When you have any kind of business enterprise, there is going to be competition, and Indians are no exception.
Well, yeah that's true. Natives can be competitive, like anyone. But what we're talking about here is not competition, but buying political influence in another state to have laws written that prevent other tribes from competing with you. That's the exact opposite of competition.
So, why gaming in the first place Mr. Sickey, and what of the $300 million a year the Coushatta casino pulls in for the tribe?
The Coushattas and the Indians in general achieved it in a fair way using the white system.
I posted these responses out of order. Mr. Sickey's playing of the race card actually occurs near the beginning of the interview. I for one was not aware that the "white system" endorsed Indian tribes to pulling in hundreds of millions of dollars for their own tribes that are subsequently used to buy SUVs and fancy houses, while ignoring the needs of poorer tribes in the country.
How does Mr. Sickey respond to questions about how much each tribal member gets paid?
Is it under $50,000 a year?
Yes, significantly less. The members of the tribe would probably hang me in the nearest tree if I disclosed that figure.
That sounds to me like a Native American slur.
Well, I can get away with it. You can't.
Ah, and so we have the second playing of the race card, done in a fashion to put the assuredly white reporter from the NY Times in her place.
Of course, like all politicians, Mr. Sickey is now currently distancing himself from the whole Abramoff mess:
You're only 27 and weren't elected to the tribal council until May 2003, so how many times did you actually meet Abramoff?
Only once, and I was already looking into his billings and his work — or lack thereof. So he was more comfortable with Poncho than with me. Right when he stepped into the conference room, he immediately gave [Chief at the time] Poncho a big hug.
That's certainly one thing these Natives have learned from whites; how to play politics. See how deftly he distances himself while assuring we know how close the old chief (and presumebly the old council members) were to Abramoff!
Let me tell you everything you need to know about the Coushattas. These Native Americans have been suckered into a casino racket which funnels countless millions of dollars to relatively small tribes that are backed by gaming interests who deliberately select these tribes for their small size and political maleability. The fact that they tossed out the old council members and then promptly elected people like Sickey tells you that they're okay with that, as long as the checks keep rolling in.
Let me also tell you everything you need to know about Sickey. This guy is formed in the classic mold of the Indian politician. He's willing to play the race card, to remind whites that he and his tribe are members of an opressed minority, and so any of their shady dealings should either be treated with sympathy, or not looked into at all as whites simply can't "understand." To justify their greed and sheer stupidity in handing over millions of dollars to a guy who referred to them as "monkeys", he dredges up the sins of white colonialism to get us to feel sorry for the poor naive Indians who were once again abused by cunning and ruthless whites. And lest you as a reporter go thinking that your questions will reveal much about Sickey and his ilk, he reminds you of your whiteness, so you'll know not to go too far with your questioning.
The fact of the matter is this. The Coushatta got greedier than they already are, and they paid for it. They showed willful stupidity in entrusting a lobbyist with so much money, and their stupidity is only matched by their greed in shutting down small Texas tribes that posed little threat to their gaming monopoly. It has nothing to do with white "colonialism", or people not "understanding" where they come from, and everything to do with greed, selfishness and stupidity, which unfortunately are traits shared by all people, brown, black, red or white.
2 comments:
Lest anyone misunderstand and think that this is some kind of racial attack, it should be noted that Xanthippas and I are natives ourselves (CDIB and all). The reason we hate to see this behavior is not because it's harmful towards whites (not that it is), but because this is exactly the kind of Indian politics that has cost native people so much. This kind of infighting, using the leverage of white society's power, is something that is all too familiar, and was a large contributing factor to the downfall of native society in the first place.
It's ridiculous to see the cycle continuing even today when natives have lost everything because they commit such self-serving, short-sighted, and ultimately self-destructive behavior. You would think that after a few hundred years we could learn to do better.
Thanks for providing that info. I get to assuming people are aware of my ethnic identity, and forget that to anyone who doesn't this rant doesn't come off in a very good light! I certainly don't want anyone to think this is a racial attack of any kind. My beef has nothing to do with race. It has everything to do with politicians like this Sickey, who play up the Indian-ness of themselves and their tribes to gain sympathy and avoid having to show responsibility, while at the same time using cronyism and corruption to benefit themselves while they harm their tribe. But the blame for the willigness to elect these types of leaders, and the willingness to squash other tribes, I put on all the Coushattas. But the reader should also be aware that while I lash out at this worst example of Native politics, I do so only because it is so harmful, and not because it is dominant or pervasive in Indian society. Some tribes are vulnerable to it, some are not, and some tribes are shining examples of good leadership. But the Coushatta are not.
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