carverchick

Serenity Now!

2011-11-30T20:58:00.045-05:00

The Costanzas are driving in the car....

Frank: I got no leg room back here. Move your seat forward.

Estelle: That's as far as it goes.

Frank: There's a mechanism. You just pull it, and throw your body weight.
Estelle: I pulled it. It doesn't go.

Frank: If you want the leg room, say you want the leg room! Don't blame the mechanism!

George: All right, Dad, we're five blocks from the house. Sit sideways.

Frank: Like an animal. Because of her, I have to sit here like an animal! Serenity now! Serenity now!

George: What is that?

Frank: Doctor gave me a relaxation cassette. When my blood pressure gets too high, the man on the tape tells me to say, 'Serenity now!'

George: Are you supposed to yell it?

Frank: The man on the tape wasn't specific.

George: What happened to the screen door? It blew off again?

Estelle: I told you to fix that thing.

Frank: Serenity nowww!

Well stop the presses and call me Frank, or shall I say….can SOMEONE please start the presses….and get the story right. Anyone? ….. Anyone?

I have been quite silent through the entire Casino Bill…errrr…sorry Governor Patrick and Speaker DeLeo….I mean Jobs Bill fiasco. Don’t think I haven’t been paying attention, because I have, I chose to remain silent for my own reasons….what can I say except I am a chick who only speaks her mind when there is something more to be said…and honestly, this chick is feeling a bit sassy right now after reading an article in the Cape Cod Times stating that KG Urban Enterprises is filing suit against the State. I say…go for it…

The act is riddled with explicit, race-based set-asides that give federally recognized Indian tribes a categorical advantage over all other applicants in seeking a gaming license in Southeastern Massachusetts," the complaint states. - Sean Gonsalves article "Playing our odds, hedging our bets", Cape Cod Times 11/27/11

Yeah…it does give an unfair advantage to federally recognized Indian Tribes and for no good reason at all except to scare the pants off of anyone who doesn’t know diddley squat about Federal Indian Policy or Land In Trust Issues or the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. He goes on to say…..

The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe is the most likely beneficiary of the set-aside because the state believes (and a land court judge has already ruled) that the only other federally-recognized tribe in the state — the Aquinnah Wampanoag on Martha's Vineyard — signed away most of its sovereignty in an agreement with the town of Aquinnah back in the 1980s.
Before I started writing this column, I covered the Mashpee tribe for a decade. On that beat, I became fairly familiar with federal law as it pertains to Indian casinos. Of course, I'm no legal expert. But, I did spend hours talking with many of them over the years. And they all said the same thing: the right of Indian tribes to develop (and profit from) casinos is considered settled law.

No Mr. Gonsalves, you definitely are no legal expert….not much of a journalist either in my opinion. I mean, Seriously?? You spent hours talking to many of them over the years….and because they say they have a right to build a casino, it must be true….seriously??? Have you been living under a rock for the past four years? Sorry, but in my opinion, a journalist should actually research a story before they write it… even the silliest of things such as…oh, I don’t know…perhaps what IGRA actually says and what it means before “taking their word for it” and printing it in an article. Jeez! No wonder people go to youtube looking for real news these days…..

I have to say that the journalist who wrote this article seriously needs a serious lesson in Federal Indian Policy….seriously. Then again, maybe he doesn’t and only wants to spin that oh so tired myth of inevitability that our “ahem”…..honorable (and I use that term loosely) Governor Deval Patrick spun back in June of 2008. From following this debate for several years, and now reading this misinformed and one sided article, I have come to realize that when it comes to the Massachusetts State Government, there is absolutely no argument against greed - especially when it comes to casino gambling. Let’s face it…according to our State leaders, and apparently Sean Gonsalves of Cape Cod Times, moral issues don’t hold an inkling of clout and heck, it doesn’t matter because the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe has the right to build an Indian casino…soooo….

….given the odds, the smart thing to do is to prepare for it — ahead of time. - Sean Gonsalves, Cape Cod Times

Okaaay…and that was the last sentence of his….”article”. WOW! Gladys….quick....get me another glass Kool Aid, this chick is thirsty!

Here is another oh so insightful thought….

So, why did the governor's office insist the gambling legislation set aside a license for an Indian tribe? It's simple. And pretty smart. It's called hedging your bets.
If the Southeastern Massachusetts Mashpee tribe gets land into trust (no easy process), and there are already three casinos in the state — something casino experts say is the most this market could handle — the Mashpee tribe could build a fourth! And, they could do it without negotiating a compact with the state.

First of all, any State Governor hedging its bets against an Indian Tribe shouldn’t be sitting in the Governor’s office to begin with….second of all, it isn’t smart…not when using the flawed logic laid out in this article. Some might defend our poor misinformed journalist by saying “at least he said “no easy process”…to that, I say how about “no process at all”. What Governor Patrick, our Legislators, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and obviously this journalist seem to be in denial about is the fact that there will never be any federal trust land in the Commonwealth. Under current Federal Indian law and recent court cases, this problem has been eliminated. In fact, several people had actually informed the Senate about this little factoid…over, and over, and over….here is but one example:

Dear Senator Murray,

I read recently in an article published in Cape Cod Online your reasons for having a provision in the casino bill that takes into account the State's two federally recognized Indian tribes. I read that Governor Deval Patrick and other state leaders are insisting that this gambling bill needs to account for the federal rights of the Mashpee Wampanoag to open an Indian casino. According to the article, you stated "If we don't establish a compact with the tribe, they can build a casino and Massachusetts would lose on any gaming revenue from the tribe." Senator, neither of these statements is true. The rights the Mashpee Wampanoag have as a federally recognized tribe is their right to self govern. They do not have the right to open an indian casino. They do not have the right to open a casino on trust land unless they can reach a compact with the State, and the State is not required to enter into a compact with a Tribe. Your comment is misleading and could be construed as the State having no choice in the issue which is just not true. The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act restricts Tribal authority to conduct class III gaming.

It is clear, that before a Tribe may lawfully conduct class III gaming in a State, the following conditions must be met:

• The Particular form of class III gaming that the Tribe wants to conduct must be permitted in the state in which the tribe is located.

• The Tribe and the state must have negotiated a compact that has been approved by the Secretary of the Interior, or the Secretary must have approved regulatory procedures.

• The Tribe must have adopted a Tribal gaming ordinance that has been approved by the Chairman of the Commission.

I think it is important for you, as the Senate President to understand that the tribe can't even begin compact negotiations with the State before having Land in Trust. Only after the tribe has acquired land into trust will the Department of the Interior consider the terms and conditions of a compact. Senator, I understand that Federal Indian Policy is complicated, however, I took the time to learn as much about it as I could since 2007 when the Masphee tribe tried to build an Indian Casino in Middleboro. Middleboro residents and the residents of the surrounding communities learned about it. There is no Indian casino in Middleboro. My point is, I strongly feel that if the members of this Senate cannot take the time to understand Federal Indian Policy and yet proceed to write bad legislation around what you believe tribal rights to be, then the decision of passing this bill must be re-examined.

Thank you for your time.

Yes…thank you sooooo much for your time and attention over the past several years. Oh, and lest I forget to mention that the State has refused to conduct a Cost v. Benefit analysis of legalizing slots and class III gambling casinos in our State. In fact, they seemed to be more concerned with ensuring any one of them could go work for these casinos after one year of being out of office, that and bringing back happy hour to local bars...as long as there is no smoking in these bars...that honor is saved for the casinos and slots barn. In the words of a good friend of mine, speaking in front of the Senate Committee at the hearing on the Casino Bill…whoops!…sorry again, Governor Patrick….the Jobs Bill ….it is obvious that her seven year old son spends more time on his homework than this committee did on researching the negative effects casinos would have on our Communities….and she is right.

Yet after all of this….this journalist has the nads to write:

Now, none of this is going to persuade casino opponents, just as the hypocritical arguments of the moral crusade against legalized gambling are not convincing — so long as it gives a moral hall pass to the state lottery and Wall Street gamblers who play the same type of rigged game, except on an exponentially larger scale.

“Hypocritical argument of the moral crusade against legalized gambling”….Wow…on that note, I guess I will go and cash out my IRA, head down to the local Cumberland Farms and spend it all on scratch tickets…..it’s smart…I’ll be hedging my bets.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Casino Yahtzee!

2011-08-29T22:13:00.016-04:00

I have an idea that will allow casino style gambling fun to the residents of Massachusetts and bring it right to your doorstep....thats right folks! No dealing with traffic....no finding a babysitter or worrying if Junior will be okay in the car for a few hours while you experience true casino fun!! All you can eat buffet...no problem....it's called your kitchen! Free drinks.....make it BYBO or splurge for that special night! That's right.....just think about it...no more negative social and economic impacts to worry about associated with legalizing expanded gambling in the commonwealth, and .... errr.... "mitigate"....because people could be having fun with friends and neighbors instead of ingoring strangers! Go ahead and make that bet.....it's all for entertainment! Oh --- and the best part...it could actually create jobs!!! Lots and lots of real jobs!

That's right folks...step right up and support reintroducing and manufacturing CASINO YAHTZEE!!! Have a party with your friends and share the excitement of casino gambling in the comfort of your own home! Bring back Milton Bradley....they were founded in Springfield Massachusetts....manufacture casino board games right here in good ol' Massachusetts that actually promote social interaction without risk of spending more than you can afford, eat all you want and have a few drinks on the house and a free place to crash for the night. Yes - bring back real jobs to Massachusetts....not Casino jobs.

I'm just sayin'........enjoy :)

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Fascist America in 10 Easy Steps

2011-08-08T18:44:00.011-04:00

From Hitler to Pinochet and beyond, history shows there are certain steps that any would-be dictator must take to destroy constitutional freedoms. In her book The End of America - A Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot, Naomi Wolfe lays out her reasons for beliving why and how George Bush and his administration appear to have followed them (pardon my idiom) to a tee.

Through extensive research and documentation Wolf explains how in her estimation, the actions of the Bush Adminstration parallel the steps taken in the early years of the 20th century‚'s worst dictatorships such as Germany, Russia, China, and Chile. Her account cuts across political parties and ideologies to speak directly to those who are concerned about the stripping of our liberties and dismanteling of our constitution. The book became a best seller and her documentary has seen as much success. I find it interesting that the Obama administration has done nothing to restore our liberties taken from us via the Patriot Act but has, in my opinion, continued down the same path as the Bush Administration (queue up scary music -- wink wink) by signing the Patriot Act Extension and playing off the fears generated by the so aptly named War on Terror.

I have not read the book, but I must say I enjoyed watching this documentary and have every intention of reading the book because I watched the documentary. With that said, I like the content and the message but by no means do I endorse or denounce the organizations promoted at the end of this film....enjoy!

"We need to look at history and face the "what ifs". For if we keep going down this road, the "end of America" could come for each of us in a different way, at a different moment; each of us might have a different moment when we feel forced to look back and think: that is how it was before - and this is the way it is now. " - Naomi Wolfe

"The loss of liberty at home is to be charged to the provisions against danger, real or imagined, from abroad." - James Madison

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Fall of the Republic?

