--Tim
Giago, "It is time for gaming
tribes to 'think Indian'."
--From
Bill Gellermann, "The Millennium Vision."
--Declaration of Globalization
for the Common Good: 4th Annual International Conference on
An Interfaith Perspective on Globalization for the Common Good
--Steve Sachs, "What
President Bush and Company Need to Learn from Native Peoples."
IT
IS TIME FOR GAMING TRIBES TO THINK INDIAN
Tim Giago (Nanwica Kciji)
Native American Journalists Foundation, Inc., NTN
Article #6264, 4/4/2005
In
this, the fourth installment on Indian gaming, I want
to examine how the wealthy Indian nations can help the less
fortunate tribes.
The first thing leaders of the wealthy gaming tribes
must do is to 'think Indian.' For those of us who are reservation
born, raised and educated, that takes on a special meaning.
If the wealthy tribes are relying on the wisdom of their non-Indian
lawyers and white accountants, they are not 'thinking Indian.'
Instead they are leaving the decisions of how to assist other
tribes in the hands of uneducated and uniformed.
For example, there is not a single wealthy tribe that
does not face the overwhelming burden of how to spend or shelter
excess revenues. The non-Indian lawyers and accountants will
point them in the direction of the usual suspects, but their
mindset never leads them to searching out the ways and means
to assist the less fortunate Indian tribes. Why not? They do
not know the Indian people and have no compassion for them.
Every Indian nation in the United States can be considered
a tax-exempt entity. The leaders of the wealthy Indian tribes
should know this and go out into Indian country and meet with
the leaders of the poor tribes and create dialogue that will
address their needs. If there is a need for homes the rich tribes
could contract with a construction company to build houses on
the lands of the poor reservations. There are Indian owned construction
companies that would gladly take on such a task. Jobs would
be created in the process. Can the tribal leaders of the rich
tribes even imagine an Indian reservation of 20,000 with an
unemployment rate of 80 percent?
Why not send your leaders to meet with a tribal president
like Cecelia Fire Thunder of the Pine Ridge Reservation in South
Dakota? Perhaps Cecelia will tell you the reservation needs
doctors to staff its hospital. Couldn't the rich tribes then
hire and pay the wages of doctors to spend a couple of years
administering to the health needs of the people?
Most of the schools on the reservation need good teachers,
new classrooms, computers and so on. Couldn't the rich tribes
pay for these necessities? What about books for the school libraries?
I asked a tribal leader long ago why he did not advertise
for Indians from the very poor tribes to come to his reservation
and work in his casino since most of the employees I saw working
there were not Indians. He said, 'But these are only minimum
wage jobs.' I pointed out that a minimum wage is much better
than no wage at all.
Several years ago I suggested that a United Indian Way
be established and excess money from the rich tribes be directed
to it. This organization could operate much in the manner of
the established United Way. It could provide funds to private
Indian organizations such as Indian Women Against Domestic Violence
and other deserving organizations that are having such a hard
time surviving on the donations of other charitable groups.
These private organizations are having a hard time because
so many of the former contributors believe that all Indian tribes
are now very rich because of gambling profits and it is the
duty of casino tribes to contribute to keep these organizations
viable. As a result donations have dried up considerably in
the past few years. The thinking is that if one Indian tribe
is very rich then it follows that all Indian tribes are rich.
Sort of a Catch-22 situation.
Perhaps the rich tribes should contact the Native American
Rights Fund, a legal organization made up of Indian lawyers
based in Boulder, CO, and work through them to re-direct their
tax dollars to the less fortunate Indian tribes. Since they
are obligated to pay enormous sums in taxes to the federal government
and other governmental entities, why not use these tax dollars
in a good cause?
Last week one Indian man wrote to me, 'I totally agree.
Why can't we share' Our tribe feels they need to subsidize programs
that can't budget correctly. This results in negative reimbursement.
The decision-makers are in effect saying it's OK if you can't
budget because we make a million dollars every day and we can
supplement any shortfalls.'
He concluded, 'When you take more money than you need
you are greedy. Greed is no good. Remember that the little eye
on the dollar bill is the devil.'
