Many say they lost business...

Many say they lost business after the Prairie Band casino opened.  So are the local business people in North Topeka going to blame the tribe too when the state opens their casinos next year and they lose even more business?

Comments

[Bradley]

Just think what will happen to old cry baby jackson when the other casinos open. he can't blame Indians then.

[Thomas M. Wabnum]

Most Indian Tribes didn’t consider Casino’s or bingo had it not been for the federal governments failures to honor treaty rights and federal trust responsibilities. Tribes had no choice but to seek business ventures as gaming in order to survive continued termination efforts by the federal government. Federal Indian budgets dwindle each fiscal year and then the trickle down funding misses its mark. Gaming profits is not a tradeoff for federal responsibilities originating from tribal treaties.

Indian gaming profits have benefited Tribal needs in more ways federal funds could ever reach. What gaming profits won’t resolve is the historical mismanagement of our Indian health, social dysfunction issues, environmental, land and sovereignty disputes while under the protection of the federal government. Who knows how long it will take Tribes to standardize their communities equal to U. S. citizens.

The casino county, surrounding counties and State all benefit from the Indian Casinos but want more: control. Overspending State budgets is not a justification for approving State wide gaming. State funding disparity creates many unwanted situations related to violations of the laws. Indian Casinos employs many tribal members and non-tribal members so the profits benefit many.

State gaming efforts is a cop out because politicians themselves don’t want to raise taxes on their citizens for overspending their state budgets for fear of political suicide ending a life long career in profitable politics. Their supply and demand costs should come from their own growth.

Indian Tribes are not under any State jurisdiction according to the U.S. Constitution and Supreme Court cases. Blaming the Indians is not justification for job loss. Prior to the Casinos, how many cared if there were enough jobs on the reservations?

All Indian Tribes are under the same federal government so all conditions may be the same. Should all Tribes have Casinos? When it comes down to Do or Die to save their own people and others, Casinos are their only and best bet. If Indians build it, then many will benefit.

Thomas M. Wabnum
Prairie Band Potawatomi