2011-07-27T22:04:00.005-04:00

"Tyrany or Liberty...it's our choice." That is my favorite line in this entire production aside from "this is not a left or right issue...the question is who should Government serve and it should serve the people..."

Tyrany or Liberty....it is our choice. I urge people to watch this documentary and decide if what is shown here is true or not. I myself need to check into some of these claims....but hey, I love doing that! Alternative information from mainstream media opened my eyes to the nightmare casino debacle....unpopular views to World events should be watched with an open mind and a willingness to think for oneself.

- the greatest menace to freedom is an inert people - Louis D. Brandeis -

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Dear Governor Patrick

2010-07-30T19:06:00.004-04:00

Stand by your principles. This casino Bill has turned into a Racino Bill and you have adamantly opposed slots at tne racetracks. Don't compromise your stance to appease special interests...Veto the Casino Bill. lts the right thing to do...

carverchick

- with great power comes great responsibility - Ben Parker

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Why is that Damned Cart in Front of the Horse Again?

2010-07-27T20:19:00.032-04:00

proverb: Putting the Cart before the Horse

meaning: reversing the accepted order of things; To put things in the wrong order or with the wrong priorities; to put something inconsequential as more important than something more essential.
synonyms: ass-backwards

other meaning: Senator Rosenberg's accepted order of expanded gambling

Well, it seems that Senator Rosenberg is at it yet again....the lastest news in the Casino Chronicals is a press release by USS where Senator Rosenberg clearly does not understand Federal Policy on Indian Gaming or is just ignoring the fact that if there is no Class III Gambling in this State - then there is no threat of Indian Casinos - meaning no rush to push a gambling bill to beat anyone to the punch...

Yet once again, in the spirit of all that is casino related, Senator Rosenberg claims that, if a final bill is passed by the Legislature, it will include a regulatory structure to control Native American tribes seeking permission from the federal government for expanded gambling. So hey, don't worry about it.......

uuummmmm......Senator.....you really can't control that - once you make Class III gambling legal in this state then you open the door for Federally Recognized Tribes to open their own casinos on trust land that is exempt from local, state, and many federal regulations. This Senator, or any of them who support this ridiculous bill and claim they can control Indian gambling expansion in Massachusetts is living in a dream. If any of these Senators want to control that, well....then don't allow expanded gambling in this State. Period. No Class III gambling, no Indian Casinos.

Yeah - its just that simple. So why spend all this needless time trying to write laws to control an industry that cannot be controlled...just say NO!

Jeez...I am so sick of this bull from the Casino Booster Club of Senators Ringleader Rosenberg. And honestly, I'm not sure what scares me more -- the idea that maybe they just don't understand Federal Indian Policy or the idea that they are ignoring it for their own personal (special) interests, or that they just don't care, and certainly don't listen. Really, where the heck were these guys when the Governor tried to use the same scare tactic to get his three casino bill passed?

In the words of a super smart and funny and wonderful friend of mine.....at least our former Attorney General has a pulse...

Legislators keep saying they are working to control a flood of tribal casinos but what they don't acknowledge or, worse, don't realize is that they are the ones poised to open up the floodgates," said Scott Harshbarger, the former Massachusetts Attorney General.

I have to say that I have been quite impressed with former Attorney General Scott Harshbarger and his obvious understanding of the issues - the negative impacts - in regards to expanded gambling in the Commonwealth. That and his totally seeing the idle threat that Indian casinos are if Class III gambling is illegal in this State. So yes, he has it right when he says they are poised to open the floodgates and they won't be able to control it.

Yet Rosenberg keeps saying we have to beat them to the punch...oh, and don't worry because we are going to protect the citizens of this State through regulation...uuuuhhhh.....yeeeaaah......not feeling the warm and fuzzy there Senator. What part of exempt from State regulations are you not understanding?? And not for nothing Senator, we have already been down this road with the Governor.

Oh, and speaking of roads.....we have already been down the Indian Tribal Casino Road too. The idea of using the threat of Tribal casinos to push a careless, irresponsible and rushed expanded gambling bill just astounds me at this point.

Kathleen Conley Norburt, President of United to Stop Slots in Massachusetts and author of the blog Truth to Power had this to say....

"Legislative leadership is either confused or are simply justifying their drive to satisfy the backers of the special interest gambling bill," said Norbut. "Politicians legalizing slots are the 'horse' and unregulated tribal casinos are the 'cart.' They are telling us the cart is before the horse and it just doesn't work like that."

Well, all I can say is this Chick isn't betting on their confusion of the issue....but that's me. Until pro expanded gambling Senators stop with the scare tactics that are blatant lies, quit with the promise of creating jobs while ignoring what casinos do to small businesses, stop telling us about all this revenue they can't even say for sure will exist because an independent cost benefit analysis didn't fit in with their election timelime, and actually start acting responsibly in regards to the citizens of this State, I have to go with corruption sprinkled with caring only for those special interest votes come November.

- It is error alone which needs the support of government. Truth can stand by itself - Thomas Jefferson

- be the change you want to see in the world -

From the "Are you Kidding Me?" Department

2010-07-22T18:57:00.006-04:00

STATE CAPITOL BRIEFS – AFTERNOON EDITION – THURSDAY, JULY 22, 2010
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE

HOUSE DEAN SAYS GAMBLING IMPASSE ‘A GOOD REASON’ FOR VOTERS TO TOSS DEMS
House Dean David Flynn, a lifelong Democrat who first joined the Legislature in 1965 and ran the state for Jimmy Carter’s 1980 presidential campaign, said Thursday the failure to reach agreement on an expanded gambling bill – and, specifically, resistance from Gov. Deval Patrick and the Senate to racetrack slot machines – entitled voters to turn on the state’s ruling party. “I think it’s a good reason for the general public to turn on Democrats,” Flynn told the News Service. “I can see why the general public, the populace, would rebel.” Conference committee talks on expanded gambling legislation are continuing.

Wow...David Flynn using his own form of scare tactics to push through a casino/slot parlor bill -- pass this bill or everyone will vote Republican - EGADS!!! This chick tends to think that he should have said...pass this bill or the special interest groups will threaten not to vote for you....EGADS AGAIN!!

Gosh Senator Flynn, we all know you love casinos and despise anyone who doesn't, but have you forgotten that the Massachusetts Democratic Party adopted a resolution to "oppose the legalization of slot machines and any similar efforts to promote addictive and predatory gambling as a means of raising revenues" at a June 6, 2009 Democratic Party Convention held in Springfield, or just think we did? Well, it seems you must have because everyone knows us anti's have memories of elelphants. Well, perhaps you can refresh your memory here. My friend Gladyz did a fabulous job of summing up that effort. A Brilliant job, in fact. So for the love of all that is actually good in this world, please stop with the melodrama....and perhaps focus on the important issues like real economic development, affordable healthcare and emergency prepardness....you know, the things that actually could improve our quality of life in Massachusetts....

GAMBLING OPPONENTS SAY DISAGREEMENT HAS ‘SIDELINED’ OTHER ISSUES
Gambling opponents have latched onto the news that negotiations on casino and slots bills have hit a snag, urging lawmakers to drop their efforts and focus on other “more significant” proposals. “It’s well-past time for the Speaker and Senate President to stop this greed-driven secret soap opera and focus on producing other bills which will have a positive impact on our Commonwealth,” said Kathleen Conley Norbut, president of United to Stop Slots Massachusetts, in a statement. “We all know other, meaningful priorities are being held up and are in danger of failing because of this greed- and power-driven casino ego contest.” In the statement, Norbut and former Attorney General Scott Harshbarger light into lawmakers for failing to have completed work on a health care bill, an economic development measure, criminal record access changes, and disaster preparedness. The group even argues that an impending Supreme Judicial Court appointment – made necessary by the Wednesday announcement that Chief Justice Margaret Marshall is retiring later this year – is taking a backseat to gambling. Gov. Deval Patrick, who is in Iraq Thursday to visit Massachusetts troops, has sole responsibility for nominating a new justice.

Call me a crazy chick, but sidelining important bills to play "rock, paper, scissors" over slots at the tracks and resort casinos is absolutely ridiculous...

- It is greed to do all the talking but not to want to listen at all. - Democritus

- Politics, it seems to me, for years, or all too long, has been concerned with right or left instead of right or wrong. ~Richard Armour

- Be the change you want to see in the world -

This About Sums it Up

2010-07-06T19:17:00.004-04:00

This video link was left as a comment on one of my blogs....too good not to share. Enjoy!

June 30 and July 1, 2010, Senators Joan Menard, of Fall River, and Mark Montigny, of New Bedford, debated Senator Menard's amendment (#31) to the casino gaming bill in Massachusetts. The amendment would strip the casino use language from a bill passed in 2002, paving the way for the 300 acres in Fall RIver to be developed as a casino. Some of the dialogue is taken from the transcript of that debate.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

And the Stupids Have It - But the Fat Lady is Silent

2010-07-05T12:27:00.018-04:00

What a disheartening day Thursday was for the Commonwealth…and only three days before the celebration of our Country - it’s life, liberty and freedom…independence and sovereignty….a Country that is supposed to be governed by the people, for the people. Not so in Massachusetts it seems. This chick had a really hard time celebrating the Fourth of July this year after experiencing so called “due process” in our State Government. I didn’t blog my experience at the casino gambling “public hearing” in June because I was so freaking pissed off over it I felt it better to just let it be. Well, forget that….especially after the freak show of undue process demonstrated in our Senate over the past several weeks. Might I be so humble as to suggest to our Senators that the next time you hold a “public hearing” on an issue, let the freaking PUBLIC speak.

Ahhh yes….the “public hearing” or what I have come to call, the “not public, only Tribe, Union, Casino Developer, Special Interest hearing“…oh, with a few anti-gambling professionals mixed in to make it look like a fair and due process - yeeeahhh -

Many of us casino gambling opponents sat for hours and hours listening to special interest groups, unions, casino developers and so called “casino workers” blather on about how super duper special and wonderful casinos were….we had to listen to Senator Pacheco's endless diatribes about the best way to have slots at the racetracks and gambling casinos….hey Gladys - BTW…I thought my head was going to explode that day listening to Senator Pacheco ask casino developers how to best write a gambling bill for our State…ya know…to make their job of building them easier. It almost did explode when the Aquinna had the nerve to sit in front of our Senate and blatently LIE about LIT and their “right” to build a tribal casino on Martha’s Vinyard under IGRA....if they didn’t get a license for Fall River, that is. Un-freakin-believable….Then to finally get to speak and be told…no warned…not to go over the allotted 3 minutes…jeesh…."public hearing", my ass. Shame on the Senate for even calling it that.

That public hearing was nothing but a pro-casino gambling resort par-tay where gambling opponents were obviously not welcome. Even Senator Tucker, in all her knowledge and wisdom as to why casino gambling is not going to help our State, was blatantly ignored…Thank You Senator Tucker for trying…your testimony was right on and it is obvious you did spend the time to learn about the industry….thank you for trying…it means more to us “nanny’s” than you could ever know. You are a true leader, one who at least gets the facts before deciding on something that will change the lives of all Massachusetts citizens forever.

Oh - Then to hear the ramblings of Senator Rosenberg who obviously has no knowledge of Indian Gaming or casino gambling in general, make stupid and crass statements to push his obviously personal agenda….