The problem I see here is that when I point out the obvious
to the wealthy Indian tribes they react negatively. They take
any constructive criticism personally. In other words, they
try to figuratively kill the messenger. ?That SOB will not tell
us what we can or cannot do with our money,? seems to be the
general reaction. And they are right. No one can tell them what
to do with their money. One can only suggest and hope that there
are more intelligent and compassionate heads among the tribal
leaders sitting upon this unlimited wealth.
The window of opportunity is now open, but how long it
will remain so is questionable. State governments are hurriedly
rushing into the gambling frenzy and the increased competition
can only hurt those tribes that are now raking in millions every
month. The Western governors met in Denver last week and you
can rest assured that they discussed Indian gaming and state
gaming behind closed doors.
As state governments' coffers shrink any alternative
way to raise revenues is on the table. And right now creating
more gaming revenues for the state governments is leading the
way.
For the rich Indian nations, the iron is now hot and
how it is used will be a reflection upon them for generations
to come. Compassion or greed? That is the question. The answer
is 'Think Indian.'
Tim Giago is the founder and the former editor and publisher
of The Lakota Times, Indian Country Today, and the Lakota
and Dakota Journals. He can be reached at giagobooks@iw.net
-+-<><><><><><><>-+-
THE
MILLENIUM VISION
From
Bill Gellermann
The following vision was
developed by 1,350 representatives of over 1000 Non-Governmental
Organizations (NGOs) and other civil society organizations from
more than 100 countries who gathered at UN headquarters in New
York from 22-26 May 2000.
"Our vision is of a world
that is human-centered and genuinely democratic, where all human
beings are full participants and determine their own destinies.
In our vision, we are one human family, in all our diversity,
living on one common homeland and sharing a just, sustainable
and peaceful world, guided by universal principles of democracy,
equality, inclusion, voluntarism, non-discrimination and participation
by all persons, men and women, young and old, regardless of
race, faith, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity or nationality.
It is a world where peace and human security, as envisioned
in the principles of the United Nations Charter, replace armaments,
violent conflict and wars. It is a world where everyone lives
in a clean environment with a fair distribution of the earth’s
resources. Our vision includes a special role for the dynamism
of young people and the experience of the elderly and reaffirms
the universality, indivisibility and interdependence of all
human rights - civil, political, economic, social, and cultural."
When people throughout the
world are aligned based on a widely shared vision, their ability
to cooperate will be significantly increased. The vision described
above may be such a vision.
++++<><><><><><><>++++
Declaration
of Globalization for the Common Good: 4th Annual International
Conference on An Interfaith Perspective on Globalization for
the Common Good
Overcoming poverty is not a gesture
of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of
a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent
life. While poverty persists, there is no true freedom.
- Nelson Mandela
Africa and Globalization for the
Common Good: The Quest for Justice and Peace
Kericho, Kenya, April 21-24, 2005
As our International Conference
on Globalization for the Common Good and the Quest for Justice
and Peace in Africa - in which many speakers representing, governments,
religions, business, academia, civil society, charity, voluntary
sector, media and young people participated - comes to an end,
we shall carry with us happy memories of the warmth of the welcome
we received and of our brief but enriching experience of the
variety and vitality of African life. We admire and salute Africa's
achievements in ending colonialism, dismantling apartheid, and
initiating development, democratization and social reform. We
are also conscious of the enormous contribution Africa has to
make to the rest of the world, but we are aware that many people
here live in poverty and are unable to achieve their full potential.
For this situation to be changed 'Globalization for the Common
Good' is essential.
We affirm our conviction that
people everywhere prosper where justice and equity are honored.
We salute our African sisters and brothers and their heroic
struggle for justice and peace. We applaud Africa's determination
to solve her own problems. We urge the world to work in partnership
with the African people to support that process and to remove
the impediments that have been imposed on Africa from the outside.
We enthusiastically affirm that the good of the African peoples
is an indispensable condition for achieving the universal common
good, but we acknowledge that the life conditions under which
many Africans live remain intolerable, an affront to the dignity
of all humankind. We urge the amelioration of these conditions
through a change of governmental, intergovernmental, corporate
and social policy in favor of the poor, the marginalized, the
dispossessed and the excluded. We offer our individual and joint
commitments to work toward this goal. We urge that the international
community, governments and institutions express their solidarity
with the people of Africa by promoting a society of hope, compassion,
justice and peace in Africa. We call for the formation and empowerment
of the youth of Africa as leaders of this transformation.
