Copyright © 1995-1998 NLThomas
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Tax the casinos! A pox on your House and Senate for even thinking of it.

American Indians have given and given to help make this country what it is today. The land stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific was once ours. The natural resources that made America a world power were stolen from us and I won;t forget that. Does anyone, besides me, remember that we were supposed to get a dime a ton for the iron ore taken from northern Minnesota? That promise was remembered in the oral tradition but mysteriously disappeared when the words were written down in the treaties and agreements.

Now I read that the federal legislators have rushed a bill through that would allow them to tax our casinos. The profits would be taxed at the rate of 34 percent. Hearings were not held and those most affected were not heard. It reminds me of Mitch Walking Elk who sings, "...and when they want what we got, they just change the laws."

Lately, I've heard us called "semi-sovereign." According to my American Heritage Dictionary, sovereignty is defined; 1. supremacy of authority or rule, 2. royal rank, authority or power, 3. complete independence and self-government. I can't find a definition for "semi-sovereign." I always thought sovereignty was an absolute, like perfect or pregnant. Do we say someone is semi-pregnant? We are being asked to clean up after someone else's budget mess. Taxing the casinos to help balance the budget after the savings and loan debacle, the bloated military budgets and the Medicare hemorrages is a bad idea.

According to a recent St. Paul Pioneer Press and KARE-TV poll, a random sample of 805 voting adults said that 57 percent want Indian casinos to share their profits with the state. Now I would like to commission a new poll among American Indians and ask them the same question. What do you suppose an Indian poll would show?

Just because a majority wants it, doesn't make it right. This is manifest destiny all over again. Didn't we already sing this song?

America is so used to thinking in stereotypes that it can't stop. Only a small percentage of the casinos make enough money to pay their members a per capita payment. Most casinos are investing their money in schools, sewage systems, roads and economic development. The stereotype exists that we are all getting rich at the expense of the white man.

While I appreciate the irony of Indians making money off white people, I don't think it should be shared. They didn't share when they were raping this continent, so why should we? The State of Minnesota was not there to put up the money for the casinos. Neither was the federal government. They are acting like parasites. They risked nothing but they want to share the profits. What in the Wide World of Sports do they think they're doing? Do you suppose they forgot that we are now educated and it is not as easy to fool us?

Instead of taxing casinos, I think we should tax foreign aid. Just take a small percentage of the millions of dollars that we send to other countries. Or better yet, let's tax the military budget.

While we're at it, let's tax state lotteries. After all, they're in the same business we are. If the states are not taxed on their gambling revenues, why should we be the ones to pay? I already pay a lot of taxes as an Indian on the reservation. I am liable for income taxes, both state and federal. Whenever I buy a gallon of gasoline, I pay 20 cents in state taxes plus 18 cents in federal taxes. I pay sales taxes that go directly to the state. I even pay part of Minnesota Power's tax bill. It is itemized on my light bill every month. Taxing casinos to balance is wrong. There are more honorable ways to raise money than to single us out for special taxes.

[Two very important points made in this article. Indian Nations cannot allow the federal government to tax their businesses and claim sovereignty as well. And once again, the federal government is taxing the poorest people while allowing huge tax breaks for big, irresponsible corporations.    -Michele Lord]