“This is a real issue, and we’re trying to find a solution,’’ Rosenberg said. “All I can say is, first things first: Get the bill signed into law and set up a regulatory agency. It will be 18 to 19 months before licenses get issued, and during that period of time we need to find a resolution to this.’’

You can read the article and bask in the stupidity and irresponsibility of dear Senator Rosenberg here.

Absolutely amazing how irresponsible most of the members of this Senate have acted on this issue. How about actually figuring out all those pesky details that will help protect the State from further expansion in the gambling area BEFORE you vote on and approve a Gambling Bill. That seems like the smart path, but nooooooo….who needs to look over the abyss and make an assessment when you can just leap and deal with what you jump into once you get there - heck, you got a good 18 to 19 months of free fall to think about it before you hit the prverbial fan. Oh…and Senator Rosenberg, with all due respect, Sir....as a concerned and well informed citizen, I would like to know...what exactly is your Plan B if you can’t figure it out? Please feel free to send your response to carverchick@gmail.com or post your Plan B here in the comments sections....I am sure my readers would also like to know.

My God….how in the world anyone, especially our YES Senators were able to celebrate the Fourth of July with a clear conscience after this fiasco is beyond me…failure of our Government to actually…uummmm….govern...is a betrayal to every single citizen in this State. Special Interests win….Massachusetts Citizens….big fat LOSERS…well at least those Yessies are keeping up with the premise of casino gambling…the house always wins.

So here is the tally of the vote taken on Thursday in the Senate to have 3 casino gambling resorts in the Commonwealth….The final vote was 25-15 in favor.

A "yes" vote was in favor of licensing the casinos; a "no" vote was opposed to casinos.

Steven A. Baddour, D-Methuen - Y
Frederick E. Berry, D-Peabody - Y
Stephen J. Buoniconti, D-West Springfield - Y
Gale D. Candaras, D-Wilbraham - Y
Harriette L. Chandler, D-Worcester - Y
Sal N. DiDomenico, D-Everett - Y
Kenneth J. Donnelly, D-Arlinton - Y
Jennifer L. Flanagan, D-Leominster - Y
John A. Hart, D-Boston - Y
Brian A. Joyce, D-Milton - Y
Thomas P. Kennedy, D-Brockton - Y
Michael R. Knapik, R-Westfield - Y
Thomas M. McGee, D-Lynn - Y
Joan M. Menard, D-Fall River - Y
Michael O. Moore, D-Millbury - Y
Richard T. Moore, D-Uxbridge - Y
Michael W. Morrissey, D-Quincy - Y
Therese Murray, D-Plymouth - Y
Marc R. Pacheco, D-Taunton - Y
Steven C. Panagiotakos, D-Lowell - Y
Anthony Petruccelli, D-Boston - Y
Stanley C. Rosenberg, D-Amherst - Y
Karen E. Spilka, D-Ashland - Y
James E. Timilty, D-Walpole - Y
Steven A. Tolman, D-Boston - Y

And here are the underdogs...the heros in all this …the ones who actually have the forethought to say no to a rushed bill…one based on fear of not beating them to the punch. Thank you for voting no…this bill should never had been voted on this session to begin with.

Susan C. Tucker, D-Andover - N
Mark C. Montigny, D-New Bedford - N
Richard R. Tisei, R-Wakefield - N
Bruce E. Tarr, R-Gloucester - N
Richard J. Ross, R-Wrentham - N
Marian Walsh, D-West Roxbury - N
Stephen M. Brewer, D-Barre - N
Robert L. Hedlund, R-Weymouth - N
Patricia D. Jehlen, D-Somerville - N
Robert D. O'Leary, D-Barnstable - N
Susan C. Fargo, D-Lincoln - N
Benjamin B. Downing, D-Pittsfied - N
James B. Eldridge, D-Acton - N
Cynthia Stone Creem, D-Newton - N
Sonia Chang-Diaz, D-Boston - N

As a good friend of mine said recently in an email…..Sad day for Massachusetts. If they'd only been as smart, as diligent and as ruthless for the truth and the wonderful colleagues I've met in the last 3 years, I can promise you, it would be a different day.

Attached to this email was what Senator Tucker had to say…..

Sen. Tucker said, Well, corks are popping all over Massachusetts in those lobbying offices tonight. The games will begin, and I will try very hard in this debate not to be personal. I appreciate the kind words from the lady from Newton. I want your vote more than your words. Martin Luther King said laws which uplift the human spirit are just. Laws that deprave the human spirit are unjust. I stand before you tonight in hopes and understanding that not everyone in this chamber understands this industry and this product as much as I understand this. I got into this issue years ago because it felt like a rip-off to me. I began to see where the money goes, where it comes from, who gets the money. The way the casino industry comes in state after state after state – they have a playbook. Tonight the Massachusetts Legislature joins others that have played right into that. I feel particularly sad for the senators that feel they’re somehow protected by the provisions in this bill. This will spin out of control. Once we give this OK, it’s all about the licenses, the best proposals. Who defines that? And the corruption that has gone on in state after state after state regarding the best proposals – it’s all about the profit. Once you vote for this, you’re out of the picture. It’s about earnings before interest taxes and depreciation. It’s not about the best proposal. It’s about who is going to make the most money, where. You think you’re protected because you’re not within 40 miles of a casino. I don’t even have to wait for the deals the change. You all, and I’ve said this before, have it in your head that we’re going to have one of these fancy resorts with golf courses and hotels and shopping. If it’s not going to be a resort, why put up $500 million? It’s not enough for a resort. The good senator from Amherst said we’ll have the strongest bill in the country. Promises are broken, deals change. There is no proper way to do this because if you do it the proper way, it’s the only industry I’ve heard of that if you do it the proper way, you won’t get the dough. If you don’t get the revenue, what are you doing this for? No one in all the hearing, no one in the industry, no one in this chamber ever stood up and said you’re wrong, senator. No one ever told me I was wrong. So apparently I’m right, because I am right, because I understand the product and the industry. There are a lot of happy lobbyists and a lot of happy clients tonight. I never thought they’d go down this road. That’s what they’re saying. It’s a very sorry excuse that we have to do this because of the Indian Gaming Rights Act. Only five land-in-trusts have been allowed by the bureau in the last 20 years. We have so much time to deal with that. We don’t know the impact. This is a roll call that’s going to stay with the members for a long, long time. When these proposals become a reality, your constituents and groups will come out of the woodwork. They will educate themselves about this product. I have to say to Kathleen Norbut – she’s got a group of warriors behind her who have learned about this. And when college presidents calling saying my students all go to the casinos, and when your constituents come to you and say ‘you have to help me, my husband gambled away all our money’ – I can guarantee you that will happen. It’s happened in every other state. I wish it were about jobs. For my friends in labor, it’s sad. Their members are going to get burned by this. I thank you for your attention. I want to say to the staff members and so many senators, I think all of us have had the opportunity at some point to work on an issue and get to know the hardworking, dedicated staffers. I’ve been particularly heartened by many of the good senators’ staff. Let the games begin.

Yes, let the games begin. I would like to give a special Thank You to Senator Susan Tucker for fighting so hard to preserve our State and protect it from the corruption that is the only inevitability in Casino gambling….I’d also like to the thank the good people of USSMA for fighting so diligently, for trying to educate an uninformed public and ignorant Government. I know your sacrifices, and I personally appreciate every single one of them. You are all the true heros in this fight.

We can all personally thank Senator Rosenberg and all the YES cronies for single handedly making it a real possibility to have Tribal Casinos here in Massachusetts….the non-threat of Tribal casinos has now come close to becoming a real and distinct possibility…Senator Rosenberg, you have managed to make your fear a real and potential reality and for what? To beat them to the punch?…With all due respect, you probably should have looked before you leapt, Senator.

With all due respect Sir, you are an ignoramous and an idiot. You have no right to sit in the seat you do...in my opinion, of course....Did you ever stop to think that we already had them beat...or is what happened in Middleboro, in the Supreme Court and all over the country not hold any weight for you? Did you even stop to think that you were being lied to...mislead and totally played by casino interests and the Tribes? Class III gambling was, and still is for now, illegal in this State. The Tribes couldn't have built anything but a bingo hall, which no investor in their right minds would touch because there is no big fat profits off of bingo...go ask Rhode Island...oh yeah, you don't do actual research, only push your agenda of beating a fantasy to the punch. Senator, leading by fear is cowardly, and you Sir, are a coward in this chick's eyes....with all due respect.

Luckily for the citizens of this State, there are actually well informed people and groups who know federal Indian policy and who might, just might be able to keep this State from having Tribal casinos…
Oh, and I hope that if these three gambling casino resorts do get built in Massachusetts, the Senate puts them in a Town whose Representative voted “YES”….that would only be fair now wouldn’t it. In fact Senator Rosenberg, I believe that Amherst would make a lovely host town for a Casino….much better than Palmer…oh, or perhaps Wilbraham, Senator Candaras….I grew up in Hampden and went to Minnechaug Regional High School in Wilbraham...an absolutely lovely area for a casino...and you seem to think the casino bill is a super idea, so why not? Or hey, what about Peabody or better yet Milton….then the Governor can go play the slots conveniently in his own back yard….yeah, Milton would be perfect for a casino.

But enough with my sarcasm...
we haven’t given up the fight and we won't give it up - ever, at least not where Tribal casinos are concerned - so thanks Yessie Senators for making our fight that much more difficult - we will do what you should have done to begin with - your job - protecting this State and the citizens who call it home.

.….as the saying goes…it ain’t over til the fat lady sings.....

- Courage! What makes a king out of a slave? Courage! What makes the flag on the mast to wave? Courage! What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty mist, or the dusky dusk? What makes the muskrat guard his musk? Courage! What makes the sphinx the seventh wonder? Courage! What makes the dawn come up like thunder? Courage! What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the "ape" in apricot? What have they got that I ain't got? Courage! You can say that again! - the cowardly lion

- be the change you want to see in the world -

State of Irresponsibility or Stupidity - You Decide

2010-06-30T23:00:00.029-04:00

"The reason we need to pass this legislation is because,if we don't the Mashpee will beat us to the punch and force a casino on us just like CT." - Senator Rosenberg (picture courtesy of Gladys Kravitz blogspot)

Wow….did I wake up in 2007 this past month or what... and if I did…where the hell is my Delorean?! This is just one of many irresponsible and misinformed statements made by Senator Rosenberg regarding Land Into Trust issues surrounding the non-threat of Indian casinos in Massachusetts….and his excuse to pass an irresponsible Casino Gambling Bill in Massachusetts…but I’ll save the irresponsibility of the Senate and the Bill itself for another day…for now, let’s focus on our Senator Rosenberg who apparently is the “guru” on Indian Gaming….uhhhh...yeah….not so impressed with you so far Senator Rosenberg. You sound exactly like Governor Patrick when he was pushing his three casino bill - and we all know how misinformed he was about that, but I digress.