To this end, we recommend the
practical vision and mission of Globalization for the Common
Good for Africa. Globalization for the Common Good means the
promotion of ethical, moral and spiritual values - which are
shared by all religions in the areas of economics, commerce,
trade and international relations. It emphasizes personal and
societal virtues. It calls for understanding and collaborative
action - on the part of civil society, private enterprise, the
public sector, governments, and national and international institutions
ö to address major global issues. Globalization for the common
good is predicated on a global economy of sharing and community,
grounded in an economic value system whose aim is generosity
and the promotion of a just distribution of the world's goods,
which are divine gifts.
The Essential Dimensions
of Globalization for the Common Good:
The acknowledgement of God,
Ultimate Reality, or the On:. Our lives are grounded in an Ultimate Reality, the source
of the sacredness of all life and of the spiritual power, hope,
and trust that we discover in prayer or meditation, in word
or silence, and in our striving for just relationships with
all existence.
The investment of Spiritual
Capital: The most powerful
way for faith and spiritual communities to influence beliefs,
norms and institutions is through prophetic voice and public
action. Highly visible faith and interfaith affirmation of the
great spiritual truths of peace, justice, and the sacredness
of the Earth and all life can make a tremendous contribution
to Globalization for the Common Good. Action and service by
spiritual and faith communities and groups can provide a vital
source of inspiration and energy for the healing of the world.
The practice of selfless
Love: The most important
point of convergence shared by the world's great spiritual traditions
is to be found in the practice and power of selfless love for
all humanity. It is the wellspring of the best hope for a better
future.
The cultivation of interfaith
Dialogue and Engagement: It is absolutely vital that religious and spiritual communities
come together with one another in honest and open dialogue.
It is also essential that these communities enter into dialogue
with secular groups, organizations and governments working for
a better world. Religious and spiritual communities - in mutual
respect and partnership ö must engage the critical issues that
face the planetary community as the 21st century unfolds.
The nurturing of cultures
of Peace. True cultural
evolution is perhaps best measured in the growing rejection
of violent approaches to conflict resolution in favor of the
cultivation of the infrastructures of forgiveness, reconciliation
and peace. Our greatest contribution to the future lies in ensuring
that our children grow to maturity in cultures of peace.
The struggle for Justice:
Justice is the heart of all creation. It is the profound feeling
of oneness with all other beings in the universe. Today, it
finds its most vital expression in social and economic fairness,
concern for others and the vigorous defense of human rights.
The realization of Gender
Partnership: Challenging the assumptions and infrastructures of patriarchy is essential
to cultural evolution. Women and men, living and working together
in harmony and equity, can build stronger, more creative religious
communities and societies.
The path of Sustainability:
In this rapidly changing world, our reverence for the Earth
will determine the fate of the entire community of planetary
life. This deep, visionary and unconditional caring for what
is yet to come, is the love of life embedded in ecological sustainability.
The commitment to Service:
Service is our link to spirit. Personal action for a better
world is the discernable manifestation of the divine in the
human. The essence of service is the grace of giving. We give
because giving is how life begins and how it continues. This
process will enhance personal responsibility for the common
good.
We affirm that economics is,
above all, concerned with human well-being and happiness in
society and with care for the Earth. This cannot be separated
from moral and spiritual considerations. The idea of a 'value-free'
economics is spurious. It demonstrates a complete misunderstanding
of what it means to be a human being.
We affirm our conviction that
genuine interfaith dialogue and cooperation is a significant
way of bringing the world together. It is indispensable to the
creation of the harmonious global culture needed to build peace,
justice, sustainability and prosperity for all. The call for
Globalization for the Common Good is an appeal to our essential
humanity. It engages the most pressing concerns of peoples the
world over.
Globalization for the Common
Good, by addressing the crises that face us all, empowers us
with humanity, spirituality and love. It engages people of different
races, cultures and languages, from a wide variety of backgrounds,
all committed to bringing about a world in which there is more
solidarity and greater harmony. This spiritual ground for hope
at this time of wanton destruction of our world, can help us
to recall the ultimate purpose of life and of our journey in
this world.
