San Pablo -- Politicians shocked by casino deal. Size of project alarms mayor, congressman
(All italicized copy from San Francisco Chronicle, August 19, 2004)
Alarm spread quickly Wednesday over a pending agreement between the state and an Indian tribe that would create a huge casino in the heart of the Bay Area, with even the congressman whose legislation helped it along questioning the deal.
Golly gee, those White Eyes sure do get upset easily.
From Washington to Sacramento, leaders were left with mouths agape by the scope of the compact to be announced today between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians, which will herald the likely development of a six- to eight-story casino with 5,000 slot machines in the center of San Pablo, less than a quarter mile from Interstate 80.
Interestingly enough, today is the 70th anniversary of the plebiscite that gave total power to Adolf Hitler, reminding us that this deal isn't the worst one in recent political history.
The nine-acre site came to the Lyttons as part of legislation by Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez, who sought to allow the landless tribe to have a parcel of land placed into trust. The tribe currently operates a card room on the land.
"Now, you are talking about a facility that will have huge impacts on the surrounding communities." A multi- story casino, he said, is "a much different concept than was anticipated when we authorized the tribe to buy this piece of land."
Hmmm -- "a much different concept than was anticipated..."
Tell that to the the folks who helped the Pilgrims through their first winter.
Let's ask the Native Americans, "Hey, how'd you guys like the Iron Horse? How'd you like General Custer at Sand Creek? How'd you like Wounded Knee, either the first one or the second one? Did those events have any adverse impact on your communities?
More to the point of transforming communities: our first president, old Wooden Teeth George Washington, once the revolution was done and wanting the weak new country to avoid any wars with the Natives, made it clear that he saw the Indian as "like the wolf" in that "they follow the game for their food," and that our expanding settlements would drive the game away and therefore the injuns would go away -- eco-destruction as one of our earliest policies.
Oh -- If you're curious about just why it is those Natives didn't have any land, why it took Rep. George Miller to get them some, and you really haven't already guessed the answer, read up on the history of the Pomo in California.
In short, there was this gold, see, and these local basket makers were in the way of the white Americans, see...
By the way, the Pomo (Medocino south to Bodega Bay, east to around Clear Lake) and the Ohlone (San Francisco Bay south to Monterey Bay), weren't actually tribes, but aggregations of complexly interrelated individual peoples with similar cultural aspects, but different languages. Both Pomo and Ohlone may have been village names. Those inclusive names were given by the Spanish, but of course, the local Euro-trash settlers referred to them as "wormeaters."
Link
Alarm spread quickly Wednesday over a pending agreement between the state and an Indian tribe that would create a huge casino in the heart of the Bay Area, with even the congressman whose legislation helped it along questioning the deal.
Golly gee, those White Eyes sure do get upset easily.
From Washington to Sacramento, leaders were left with mouths agape by the scope of the compact to be announced today between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians, which will herald the likely development of a six- to eight-story casino with 5,000 slot machines in the center of San Pablo, less than a quarter mile from Interstate 80.
Interestingly enough, today is the 70th anniversary of the plebiscite that gave total power to Adolf Hitler, reminding us that this deal isn't the worst one in recent political history.
The nine-acre site came to the Lyttons as part of legislation by Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez, who sought to allow the landless tribe to have a parcel of land placed into trust. The tribe currently operates a card room on the land.
"Now, you are talking about a facility that will have huge impacts on the surrounding communities." A multi- story casino, he said, is "a much different concept than was anticipated when we authorized the tribe to buy this piece of land."
Hmmm -- "a much different concept than was anticipated..."
Tell that to the the folks who helped the Pilgrims through their first winter.
Let's ask the Native Americans, "Hey, how'd you guys like the Iron Horse? How'd you like General Custer at Sand Creek? How'd you like Wounded Knee, either the first one or the second one? Did those events have any adverse impact on your communities?
More to the point of transforming communities: our first president, old Wooden Teeth George Washington, once the revolution was done and wanting the weak new country to avoid any wars with the Natives, made it clear that he saw the Indian as "like the wolf" in that "they follow the game for their food," and that our expanding settlements would drive the game away and therefore the injuns would go away -- eco-destruction as one of our earliest policies.
Oh -- If you're curious about just why it is those Natives didn't have any land, why it took Rep. George Miller to get them some, and you really haven't already guessed the answer, read up on the history of the Pomo in California.
In short, there was this gold, see, and these local basket makers were in the way of the white Americans, see...
By the way, the Pomo (Medocino south to Bodega Bay, east to around Clear Lake) and the Ohlone (San Francisco Bay south to Monterey Bay), weren't actually tribes, but aggregations of complexly interrelated individual peoples with similar cultural aspects, but different languages. Both Pomo and Ohlone may have been village names. Those inclusive names were given by the Spanish, but of course, the local Euro-trash settlers referred to them as "wormeaters."
Link
posted by Saintperle at
9:55 AM