First of all Senator, may I suggest you pick up a copy of Without Reservation…it gives the complete story on exactly how an Indian casino was forced on Connecticut….twenty five years ago….. Now don’t get me wrong here because yes, there has been this “letter” floating around from Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Lary Echo Hawk stating that the Department of the Interior will continue to process eligible pending applications for gaming on Indian lands….blah, blah, blah…..yet not a big deal when you actually understand Federal Indian Policy and IGRA. What our dear Senator doesn’t seem to understand is that the BIA has no jurisdiction or authority to place land into trust...neither does the SOI at this point...in fact, the BIA is only responsible for determining if the applications submitted prior to the Carcieri decision are still eligible under the new rules. By no means is the letter or any other "memo" that is circulating saying that all applications are being processed by the BIA...nor does it say any decision on land in trust is being made by the BIA. In fact, the letters coming out of the BIA and SOI’s office regarding the processing of applications are deliberately ambiguous. Let us all keep in mind here that they do consistently say that applications will be processed if and only if they fully satisfy the requirements of the law. That’s a big IF Senator and one the Mashpee and the Aquinna don’t meet. Hey, I get it....the reason for these letters is understandable…frustration has been building with tribes who are awaiting decisions on applications - shortly after the Carcieri decision they were told to consult with their lawyers on the legality of their request. Nothing has moved forward since. The only thing that’s changed now is that the responsibility for determining eligibility for applicants has shifted from the tribes to the BIA and the BIA is only now evaluating the pending applications for applicable legal standards. After all….there were tribes that were recognized before 1934 and they may have applications awaiting a decision.

As it stands right now, the threat of an Indian casino isn’t real and I and many other well informed citizens can debate that until the cows come home. And if we can understand Federal Indian Policy, I find it extremely difficult and disheartening to believe that our State Senators could be so easily mislead with regards to the legalities of the Mashpee tribe’s proposed casino.

….here is Senator Rosenberg’s comment to a concerned and well informed citizen when this was explained to him….

With all due respect if you have not spoken directly with the BIA then you do not have all the information you need in order to understand the full scope. You are reading what you see accurately but you probably have not had the direct conversations with the BIA that I and others have had which provide the additional background.if you have I would appreciate information about those meetings. Neither you nor I were part of additional meetings with Secretary's office and the BIA and the heads of landless tribes in which he committed to resolve the issues both of landless tribes and those seeking additional land. All of the meetings we have had and all of the reports we have received from Washington add up to a commitment to resolve land in trust issues in a timely fashion.

That's it for now. Thanks for the dialogue.

With all due respect Senator, many of us have spoken directly to the BIA and unlike you….we didn’t just call them “cold”…we already knew our rights as citizens under Federal Indian Policy and knew the rights of this State as well - so those of us who have spoken with the BIA and Washington were not so naïve as to believe everything we were told. Oh, and by the way Senator, I personally have had the pleasure of speaking directly to the chairman of the NIGC -- that’s the National Indian Gaming Commission -- just in case you didn’t know that…which it seems to this chick like you don’t because you obviously believe that the Mashpee automatically have the right to build a casino just because they are a Federally Recognized Tribe - which they do not. From my real and direct face to face conversation with said Chairman, he made it clear that the NIGC would not approve casino gambling on land in Middleboro that was clearly set aside for a casino…that is called Reservation Shopping and it is a big no no.

Senator…with all due respect…having Land in Trust does not a casino make….especially if said land is in a State that does not allow Class III gambling to begin with…so before you make silly and ignorant statements like “we have to beat them to the punch” and before you wave your hand and dismiss an informed and well educated voting, taxpaying citizen…you might want to actually try and listen to someone other than the Tribe(s) and the BIA.

With all due respect, Senator Rosenberg…do you even know who that educated voting taxpayer who sent you all this information is? Do you even realize that the person who you have been so dismissive to was responsible for bringing one of the best Indian law councilors together with the Carcieri Lawyer? Do you know that this person was the one who recognized that Rhode Island’s argument in the Carcieri argument wouldn’t win as it was so this person brought in a more experienced lawyer from Arizona to help with that case? Do you know that this person’s research on Indian case law is so extensive that it has been used by a New York lawyer who then successfully argued an Indian law case before a Federal judge? Do you know that this person knows more about Indian law than any lawyer on the east coast because of what happened in Salamanca, New York…or that what happened in that town was so disturbing that the atrocities of Federal Indian Policy was dedicated to this person in a book…a book written by two Indians, I might add?…did you know any of that Senator Rosenberg?….did you know any of that before you responded to the information given to you with such a pompous and “holier than thou” attitude? Did you? Because I really, really want to know.

How about instead of being ignorant and patronizing, perhaps you might want to try a lot more listening and a lot less talking about things that are so obviously esoteric to you….heck, God did give you two ears and one mouth for a reason - its about time you realized that reason - here is a hint for you....do a lot less talking and twice as much listening, you might actually learn something….and while your at it, you might want to try some light reading…may I suggest the Kickapoo case in Texas - this is where it was determined that a State is not required to enter into a compact with a Tribe seeking class III gaming if class III gaming is illegal in that State….you can read about it here and then perhaps correct yourself in your statements regarding tribal / state compacts….or perhaps you could brush up on the Hawaii and other decisions that made it perfectly clear that the Federal Government cannot exercise power over a sovereign State and that casinos are not inevitable…in simple terms, Sir….the Federal Government cannot take land from a Sovereign State and place it in Trust, thus removing it from State tax rolls and exempting it from State regulations unless that State says they can…oh, and hey, how about that little factoid that the Federal Government can only set aside excess Federally owned land to be placed into trust…oh yeah…none of that here in the good ‘ol Commonwealth.

….lets save us all some time here Senator Rosenberg, since you obviously have not done your homework, but instead made a few “phone calls” and several misleading statements during the expanded gambling hearings..…. perhaps you could just go back and read all my blogs and the blogs of Gladys Kravitz (you’ll like her…she’s witty, yet thoughtful and funny all at the same time- and her husband Abner is fantastic!)….and while your reading, wherever you see the word “Middleboro” replace it with “Fall River” because the facts are still the same regardless of where the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe wants to put a casino…. You can pretend you're Letterman - take the Middleboro out of the threat and replace it with Fall River. You might actually learn something.

Look…I am not so naïve myself that I don’t believe that the BIA told you things that make you worry that Tribal casinos could become a true possibility here because I am sure they did. Heck, me and a group of well informed citizens have been dealing with this for the past three years…and have learned a lot from people who have spent a lifetime dealing with this….several of whom are Native Americans, I might add….and we have learned a lot about federal process, or more accurately, the tricks of the Tribe(s) for getting their Casino‘s…I have to believe that the BIA is taking into consideration that pesky little pinhole in 25 CFR when determining the applicability of a Tribe’s LIT application under the new rules and the Tribe(s) in Massachusetts will most certainly try to use this pinhole to get land - in fact I am quite certain they will when considering the shenanigans going on in Fall River - which could be why you probably think a Tribal casino is inevitable…but said pinhole could be considered unconstitutional by a State and a group of Senators from said State who actually have the….ummmm….dare I say......nads…… to stand up for themselves and their citizen’s sovereign rights instead of bending over the chair of inevitability….with all due respect, Sir.

Or maybe you are just worried about a bingo hall like Twin Rivers….which is such a huge disappointment in the profit maker, job creator and economic engine fantasy for Rhode Island….yeah, those bingo slots sure are a threat to the Commonwealth…and gosh, lest us forget what happened in Connecticut because you told us so…

If we understand correctly now, there are machines that look like slot machines, act like slot machines but are in fact a Bingo gaming machine and because weve allowed Bingo would not have to get our permission, nor would we have to legalize slot machines for them to be able to open a casino with slot machines, for all intents and purposes. So our choice, basically the issue of whether to legalize slot machines is effectively mooted out. We either get in front of it or behind it.

Sen. Rosenberg said, That is how the state of Connecticut ended up with two full-scale casinos. The tribe down there said they were going to exercise their right to electronic bingo. The first tribe chose to share the market with the second tribe, and thats how we ended up with what we have in Connecticut. There is ample precedent now that electronic bingo machines are recognized. The second reason and way in which this is profound is that there have been a number of hiccups. - transcripts from the Senate Hearing on the Casino Bill

Jeez...talk about leaving out the pertanent facts - Senator, you obviously don't know the history of IGRA nor do you care to understand that that State was bamboozled by a smart lawyer looking to make some cash - but hey, no matter because it happened and we had better go build us some casinos real quick like….forget the damned independent cost benefit analysis - look what happened in Connecticut twenty-two years ago…and it's gonna happen to us....we need to beat them to the punch….right Senator?

So what exactly happened in Connecticut Senator? Other than increased crime, increased drunk driving incidents, a need for more police and fire services, a need for more teachers, failed small businesses and traffic topped off with high property taxes…do you think Connecticut would allow what happened to them then to happen now? I don't think so.....what is it exactly that we have learned from Connecticut Senator Rosenberg? That it is inevitable so prepare to bend over that chair of inevitability? Really???

Oh, and while I’m at it Senator Rosenberg, with all due respect….it is your job and the job of every Senator to govern this State under its own Constitution….and in case you haven’t read it for a while (or at all)….here is the first article ….

Article I. All men are born free and equal, and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights; among which may be reckoned the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties; that of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property; in fine, that of seeking and obtaining their safety and happiness.

Yet here you are…debating whether or not to allow smoking in casinos because cigarettes are threat to public health…debating whether or not to allow free drinks in casinos because drunk driving is a threat to public safety…but gosh darned it, not to allow these things will most certainly result in casino failure which will cut into the so called “profits” for the State - which you can't even say for sure exists because there is no time nor a need for an independent analysis of the costs...so these things must be allowed and we certainly don't need an independent analysis done, just pass the bill now and worry about that later…..arguing all this and so much more to pass a bill for an industry that in and of itself is a public health and safety threat..a threat to the safety and happiness of the citizens of this Commonwealth. Because we got to beat them to the punch….Good job Senators…and a super kudos to you Senator Rosenberg…..here is something to be really super duper proud of.

- There is absolutely no inevitability as long as there is the willingness to think - Chuck Jone

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The Ultimate Truth and Betrayal

2010-03-11T11:45:00.023-05:00

I pledge allegiance to the Flag
of the United States of America
And to the Republic for which it stands
One Nation under God Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all…

How many times in our lifetimes have we stood up placed our hand over our heart and recited the pledge of allegiance? Personally, I grew up reciting the pledge every morning at school and I remember how these words affected me even at a young age. I grew up in the 70’s…a decade wrought with its own political issues such as the Arab oil embargo of 73, the water gate scandal, and Nixon's presidency. As I read these words today after all I have seen and learned over the past three years fighting for my rights as the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe tries to take land into trust and build a casino resort in Middleboro, I wonder who, if anyone, in our Government lives and works by these words. Do we have leaders who actually believe in one Nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all?…I don’t know about our Government, but I do know I had the honor and pleasure to meet a group of people from across this great country who do believe in liberty and justice for all and who tirelessly fight to affect change that ensures that we all really do live in one indivisible Nation.

How many truths does one lie destroy?

This question sums up the 2010 Annual CERA conference I recently had the honor to attend. The conference was entitled Betrayed Trust: Taxation without Representation - Representation without Taxation.

