that didn't even have any treaties. Native People should enforce their treaties and the ones without treaties should get reparations. The US not have nuclear waste put on their Yucca Mountain. A million other things. Why is gambling seen as the only issue? The entire issue needs a comprehensive permanent solution where the Native Americas can actually forgive our historic genocide.

Allowing them to buy a lot in downtown Detroit (which they did) and call it sovereign is way over the line. In the case of Detroit, the locals eventually let them in...which is fine.

[leesa]

59. Well, thank goodness it's not rich white men ripping us off!

What a pathetic joke this creature is.

[xxqqqzme]

62. that's cuz steroid boy

is in the pocket of the Canadian horse racing group supporting prop 68. I don't think the tribes should B taxed at all. Just because they found a way 2 get whitey 2 give them $$$$, every gov entity thinks they deserve a cut - phuck steroid boy -time to visit YOUR homeland U nazi rethug. The arrogance of an AUSTRIAN asshole, installed as governor by the rethugs, can cast aspersions on NATIVE PEOPLES is un-fucking-believable!

[Clovis Sangrail]

67. taxes aren't the most important issue

...at least not to me.

The limits on where casinos can be built and how big they can be is my major concern.

This is NOT just a tribal issue.
There is very big corporate money on both sides of this issue.

68 is a scam by the racetracks and their corporate backers.
70 is a scam by the tribes and their corporate backers.

No on both.

The arrogance of an AUSTRIAN asshole, installed as governor by the rethugs
not true

Davis was voted out and Ahnold in with many many dem votes...
it couldn't have happened without them.

It was orchestrated by the repubs, no doubt, but Davis responded so poorly that the recall won 55% to 45%... and obviously crossed party lines in a big way.

[vs the introvore]

64. YESSSSS! we shall be quick to tag-a-logo-the land

i have seen the future corp/cult. since bush has annexed the grand canyon for the creationists; mesa verde will be re-populated by a church of Gambling Faithful meta-consumers guided by Telekineticists endowed with the power to warp & manipulate the games of chance. this off-market wagering will eventually crush NYSE and NASDAQ through its provisional yet infinite topical statistical banks. realtime, reallife action available on yer palm! might be sick but it seems fair that a few exploit the remnants of native american culture. totems for charms. rain dances for lucky dice chances.

[Robbie67]

65. This just makes me want to vote YES on 70 all the more

AHH-nold and his party are a bunch of racists (or, at the very least, classists) and their screaming about this only leads me to conclude that it's probably a good deal for the tribes.

[struggle4progress]

68. kick for sh*theads everywhere

:kick:

[progdonkey]

69. I must be missing something...

What is it about the "ripping us off" that's racist towards Native Americans? I'm assuming from the shock that it must have some racial origin like "they gypped us" does, but could someone clue me in?

[Chicago Democrat]

71. Native Americans are pissed off with good reason..

They hate us because the Europeans committed genocide against them. They are a shadow of their former greatness and forever compromised and polluted. This is our nations greatest shame and crime, destroying tribes, civilizations and cultures

I would like to see this redressed, but I honestly don't believe that gambling is the answer. Also I don't think we could ever really undo what has been done. I wish there were some way they could forgive us.

[Clovis Sangrail]

72. if you figure out what you're missing, let me know

cause I'm missing it too.

I don't see anything particularly racist about the comment... and although I detested the recall and was opposed to ahnuld, I think he's correct.

70 deserves more consideration than just voting opposite of ahnuld.

Links to pros/cons and text of the prop are here:
http://www.smartvoter.org/2004/11/02/ca/state/prop/70/

[Zerex71]

73. Anyone else happen to know how many times The Gropenator has

been to a casino?

[chimpy the poopthrower]

74. Doesn't anyone else find it INTERESTING...?

...that this article is basically misleading readers about what Schwarzenegger actually said? His original comment was, "The Indians are ripping us off." But notice the sleight-of-hand here. Now Schwarzenegger says, "The Indian gaming tribes with Proposition 70 are trying to rip off California. I will say it again and again..." By phrasing it this way, Schwarzenegger is trying to give the impression that that was his original comment. But there is a world of difference between The Indians are ripping us off and The Indian gaming tribes with Proposition 70 are trying to rip off California. It's too bad the "journalist" who wrote this article chose to leave out the most critical piece of information -- what Schwarzenegger actually said at that restaurant. Please don't let Republicans get away with this bit of revisionism. I urge Californian DUers to write LTTEs to remind people of what Schwarzenegger actually said, as opposed to this new line that he is trying to pretend is what he said.

[northzax]

76. The words were poorly chosen

obviously, and represent a badly envisaged underlying mentality by the Governor, and he is targeting the wrong people. Indian casinos have, for the most part, failed miserably in bringing needed sustainable development and services to reservations. I know of only two stellar examples (Mohegan Sun, Mashantucket Pequoud) who have actually made a killing on casinoa. And those are spectacular models, but not sustainable for most places in the US (simply put, you have 40 million people within a two hour drive. 40 million. Most Indian Casinos don't provide much for the local community bnesides a wealth of minimum wage jobs (which is better than nothing, I'll grant you) The Pequod and Mohegan tribes have done a stellar job, after some initial excesses, in investing their proceeds in education and development, but nowhere else in the US has thiss uccess been replicated. for almost all examples, casinos are ripoffs, not only for the nearest population center, but for the tribes involved, who go billions of dollars into debt chasing the dream of the Connecticut windfall. Casinos are not economic enginges, they are economic vacuums, with fifty percent of the proceeds, and most of the good jobs, going away to Wall Street.

Casinos are a rip off, for everyone involved save the bankers. They are a pipe dream. There is no doubt that the United States has failed in it's obligations, legal and moral to indigenous populations, but this is not appropriate compensation. You can make an arguement that places like Las Vegas, or AC, or the Monhegan Sun, are actual destinations, you can go and not simply gamble, and that is why we tolerate them. The casinos built by these operations will not be destinations, they will be lonely, sad, moeny vacuums, feeding on the addiction and desperation of people. This is not glamorous, it's not movie stars and happy people betting throw away money on a boxing match, or well dressed people laughing as they lose play moeny at the craps table. No, it is not a las vegas commercial, pretty people dancing the night away. It is someone's grandmother, systematically pouring her social security check into a slot machine in a dingy room at 3 am. Go to one, it's not a happy place, it is desperate people pouring money into their addiction, as surely as if they simply sold them heroin. Go watch someone who has just gambled away the rent, or their children's grocery money.

Taking advatange of an addiction to remedy past abuses, however horrific, is not, in my opinion, a good way to go about it. How is this different from the greedy peddlers who made fortunes selling alcoholo to destitute, alcoholoc indians in the last century? No difference, except the roles are reversed. The United States owes serious reparations to tribes, no doubt, and most can never be made whole, but that does not mean that we should trade the economic security of our weakest populations, and the addicted, to make repercussions. Casinos are not a panacea, remember that.