You are invited to add your
name to the list of supporters of this Declaration by filling
out the online form at: http://www.gnnsj.org/commongood/ You
are welcome to help to disseminate this statement as widely
as possible. For further details about the conference and Globalization
for the Common Good, please visit our web site: www.commongood.info.
-+<><><><><><><>+-
WHAT
PRESIDENT BUSH AND COMPANY NEED TO LEARN FROM NATIVE PEOPLES
Steve Sachs, Emeritus
IUPUI
In December, The Supreme Court of Navajo Nation ruled
that Navajo police cannot lie or mislead people to obtain a
confession, nor can they act rudely, as Dine tradition requires
acting with patience and respect. This is a point that President
Bush, and many in his administration and among the Republican
leadership in Congress, needs to take note of, and to learn
from. It is now public knowledge, from the statements of former
Bush administration cabinet members and intelligence staff,
and from the "Downing Street Memo" and other documents,
that President Bush lied repeatedly to the American people about
going to war with Iraq. It is now clear, that contrary to the
Presidents claims, from the beginning of his term in the White
House, he intended to invade Iraq and bent the intelligence
data to provide a false justification for doing so, This, of
itself, is an impeachable offense, as the framers of the constitution
feared, and wrote provisions to deter, presidents from involving
the country in foreign adventures.
But it is not only about the war that the White House
has lied and misled the country, far exceeding the usual spin
that politicians often put forth to place the best interpretation
they can on the facts to support their position. In order to
mislead Congress into passing senior drug benefits, the White
House intentionally grossly understated the costs of the program.
Many scientists and scientific organizations have complained
that the Bush administration has regularly suppressed and misstated
scientific data for political expedience, with reckless regard
for the consequences, as occurred just after 9/11, when the
White House blocked the release of EPA reports that air around
the fallen World Trade Towers was toxic, resulting in serious
respiratory problems for numerous people at, and around, ground
zero, that could easily have been avoided if that information
had been available.
More recently, leading Congressional Republicans have
knowingly made patently untrue statements, for short term advantage,
such as claiming, in the debate over stopping Democratic Senators
from filibustering Presidential appointments to the Circuit
Court of Appeals, that filibusters to stop the Senate from voting
on such appointments are without precedent, when that has been
undertaken numerous time in recent years, particularly by Republicans.
It would seem that the offending Republican leaders have been
counting on the combination of a friendly right leaning media,
and a passive corporately controlled mainstream press, to let
them get away with such abuses. It is likely that these abuses
have brought some immediate gains, but they are already contributing
to falling public confidence in the Congress and the President,
and to seriously dividing the nation, with a high likelihood
that such flagrant dishonesty will undermine the political position
of the perpetrators and their party, in the longer term.
Recently, Republican leaders of Congress have begun violating
congressional procedure for their own advantage. In one instance,
the Chair of the House Judiciary Committee cut off the hearing
on the renewal of the Patriot Act, to prevent the Democratic
members of the committee from calling witnesses, which they
were legally entitled to do, after the Republicans had already
misused the rules to prevent witnesses from answering questions
asked by Democratic committee members, by talking at length
(i.e. filibustering!) to use up all the time available for the
witness to answer. In a second case, on a voice vote on an amendment
in the House that would limit the ability, or prevent, corporations
from abandoning pension plans, the presiding Republican incorrectly
ruled that the "nos" prevailed, when it is extremely
clear to anyone listening to a recording of the session, that
the "ayes" were in the vast majority (seen also in
the following groans of protest, that were also more numerous
than the previous "no" votes).
These maneuverings are clearly violations of both the
U.S. principles of republican democracy and of the broader inclusive
participatory values, that in differing processes and forms,
were wide spread in traditional indigenous societies in the
Americas, and indeed around the world. There is a double advantage
to this inclusiveness, that these Bush league, Bush whacking,
Republican radicals (as opposed traditional and other Republicans)
miss to the their long run disadvantage, and to the immediate
and long run detriment of the United States and its citizens.
First, as American Indians learned from experience, when all
points of view are heard, and so far as practicable included
in a policy, practically everyone supports the policy, at least
to the extent of finding it legitimate, and the community tends
to be unified. Second, when all ways of seeing and understanding
contribute to an open deliberation, the general result is better
policy.