The conference started with an introduction discussing this very question and how fear and fatalism caused by flawed Indian Policy and corrupt Tribal governments quells the voice of United States citizens, including and most importantly the voices of Native Americans living under corrupt Tribal Governments. The voices of people needing help but are afraid to speak out, and those who do are intimidated into silence and blatantly ignored by the US government. The voices of US citizens across this great Nation who are fighting to protect their homes, communities and many cases entire counties from being taken from them by the Federal Government, placed into Trust and given away as independent sovereign land that is not subject to local, state and many federal regulations. Land that is run by Tribal Governments where the rights and equal protection guaranteed to all citizens by the United States Constitution does not apply. Our own Government, through flawed Federal Indian Policy has created a system and policy whereby nepotism and favoritism effectively dismantled our so called “One Nation” and has created two distinct classes of people right here within our own Country. Federal Indian Policy is an utter complete failure. It is unaccountable, destructive, racist and unconstitutional and the absolute profound effects of this failure became quite evident to me at this conference.

Separate but Equal

One of the most fascinating and eye opening presentations was given by an amazingly intelligent and wonderful woman who also happens to be a CERA lawyer. Her presentation was entitled “The Dred Scott Constitutional Split”. This was a fascinating and difficult discussion as to how Native Americans in our Country are considered “separate but equal” by our Government regardless of the fact that they were granted citizenship in 1924, and regardless of the fact that the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act which was supposed to be a benefit to Indians, still keeps them as wards of the Federal Government…they are “separate but equal”. The realization of this has really bothered me. I mean, how is it possible that in 2010 we have a group of people who are American citizens with all civil rights granted to them under the US Constitution as long as they are not enrolled members of a federally recognized tribe or live on an Indian Reservation? How is it possible that the Federal Government still considers American Indians as belligerents and continues to keep them as wards of the Government and defines tribal members as “separate but equal”?

The Ultimate Truth

I listened to the story of a wonderful Native American woman who made the decision to unenroll herself from her Tribe so she would not be considered a ward of the federal government and enjoy the freedoms granted to all US citizens under the Constitution. A woman who stood up and said “I don’t need the Federal Government to tell me I am an Indian…I already know this.”

I heard the story of a Native American gentleman who had his land legally given to him by his mother at her death suddenly taken away from him by his own Tribal Government and there was nothing he could do about it….not until he met the CERA lawyer who has been working tirelessly to help him regain and take back what is rightfully his.

I listened to the story of a Native American gentleman who truly believes that Tribal sovereignty creates more problems than it solves…who lived through his own personal hell with the fear and intimidation pushed on him and his family by his Tribal Government.

I listened to town and county government officials talk about the struggles they constantly face due to flawed Indian Policy and how their rights are ignored by the Federal Government.

The Ultimate Betrayal

I listened to two people who were part of the Salamanca sixteen and how the ultimate betrayal of our Federal Government left them with no rights by supporting another sovereign nation and effectively leaving them with nothing.

“How would most Americans feel if one day Congress passed a law that said they no longer owned their homes? In 1990 Congress did just that to approximately 3,000 people in Salamanca, New York and surrounding communities…they ordered us out of our homes that we bought and paid for. They were officials from the United States Justice Department sent by the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Indian Affairs aided and abetted by the Congress of the United States and the Governor and Legislators of the State of New York. Ultimate betrayal by all….When we testified before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs in 1996 and fully explained our denied due process and equal protection under the law, Senator Inouye of Hawaii said: Well, we’ll certainly see that this never happens to anyone else in the United States - But…they did let it happen to us." - speech quote from a Salamanca Sixteen survivor

Hope Springs Eternal

I went to this conference and listened to the stories of people from all over the country who are struggling to survive under repressions from land in trust issues, fee to trust issues, Indian casino issues, basic civil rights issues…..Native Americans, ordinary people like you and me, town and state government officials all trying to protect their rights. I listened to the mess created by flawed Indian Policy and the many, many stories I heard over the course of two days put me through a range of emotions….outrage and anger, sadness, horror, and yes even elation for the small wins. Hearing these stories has given back to me something I thought I had lost over the past year….my overall motivation to stop the apathy and help affect change in government. I have found people who welcomed me with open arms, who listened to and sympathized with my own personal plight and who have given me hope in the future of our great Nation.

I got into this fight because the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe wanted to take land into trust as an initial reservation and build a casino resort to the likes of Foxwoods three miles from my home. I was called a NIMBY by casino supporters and when I first started in this I was….but I educated myself and learned that I shouldn’t blame the Mashpee Tribe itself for my lack of rights in this issue, but to blame the unaccountability of Tribal Government and my own Federal Government and especially the flawed Indian Policy that only helps Tribal Governments rule as tyrants while leaving the rest of us to pick up the pieces…I also learned that I am a NIMBY...a NIMBY who was fortunate enough to realize that my backyard extends far beyond an acre in Carver Massachusetts….one that extends to every corner of this great Nation. I can thank the good people who make up organizations like CERA and CERF for giving me hope that we can affect change for the good of all who call this great Nation home and for opening my eyes to truth behind Indian Policy and how this policy actually is the Ultimate Betrayal to all of us.

CERF and CERA’S Mission Statement

Federal Indian Policy is unaccountable, destructive, racist and unconstitutional. It is therefore CERA’s mission to ensure the equal protection of the law as guaranteed to all citizens by the Constitution of the United States of America.

For more information please visit www.citizensalliance.org

Any appeasement of tyranny is treason to this republic and to the democratic ideal - William Allen White

Oppression is but another name for irresponsible power - Charles Cotesworth Pinckney

“Be the Change you to see in the World”

Signs

2009-11-30T19:02:00.013-05:00

A friend of mine was driving home from a Thanksgiving holiday with family and as she was driving through New York State...eeerrrrr...I mean leaving New York State and entering Senica Nation , she saw this big giant sign.....

Huh... I am not really sure what they mean by "a fee is being assessed"...is there a flat fee, or are they tracking all vehicles going through their "Nation" and assessing a fee based on milage or time spent in Senica Nation? Either way, from my perspective, it would seem that the State of New York pays a fee for someone to drive on a road that starts out in good ol' U.S.A and straight into another sovereign country...Senica Nation - to me, this sign translates to the taxpayers of New York paying that "assessed fee".... strange....oh, and I am certainly not going to get into the fact that once you enter "Senica Nation", you are subject to their laws and jurisdiction....that little factoid is something nightmares are made of.

I really, really, really need to say that I find it appaling that the Senica Nation boasts that it is the only sovereign nation to "host" a U.S. city in its boundaries. I know what happened in Salamanca and what happened to the US citizens who lived there....it is atrocious...so much so that an entire book (one I highly recommend reading) was dedicated to the sixteen citizens who stood up and fought to protect their homes and businesses....their lives and livlihoods...and who were completely left unprotected by their own government....it is a travesty. A wonderful friend of mine is one of those sixteen people and to hear what this person and all the others went through to save their homes and businesses is nothing short of heartbreaking.....

Exerpt from Going to Pieces - The Dismantling of the United States of America - by Elaine Devary Willman -

Chapter Fifteen

The Salamanca Sixteen

In May of 1990, the Senica Nation refused to negotiate a new "Master Lease" with the City of Salamanca, a lease that would have protected individual home and business owners. Citizens were forced to negotiate with the Senicaa; however the tribe would not negotiate with individual citizens. This was the proverbial Catch-22, that forced citizens to accept a new, 40-year lease, at higher annual lease rates, and one that arguably transferred title of "improvements on the land" to the Seneca Nation of Indians.

On October 10, 1990...the House of Representatives approved a new lease arrangement, entitled the Seneca Nation Settlement Act of 1990 in which the SNI would be given $60 million dollars and the right to a new lease - not the old 99-year lease that ensured private ownership of "improvements" - a 40 year lease at substantially increased lease rates. The $60 million would be provided as follows: $25 million from the federal govenment; $25 million from the State of New York. Source of funds: US taxpayers.

.....The Tribe had required a lease fee of several thousand per month for Nancy's home and business. "I just couldn't pay that...so I lost everything." she said....

Looking at this picture as one enters Senica Nation, it really makes me wonder what would have happened if the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe had gotten LIT ...their own sovereign land and their casino...and the ramifications it would have had on our community. I hear the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe has new investors which makes me also wonder a lot of other things, but I will save those thoughts for another day. I still need to let this picture set in my mind.....

...and the sign said "everybody welcome, come in, kneel down and pray" but then they passed around a plate at the end of it all and I didn't have a penny to pay. So I got me a pen and paper and made up my own little sign. I said "Thank you Lord for thinking about me, I'm alive and doing fine."

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The Life of Brian

2009-07-27T20:44:00.020-04:00

Did anyone catch the latest article in the Casino Chronicles? Will this guy ever just give it up? The infamous "factfinder" has struck again -- and missed. I can't help myself here. Seriously, I have been trying so hard to be good...but this guy really just hands it over on a silver platter....and poor Alice just eats it up. Brian really, really needs a reality check here.....really.

Brian P. Giovanoni, former chairman of Middleboro’s Casino Resort Advisory Committee, believes he’s found potential inaccuracies in Lynch’s report.
Giovanoni said one point is in direct contradiction to the tribe’s federal recognition, which found continuous tribal ties dating to first contact with European settlers.

Uuuummm....Brian.....did you even read the Tribe's Federal Recognition? I would have to say no after reading your comments. Here is a "fact" for you Factfinder....

The number of times Mashpee is mentioned in the Final Determination: 265
(this number does not include the footnotes or page headings)

The number of times Middleboro is mentioned in the Final Determination: 0
(this number does include the footnotes and page headings)

In case you don't understand Brian - or are learning math from a Tribal leader who actually thinks there are two LIT applications pending....Mashpee, 265.....Middleboro....BIG FAT ZEEERRRO. I hardly think not mentioning Middleboro in their federal recognition constitutes continuous tribal ties dating to first contact with European settlers - at least not in Middleboro. Sure, they may have had contact....but obviously not in Middleboro or they would have mentioned that. If you are still confused, please feel free to read all about what the federal recognition actually says about the Tribe's historical ties, here. Or, if you prefer, I would be ever so happy to send you a personal copy of it....you know...so you can add it to your thousands of pages of facts you have on the non-impacts to the environment a casino would have in Middleboro or the surrounding communities and how wonderful all of our lives would be if only that darned resort bingo hall could be built.

Lynch is also “saying this tribe has never asserted political authority over any residents within the town of Middleboro, which is untrue,” Giovanoni said. “There are voting members of the tribe living here today.”

Huh....now that is interesting, and probably quite true....but....just because there are Tribal members living in Middleboro now doesn't automatically mean they have political authority over residents within the town of Middleboro. That is like saying, the vote of a Middleboro resident who is a Mashpee tribal member is more important than, or more authoritative than the average joe living in Town. Jeesh....one would hope that isn't the case in Middleboro. Here is what the federal recognition said about politcial influence....in case ya missed it the last time I brought it up:

Political Influence:

".....political control of the town of Mashpee...."

"....evidence of the Mashpee's residental patterns...was also sufficient to demonstrate political influence..."

"....gave the Mashpee greater self-government by establishing an "Indian District" in Mashpee, Massachusetts..."

"....as part of an Indian District...the Mashpee gained complete control of political, legal and economic affairs in the town (of Mashpee)...."

"....Mashpee adapted the principal elements of the town governmental system...."

Yeah, I can totally see the connection to Middleboro, the political influence and all...or as Brian would call it....authority... because a few tribal members live in town. What in the world was Jim Lynch thinking???

Gosh...Brian must be feeling oh so confident and super-duper smart....a true factfinder...especially after what the Vice Chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, Aaron Tobey said....

Tobey said he hasn’t read the report complied by Lynch, but added, “if it’s accurate, it’s good to know now.”

Is it me....or shouldn't the Vice Chair of the Tribal Council already know if this is accurate or not??

Oh - and I bet this comment really got Brian's factfinding senses tingling.....

Tobey said Grabowski’s final report has yet to be released, but said that she has compiled “convincing evidence” the tribe has links to the land in Middleboro.

For the record, Christine Grabowski can write and re-write all the historical reports she wants for the Tribe....her final report is about two years too late. The only report that matters is the one submitted by the Tribe in their LIT application - the one Jim Lynch tears apart in his report. The Tribe cannot change their application so by all means let Ms. Grabowski write her final report. I look forward to reading it. And by all means Brian, continue to tell us all about the potential inaccuracies you find in Mr. Lynch's report....I love a good laugh.

The only potential inaccuracies this chick sees is, yet again, in another fly by night comment hand fed to the media by our friend Factfinder. Great job, Brian....I guess you can now add tribal historian to your endless list of expertise.

-be the change you want to see in the world-

Someday

2009-07-16T00:01:00.009-04:00

This is for my dear friend Eddie...not Vedder, another Eddie. He is a wonderful person who has personally dealt with the disappointment with his own people, his own country...his own freedoms granted to him by birth....

please know my dear friend, with all that has happened, that this chick has not forgotten your plight and your cause. You have many, many friends behind you that believe in your cause, and believe in this country....and the idea that this country will stand behind you and help at some point, even when your own Senators and Legislators don't have the courtesy to give you the time of day. All of our voices shall be heard. We are patriots...we love our Country...even when it seems that the ones who are "running" it don't love us...or you. Freedom, equality and democracy for all who are born and live within these boarders....no more hiding behind sovereign nation status.

Someday.....the river shall open for the righteous. Until then, we will stand behind you.

Righteous; integrity, equity, justice, straightness—upright, just, straight, innocent, true, sincere. It is best understood as the product of upright, moral action in accordance with some form of divine plan.

Righteousness is a matter of relationships - with God, with things, and with other people.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Think Pink

2009-03-24T10:23:00.004-04:00

There was an interesting article in the Mashpee Enterprise regarding Cedric Cromwell's determination to hold onto the casino pipedream. Once again, Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Chairman Cromwell opens mouth and inserts foot.

“Chairman Cromwell, please carry on,”

Carry on with what??? His temper tantrum over the SCOTUS decision?

Mr. Cromwell said the environmental impact statement for the casino in Middleborough and the planning for housing in Mashpee are going ahead as planned.

Go ahead....a completed EIS does not land-in-trust make.

Mr. Cromwell said the tribe’s leadership is planning on meeting with local and state officials in the near future, once the historical information has been compiled, to make their case in what he described as an “education” campaign.

Gee Mr. Cromwell....I hope you realize that you cannot contridict the historical information you already compiled and submitted with your application or you will have a lot of explaining to do....you may want to learn the rules of the game before you start "educating" people. If you don't, you may say something like this....

Mr. Cromwell said the tribe has a land deed agreed to by the colonial government and that the tribe was under federal jurisdiction as an Indian District in the 19th century. He said the tribe is also listed on a federal Department of War list dating back to the 1850s, though he said the tribe is still in the process of preparing its case and is not ready to release detailed information.

Sigh....okay, first of all....he is talking about the colonial government of the original 13 colonies...before the Federal government was formed. Second of all....I am not really sure how Mr. Cromwell can claim the tribe was under federal jurisdiction as an Indian District because the Indian District was formed by the State not the Federal Government. So again...if anything, the tribe was under state jurisdiction not federal.

Oh....and one more thing, Mr. Cromwell......

The Indians were under the Dept. of War until 1849 when the BIA was established in DOI.
All land belonging to State jurisdiction is in pink. See any tribes there? See any Mashpees there?
See any reservations there?

NO, NO and NO. Forget about it Mr. Cromwell, you either have no idea what you are talking about or you are a really great liar.

“Dreams are bad...when all they do is leave the truth behind...”

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Color Blind

2009-03-17T23:09:00.015-04:00

In case you missed it, which I am sure you have not, Gladys has an excellent blog - Waiting to Exhale - that really puts today’s Enterprise article into perspective. I love how the enterprise article's title really grabs your attention….Despite setbacks?? I would hardly call the recent SCOTUS decision that takes the power (rightfully) from the Secretary of the Interior to place land into trust to Tribes recognized after 1934 back into the hands of Congress a mere setback. I mean, holy cow….what is it going to take to make the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe understand that the casino pipedream is…well…a Dead Parrot. I nearly choked on my lunch today reading this article….really. Apparently Scott Ferson is not giving PR advice to the new Tribal Leader Cedric Cromwell. This really caught my attention…..

But Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Council Chairman Cedric Cromwell said the Bureau of Indian Affairs has given his tribe the “green light” to continue with the process that began with its August 2007 application

Really??? Huh….thats kind of funny because a discussion with the BIA office left me with a completely different perspective….but that is neither here nor there. Here is the clincher quote for me:

The tribe contends that the court decision ruled it would take an act of Congress to take land into trust for tribes that were recognized after the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act. Cromwell said the tribe was under federal jurisdiction in the 1800s, and therefore not constrained by the decision.

“We were under federal jurisdiction as part of the 13 Colonies,” Cromwell said.

Oooookay….so sorry Mr. Cromwell, but the Tribe was not under Federal Jurisdiction as part of the original 13 colonies because the Federal Government did not have federal jurisdiction over the original thirteen since it didn't exist, and the Federal Government does not have federal jurisdiciton over States or their citizens unless specifically given that power under the articles of the United States Constitution. You must have missed that class in American History. The Tribe gained federal recognition in 2007 - of which the Tribe's own historical timeline shows.

As Gladys’ poster on her blog stated, the Tribe was, if anything, under State jurisdiction and if I remember correctly, the State decided way back in 1978 that it was not a Tribe…and that decision was upheld in an appeal in 1979.

January 1978: Following a 40-day trial, the judge instructs the jury that they cannot find the Wampanoag are a tribe, unless the tribe falls within certain definitions at six points in history.
The jury responds that the Mashpee Wampanoag were a tribe in 1834 and 1842 - but not 1790, 1869, 1870 and 1976. The dates correspond to key dates in the history of the tribe and its suit, such as the 1834 Mashpee District Act and the 1870 incorporation of Mashpee.

- 1978: Judge Skinner dismisses the land suit, saying that the Wampanoag are not a tribe and have no standing to sue.

- 1979: The First Circuit Court of Appeals upholds Skinner's decision. Later that year, the U.S. Supreme Court declines to hear the case.

- courtesy of the Cape Cod Times -

Yet still, the Tribe did manage to gain Federal Recognition and all the benefits that go with that recognition. Yet they had to push the envelope by teaming up with foreign casino developers and declaring their “right” to build a casino over 39 miles away from Mashpee - in Middleboro, MA under the guise of the IRA and under the exceptions listed in IGRA.

…and there was nothing we could do about it….it was inevitable….heck - even our own Governor, Deval Patrick, apparently bought into that fairytale…that or just pretended to so he could push his own casino bill. Shame on him, either way…

Aside from the fact that the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe has no historical ties to Middleboro, they certainly did not fall under Federal Jurisdiction in the 1800’s. I mean, if they did, wouldn’t they have included that in their own timeline?

And the funny thing here is, the Mashpee Tribal Council Leader cannot seem to understand that even if the Tribe does go to Congress, and somehow manages to convince Congress that they were under federal jurisdiction in 1934, they still won’t have the land in Middleboro placed into trust because it is unconstitutional – it treads on the sovereignty of the State.

The fact of the matter here is that in the United States, there are two separate and distinct jurisdictions - the jurisdiction of the States within their own territorial boundaries and federal jurisdiction. Broadly speaking, state jurisdiction encompasses the legislative power to regulate, control and govern real and personal property, individuals and enterprises within the territorial boundaries of any given State while federal jurisdiction is extremely limited, with the same being exercised only in areas external to state legislative power and territory.

The original thirteen colonies were each separately established by charters from the English Crown. Each had its own governor, legislative assembly and courts, and each was governed separately and independently by the English Parliament until that dastardly tea was thrown in the harbor and the Declaration of Independence was born.

The Declaration of Independence made each new State a separate and independent sovereign over which there was no other government of superior power or jurisdiction. This was clearly shown in Harcourt v. Gaillard, where the Court stated:

"There was no territory within the United States that was claimed in any other right than that of some one of the confederated states; therefore, there could be no acquisition of territory made by the United States distinct from, or independent of some one of the states.
"Each declared itself sovereign and independent, according to the limits of its territory.
"[T]he soil and sovereignty within their acknowledged limits were as much theirs at the declaration of independence as at this hour."

So in a nutshell, on a hot July day in 1776, the new States possessed all sovereignty, power, and jurisdiction over all the soil and persons in their respective territorial limits.

This condition of supreme sovereignty of each State over all property and persons within the borders was expressed with the adoption of the Articles of Confederation. In Article II of that document, it was expressly stated:

"Article II. Each state retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every Power, Jurisdiction and right, which is not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States, in Congress assembled."

The history of the confederation government clearly shows that each State was indeed sovereign and independent to the degree that it made the central government created by the confederation fairly ineffectual. These defects of the confederation government strained the relations between and among the States and the solution to the problem was through the calling of a constitutional convention…and the birth of our Constitution.

During the penning of our United States Constitution there was not any intention demonstrated for the States to surrender the jurisdiction each States possessed, at that time. As a matter of fact, the Constitution as finally drafted continued the same territorial jurisdiction of the States as existed under the Articles of Confederation.

Art. I, Sec. 8, Cl. 17 of the U.S. Constitution:

"To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings."

The reason for the inclusion of this clause in the Constitution was and is obvious. Under the Articles of Confederation, the States retained full and complete jurisdiction over lands and persons within their borders. The Congress under the Articles was merely a body which represented and acted as liaisons to the States for external issues, and had no jurisdiction within the States. It would seem in reading, that this clause was included in the Constitution to give jurisdiction to Congress over the Nation’s Capital, and such other places as Congress might purchase for forts, magazines, arsenals, and other needful buildings where the State ceded jurisdiction of such lands to the federal government, and it certainly does not include jurisdiction over non-ceded areas – those remain within the power of the States.

So what does this mean? Well, to me, it means that Congress cannot take land from the State of Massachusetts (or any other State for that matter) unless it is federal land. That, or if the State gives permission for Congress to take it. It would be unconstitutional.

I define jurisdiction as this: The authority to act.

So as I see it, according to the Constitution, if the government has jurisdiction, it has the power to act. If it does not have jurisdiction, it does not have the power to act. The geographic jurisdiction of the United States is very limited and well defined. Federal geographic jurisdiction is limited to those places where the Unites States is the sovereign – when it is federal owned land.