The obviously manipulative tactics for achieving many
policies, by what, perhaps, should be called illegitimate Republicans
(who the other Republicans would be wise to restrain or remove,
lest their actions condemn all the members of the party to another
Water Gate, like, calamity) divide the nation, making governance
more difficult, and wasting vast amounts of energy in angry
conflict, that is needed for positive action. Moreover, by relying
on only a narrow set of advisers with a single understanding,
necessarily giving them tunnel vision, no matter how brilliant
they may be (for in such a circumstance the strength of competence
becomes a major weakness), governmental actions have negative
consequences, failing to meet even their narrow objectives.
Thus, the decision to go to war in Iraq and the planning of
it by the civilian, "Neo Cons", in the Pentagon has
been a string of amazing incompetencies, by extremely smart
people, who are ignorant of the situation in which they are
acting. And because they refuse to listen outside their narrow
circle, they continue to make comparable blunders, and repeat
similar mistakes made by the US, and others, in the past (For
example, read the discussion of the chain of errors made by
the US in Vietnam, in Barbara Tuckman, The March of Folly).
In the domestic arena, Bush administration policies have
also failed to meet their objectives, and have had unintended
negative side effects, because of the narrowness of perspective
in their drafting. The No Child Left Behind education policy
- a worthy idea, in principle - in fact has become the very
many children left behind initiative, with many states revolting
from its misdirected, unfunded mandates, with the young people
most intended to be helped, being the most disadvantaged by
it, especially among Native people and others from diverse cultural
and linguistic backgrounds. To have values and ideals is laudable.
But as Native people have long known, those values have to be
grounded in the concrete world, and applied with careful attention
to the actualities of the current situation, with an eye to
the needs of the future.
At the base of the problem is a lack of respect in interaction
with others, by many in the Republican leadership, which in
addition to being a cause of the difficulties for the nation
created by the Bush administration, compounds those problems.
Native people know from experience, that as a mater of principle,
and out of practical concern, it is essential to deal with others
in a respectful manner, for at some point, if not quite often,
one is likely to need their cooperation, or at least forbearance
from counter action out of, at best good will, but at least,
lack of negative feeling. It is never to one's long term advantage
to stir up feelings of revenge against oneself, if that can
be avoided. Yet too many in the administration and the majority
congressional leadership have been making untruthful slurs against
their political opposition (e.g. Carl Rove's recent put down
of "liberals" as wanting merely understanding of,
and providing counseling for, al Qiada after 9/11, while "conservatives"
prepared for war), the primary effect of which is to goad the
opposition into stronger action against the administration.
Meanwhile, in the international arena, President Bush, on numerous
critical occasions, has seemed to have no sense of diplomacy,
pushing nations whose actions he opposes to move further along
those objectionable paths (e.g. Iran and North Korea in nuclear
development), while alienating needed allies. This is surprising
for people who call themselves conservatives, and an indication
that they are not what they claim themselves to be.
The Declaration of Independence declares all men to be
"created equal." Classically, conservatism in the
United States has had a strong tenet of good character and dealing
honorably, in principle, and to provide a role model. That is
hardly the case with President Bush and company, who seem to
be teaching that lying and bullying are quite proper, so long
as one can get away with it. Instead of clearly promoting the
public interest, which is central to conservatism in America
(as well as the title of a leading conservative publication),
in too many instances the Bush administration has acted with,
what at the very least, gives a strong appearance of corporate
cronyism (e.g. the ease for which it has been for some to label
Bush and company as "the oiligarchy"). These are not
conservatives, for they conserve nothing; partly by design and
partly out of misguided initiative. I believe that technically,
it would be better to call them "destructivists."
By intention, the administration's terribly unbalanced budgets
(anathema to any fiscal conservative), are intended to destroy
the ability of the federal government to carry out any domestic
program (including social security, that Bush wants to destroy
via privatization), and to have the national government concentrate
solely on foreign affairs, primarily through military power.
Mr. Bush does not understand that the fiscal and financial effect
of his effort, if it is successful, in a short time will destroy
the United State's ability to project military power. Meanwhile,
out of what approaches contempt, many of his actions and statements
abroad have been destroying the diplomatic prowess and public
image of the United States. While there is still time, it would
behoove President Bush and company, to learn a little Native
wisdom.
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=++=+=+=+=+=+