In the United States there are only two kinds of reserved federal lands that are well-known: military and Indian. An Indian Reservation is federal land reserved for a tribe when it relinquished its other land areas to the United States through treaties. Military reservations are managed by the Department of Defense. Examples include army posts, marine bases, naval stations, and air force bases, such as Otis Air Force Base. I bring this up because the last thing I want to be reading is that one of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal leaders being quoted that there is Federal reserve land right on the Cape that Congress could potentially take into trust for them. The truth of the matter is, yes, Otis Air Base is federal land….but the other truth of the matter is Otis is still quite active, serving as the Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR) and it also sits on a sole source aquifer, which is Federally protected.

Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR), a military training facility, is located on the upper western portion of Cape Cod, immediately south of the Cape Cod Canal in Barnstable County, Massachusetts. It includes parts of the towns of Bourne, Mashpee, and Sandwich and abuts the town of Falmouth. MMR covers about 22,000 acres—approximately 30 square miles.

The Massachusetts Military Reservation is located over a sole source aquifer that provides drinking water for 200,000 year-round and 500,000 seasonal residents of Cape Cod. The aquifer, referred to as the Sagamore Lens, is a valuable water supply resource. – MMR website

So, in this chick’s eyes….the BIA can give all the “green lights” it wants to give, and the Mashpee Tribe can continue to insist they were under federal jurisdiction in 1934, it doesn’t matter. The BIA has no authority over the application - the best they can do is send it to the SOI, who can't do anything about it either. There will be no Mashpee Tribal casino built on sovereign land in Middleboro because the Supreme Court and the Constitution of the United States says so. The decision does apply to the Mashpee Tribe, much as the new section 20 regulations applied to them also. No grandfathering….no name on the list…..no land in Massachusetts for Congress to give….no Land in Trust…no casino…no green light. Heck, there isn’t even a dilemma zone here. I am afraid that Mr. Cromwell might be a bit color blind. The only light glaring on this entire casino pipedream is the color red.

While the Mashpee leadership contends the tribe is exempt from the ruling, Joseph S. Larisa, Jr., the assistant solicitor for Indian Affairs for the town of Charlestown, R.I., disagrees. Larisa, who handled the Rhode Island case that made it to the Supreme Court, said the Mashpee were not on the 1934 list of tribes under federal jurisdiction.

“The decision applies to the Mashpee, the same way it applies to the Narragansett. They don’t have the right to strip state and town jurisdiction (from the land),” Larisa said.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

One is Such a Lonely Number

2009-02-25T21:36:00.008-05:00

All this hype about a "fix" and how this ruling won't effect the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and BFF Herb Strather's casino pipedream has this chick really wanting to blog - especially about why this ruling will stand and how a "fix" is hardly fixing to happen....no matter how many letters pro casino people, casino investors, and casino interest Tribes write...that, and recent reactions I have read regarding the SCOTUS ruling regarding CvK, complete with quotes by Mashpee Wampanoag Vice Chair Aaron Tobey -

The tribe has two land-into-trust applications pending at the Bureau of Indian Affairs and will likely have to show that it was under "federal jurisdiction" in 1934 in order to benefit. But tribal leaders say they will pass the test.

"We don't see this as having any effect on us," Vice Chairman Aaron Tobey said. "Keep in mind, we have deed to 16,000 acres in Mashpee dated before 1934 ... we have deeds dating to the 1600s."

but alas, carverchick actually does have a day job with a lot going on this week....so for now, I want to post this response from a friend who actually gets it....

...if they want to scare us with their media quotes, then they had better gets their facts straight. I’m not scared of anyone who is stupid enough to believe that one application for 2 tracts of land is 2 applications. Don’t they do math down there in Mashpee?

Neither am I scared, my friend....neither am I. Upon reading this, I can only assume that Mr. Tobey still hasn't read the one and only application.

So, my dear friend, because you always know just what to say...this one is for you - I will always remember the chuckle we had over this song and how funny it was that it was the last song played that one time before casino....eerrrrr...coffee shop talk aired. It was one of the few times I have laughed over all of this.

oh - and from the "irony department" ....this song was sung by "Scandal".

Bu-bye Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Middleboro casino....

Whoops.....I mean....bu- bye bingo-hall....

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Exercise in Futility

2009-02-01T21:39:00.016-05:00

What can one expect from a lawyer and now ex-Middleboro BOS selectman who spent the past year and half as the number one cheerleader for the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s push to build a mega casino in Middleboro. If you support an irresponsible project without doing any research and push for an inadequate intergovernmental agreement, get your votes to accept said agreement using scare tactics and the myth of inevitability, then expect that you are going to be criticized when you turn around after the fact and say it isn’t good enough….and then quit under the guise of doing what’s best for your tribe. To hell with everything else your town faces, the rest of the board doesn’t agree with you, so get up and walk out in a blaze of glory. That’s about as close as any of us will get to justice in Middleboro where town politics has become a soap opera.

I am not criticizing Mr. Bond for quitting his post as chairman of the board of selectmen, I am just questioning his reasons behind it. Can anyone say....draaaammaaaa.... The really sad thing about all of this is that when I read the comments sections on blogs from residents who have been wronged by him over this casino trainwreck, I read about how gallant he is….he shows true leadership….he has support for renegotiating the contract...he has done the right thing, we need to renegotiate in case it comes - when the reality of the situation is, there is no point in renegotiations and no point in Mr. Bond quitting his post in the manner that he did. Attempting to re-negotiate the IGA is a waste of time, effort, energy and money….it is an exercise in futility.

Here is the thing folks….the IGA that was voted in at the TMFH is the one that was submitted with the Land in Trust Application which means it is the only one that legally counts. The BIA is very clear on one issue. Once a LIT application is submitted it cannot be changed. There can be no additions or deletions made to the application package by the Tribe. Period.

I have been through the BIA’s checklist for gaming. Under the section entitled Request for Approval of Acquisitions. Here is what is says:

The information required under 25 CFR PART 151 should be organized to provide a complete picture of the tribe's request. Tribes should be encouraged to submit their requests in a manner which will facilitate the analysis of the request request. At the onset of a request, a tribe should be instructed on the nature of the requires submissions which support the request. Documents received from the tribe should be kept intact. NO ADDITIONS OR DELETIONS SHOULD BE MADE TO THE TRIBE'S APPLICATION PACKAGE. ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OBTAINED BY THE BIA OFFICES TO SUPPLEMENT OR CLARIFY THE TRIBE'S APPLICATION SHOULD BE MAINTAINED SEPARATELY AND IDENTIFIED IN A MANNER THAT WILL ENABLE THE READER TO READILY MAKE A DETERMINATION AS TO WHICH OFFICE OBTAINED OR PREPARED THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.

The point I am trying to make here is that the tribe is not allowed to send anything in after the application has been submitted. They cannot rescind the old IGA and replace it with a new one. The only way information or documentation is added to an application is when they are asked for more documentation from a reviewing department who needs clarification on specific parts of an application. This is called Technical Assistance.

So, in a nutshell, the tribe has to be asked for more documentation. They cannot send anything in after the fact or update their LIT application. Mr. Bond is a day late and a few million dollars short here. Middleboro negotiated a contract with the Tribe. The Tribe submitted that contract as part of it’s LIT application. The Town has made it’s bed…now that is what I call a done deal.

This is a federal process people. There is nothing in the law or federal code that will allow a re-negotiated contract to be submitted at this point. I would have thought that Mr. Bond, being an attorney and all, or at least Mr. Whittlesey would have known that.

“I believe they've shown joyful willingness to support the tribe's interests over the town's," Bond said of his board. "From their actions, they've shown the town is desperate for a casino, and by doing that, they've rung a bell that can't be un-rung. In my mind, they have irreparably harmed the people of Middleborough." – Adam Bond quoted in the Boston Globe

Hey, I can relate to this statement….it’s just that in this chick’s eyes, Mr. Bond himself along with the Middleboro BOS have already irreparably harmed the people of Middleboro…as well as the people from the surrounding communities in the summer of 2007. So thanks for the concern, but the damage has been done and a done bun can’t be undone.

For those who feel that Mr. Bond did the right thing and honestly think that there is a chance to get more money from the Tribe…well by all means, please go on thinking that, but you may want to shift your focus away from wasting money renegotiating with the Tribe itself and hope like hell the State will make up that $18 million plus deficit you are now worried about. Good luck with that.

The only thing talks of re-negotiation will accomplish is to help the Tribe show efforts at mitigation from financial concerns raise during the EIS scoping session. It would only serve to provide the Tribe with more “proof” that the community at large supports this project, when in reality it doesn’t – as shown in Article 3 from the TMFH. I think Gladys Kravitz made this point quite well in her blog. The fact of the matter is, the only IGA that counts is the one in the application and the application can’t be changed or modified by the Tribe. Huh….I wonder why Mr. Whittlesey hasn’t pointed that out to anyone but instead supports Bond in his futile efforts at saving the town….

Dennis Whittlesey, the Washington attorney who helped negotiate the agreement on behalf of the town, had agreed with Bond. He urged selectmen to call for a meeting to "discuss the specific agreements made and the foundations upon which they were made." - Boston Globe article

So, if the bigwig DC Indian gaming lawyer Dennis Whittlesey couldn’t negotiate a fair agreement back in 2007, then what hope is there for the residents of Middleboro now – especially since the enlightened ex-selectman is still all for the casino project, the current BOS hasn't even bothered to read the indictments against the man they negotiatied with while some board members allegedly have private pow-wows of their own with key tribal officals and casino investors. I fear that the the only way Middleboro is going to get out of this with any money left is if this application is flat out denied by the SOI…or if the Supreme court rules in favor of Carcieri.

Live by the semantic sword, die by it also.

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it without a sense of ironic futility - Errol Morris

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Standing Strong

2009-01-09T23:10:00.007-05:00

This post is dedicated to all of you....

You who stood up on day one and asked the questions...

You who continued to ask those same questions over the pounding of a gavel.....

You who started a grassroots organization dedicated to protecting and educating our community....

You who had the courage to speak to other communities and get them involved....

You who took the time out of your personal lives to research environmental impacts....

You who had the courage to speak out publicly against a casino in your community....

You who continue to ask the questions that were never asked by the Middleboro BoS....

You who continue to believe in the freedom of speech and the voice of the average Joe...

You who fight for your homes, your families .... your communities....

You who believe in the actual practice of freedom of speech...

You who blog about the lies and misconseptions fed to us by those who are hungry with greed....

You who form the foundation of what this great nation is built upon - the right of freedom, liberty and the persuit of happiness...for all - not just a few at the expense of everyone else.

You who continue to fight against a casino in your community without fear...

and, last but certainly not least....

You who continue to tell the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, casino investors, flying monkeys and the federal government... "we're not gonna take it!"

"Is that a No Casino pin on your uniform?"

you betcha!!

We're Right!
We're Free!
We'll Fight!

You'll see!!

...or perhaps you already have seen. This State and this region will not be bullied into silence or acceptance of "it's coming - you have no say" by casino interests, flying monkeys....or those who claim the myth of inevitability.

We're Not Gonna Take It! - Twisted Sister

Rock on my friends....

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Save the Date!

2009-01-07T22:38:00.005-05:00

Please join the

REGIONAL TASK FORCE

ON CASINOS

This is a Special Community Forum

to meet with the Task Force, get the latest

news on the casino and ask questions directly to the Task Force members

Date: Thursday January 15, 2009

Time: 7:00 p.m.

Carver High School Auditorium

For further information, contact the Carver Planning Dept.

at 508-866-3450 or email jack.hunter@carverma.org

This is an open forum for all our communities who are interested in learning more about how a Resort-Casino will affect you.

Gosh....how I love Carver!!

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The Irony of it All

2009-01-06T22:22:00.031-05:00

There was an interesting article in Monday’s Enterprise titled “Magazine Blasts Casino”. I call it interesting only because of the title. I would Oliver Mill Herring Run

think a more appropriate title would have been “Magazine Exposes Casino Impacts” because that is really what the Massachusetts Audubon’s recent magazine article is really about. You can read the Mass Audubon article in it’s entirely at CasinoFacts.org.

I must say I was moved by this article, because of its message, and specifically because it reiterates the haunting, yet moving words of Faries Dreaming Bear Gray, spiritual leader of the Massachusett Tribe when he spoke at the BIA EIS scoping meeting last March….his was a powerful and moving speech – here is what he had to say.
(please note that I am reprinting only a portion of his words. If you would like, you can watch and listen to his powerful speech yourself.)

My concerns in Middleboro are twofold. One - this is not Mashpee territory. Two - destroying trees, the four-legged, the winged ones, all the creatures that will be destroyed if they build a casino is not the native way. And I don't know how the Mashpee can not be ashamed to kill such things and then say that they are still connected to the land. That is not the way. I am the spiritual leader of the Massachusett. I have spoken with our ancestors - Massachusett and Wampanaog are not happy.

What about the trees. How many trees are going to die. How many? Does anyone know? What about the creatures? How many will lose their homes? The eagle, the hawks, which the Creator sees us through, will see the Mashpee destroying the land. The Mashpee should be ashamed. I don't understand how the Mashpee can make sense of what they are attempting to do. They say that they care about the land, they have been good stewards of the land. But they are going to destroy land. What little we have left they will destroy for financial reasons - to build a casino - because their tribe is struggling. What gives the Mashpee the right to take the lives of our brothers and sisters, our cousins - the creatures that live there? That is not the native way. That is the way of the settlers. That is not the native way - it never has been. I will not question the blood of the Mashpee .. but their spirit is gone. If their spirit is intact, they would know this is the wrong thing to do. You cannot replace those things that will die. As a native, they should know this.

- Faries Dreaming Bear Gray -

Well, it is quite apparent to me that there are many Native Americans who do know this …and many settlers, also. Unfortunately, we settlers do not have the same spiritual connection to nature as the Native Americans do, but there are many who honestly do try – and dedicate their lives to it.

For those who are not aware, Mass Audubon works to protect the nature of Massachusetts for people and wildlife and they are the largest conservation organization in all of New England.

THEIR MISSION: To Protect The Nature of Massachusetts.

THEIR VISION: A Commonwealth in which people appreciate and understand native plants and animals and their habitats and work together to ensure that they are truly protected.

THEIR ROLE: To serve both as a leader and a catalyst for conservation, by acting directly to Protect The Nature of Massachusetts and by stimulating individual and institutional action through education, advocacy, and habitat protection.

THEIR GOALS: To abate the principal threats to The Nature of Massachusetts. Broadly defined, these threats are:

-- habitat fragmentation
-- habitat loss
-- disruption of ecological processes
-- invasive species
-- incompatible human uses of the land.

- Mass Audubon website -

Well it is no wonder this carefully thought out and well written article gives us a true insight into what a mega resort casino can and will do to not only Middleboro…but to all the surrounding communities. It would seem to any rational person, that the Mashpee Wampanoag’s plan to build a mega casino-resort smack dab in the middle of forested wetlands easily falls under all five broadly defined principal threats to nature.

Heidi Ricci, senior policy analyst for the Audubon Society, and someone I would call a true steward to the land understands the threat we all face…and it is a threat….a threat to that land’s specific, fragile ecosystem and the wildlife that relies on it for survival. It is a threat to our quality of life and to our natural resources – those resources we so readily take for granted every time we turn the faucet, stop to admire the flight of a hunting hawk circling overhead, or look up at the stars on a warm summer night.

“It is a very environmentally sensitive site,” Ricci said of the 539 acres proposed for a casino. Ricci said if the land is taken into a trust for the tribe, it will be exempt from state and federal environmental law.

She said the impact to water, habitat and the transportation system in a remote rural area without infrastructure could be disastrous and far reaching.

And the effects won’t be limited to Middleboro, she said. She predicts substantial impact to natural resources and infrastructure in surrounding communities — the possible filling of wetlands, threats to the Taunton River and its 582-square-mile watershed and irreplaceable ecosystems, air pollution and threats to several aquifers in the region.“The impacts are far more than local. While the Native Americans negotiated with Middleboro, nothing’s in place to address the impacts to the rest of the region,” Ricci said.
- enterprise article -

Yes, the impacts are far more reaching than Middleboro, and are far from being easily mitigated. As you all know, I am a bit passionate about the environment. I am because I truly believe that we are responsible and need to be held accountable for the health and well being of this planet we call home. I have no real problems with development, just a really big and huge problem with a project slated to destroy pristine forested wetlands that under any other circumstances, would be considered too sensitive for development. Oh, and the one other thing that really grinds my gears is people who continue to tout that the impacts can be mitigated and no harm will come to anyone because the EIS will fix it all!

Phew!....and here I was, actually worried, that building a casino that rivals the likes of Foxwoods might actually ruin this forested wetland area – hey, that land isn’t called Meeting House Swamp because it’s uplands – is it??

Well, here is some food for thought. The environmental consulting company (one of many) that has been hired by the Mashpee Wampanoag Indian Tribe...eeer...I mean hired by the Tribe's investors.....have a few interesting things to say about “the project” (aka – the casino). Please keep in mind that this consulting company was hired solely for the purpose of gathering information for the EIS because it is a requirement for the LIT process. If the Tribe can get the land placed into trust, then what the Tribe does after the fact will essentially be none of our business because they are a sovereign nation – and all the blogging by a certain Middlboro BoS member won’t mean a darned thing because the Tribe will have gotten what they wanted from the Town….land....land for a casino - land that will be exempt from local, state and most federal regulations – the very regulations that have been put in place specifically to protect the very same natural resources we all rely upon for survival…two legged, four legged and winged alike.

So, here is a breakdown of the scope of environmental work to be done by this company. This company’s job will be to assess the land for wetland delineation, secure specific permits under the Clean Water Act and ensure “the project” will be able to go forward smoothly. I have purposefully left out the name of the environmental company.

Based upon the current concept plan, XXX understands that 3 to 5 acres of wetland will be filled for this project. It is XXX’s experience that, for this amount of wetland impact, it will be difficult to obtain permits at the federal review level…

Now pay attention here…this is important….

At the federal level, there will be a standard of avoidance of wetland impacts that will need to be addressed. For example, under Section 404 of the federal Clean Water Act, no filling of wetlands or waters is to be allowed unless it is the “least damaging alternative” (or LEDPA). Accordingly, both on-site alternative layouts as well as alternative sites will need to be evaluated.

Huh…I wonder what alternative sites the Tribe has looked at in the area that would be of less impact to wetlands? I mean, the letter I am quoting was dated August 16, 2007 and was submitted as part of the LIT application. Did they look at alternative sites even though their buddy Herb Strathers had already bought the land in Middleboro long before August of 2007 for them specifically to build an Indian Casino – to which good ‘ol Herb was hoping to cash in on???

In short, the regulatory process of reviewing and permitting this project will be long and complex, and it is not possible to fully predict the course that will be taken or the fee required for it….

The amount of wetland fill propped in association with this project will undergo an intensive review under the Section 404(b)(1) guidelines of the Clean Water Act…as proposed impacts exceed the one acre threshold……the amount of wetland impact proposed for this project is relatively high for the Corps New England District. The federal agencies are likely to view this site as essentially wetland dominated, with high value wetlands surrounding the site.

Wow…even the engineering company the Tribe ...whoops....I mean investors, hired recognizes that this property is forested wetland, and will run into issues with the project as it is being proposed for the EIS.

Now the thing here is that this project clearly does not meet Clean Water Act requirements, yet the Tribe will insist on doing whatever they can to fill these wetlands and build their casino. Don’t get me wrong here…the CWA does have provisions for allowing projects to go through even though they may exceed one acre of wetlands filled, but let us please keep in mind why we even have and act called “Clean Water”.

The objective of the Clean Water Act is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters.

It is the national goal, that wherever attainable, an interim goal of water quality which provides for the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish, and wildlife and provides for recreation in and on the water be achieved by 1981.

The Clean Water Act also has regulations to protect wetland areas. The EPA does realize the critical importance of wetland areas for the propagation of wildlife, and as a system unto itself that actually helps ensure clean groundwater. In fact, if you go to their wetland webpage, here is what they have to say….

Wetlands are among the most productive ecosystems in the world, comparable to rain forests and coral reefs. An immense variety of species of microbes, plants, insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish, and mammals can be part of a wetland ecosystem.

In a nutshell, wetlands are very special and sensitive areas. They are where water and land come together, much like an estuary, the areas on the coast where fresh and salt water mix… and a place where the plants have wet feet themselves, while enjoying a warm summer breeze. Wetlands are the place where upland and aquatic wildlife gather and thrive. These wetlands provide the most productive habitat possible and a critical habitat for an abundance of wildlife, including ducks, geese, swans, herons, frogs, turtles, snakes, otters, beavers, and scores of other animals. Wetlands provide spawning and feeding areas for fish and homes for rare plants and insects. They are considered the base of several major food webs.

Oh – but that can be mitigated!

Here is what that environmental consulting company said about on-site and off-site mitigation:

…XXX will work with the proponent to identify on-site and off-site mitigation areas....at a minimum XXX anticipates wetland creation or compensation on the order of at least twice the amount of area to be filled and this may greatly increase based on the…Corps compensatory mitigation guidance which requires 3:1 wetland restoration, 4:1 wetland replication and 20:1 wetland protection/preservation of forested wetlands.

Well, since the “Stewards of the Land” obviously have no interest in forested wetland protection/preservation to the tune of 20:1 ratio (if they did, they wouldn’t be destroying any to begin with)….XXX gives them this as an alternative…

There appears to be opportunities for wetland mitigation on or in proximity to the current K.F. Brick site in Middleboro.

Huh? Correct me if I am wrong here, but isn’t this the long abandoned brick site that is currently being used as a trash transfer station??? Gosh, the frogs, turtles, and all the other wetland dependent critters must be absolutely thrilled with this…..not to mention, when you consider the success rate – or lack there of – with wetland mitigation, one tends to worry just a tinsy bit about this little plan….

Here is what the CWA says:

Under the federal, and various state and local, regulatory programs, land development activities which may adversely impact wetlands require consent through permit approval from the regulating agency. At the federal level, under the Clean Water Act Section 404(b)(1) Guidelines of the CWA (codified at 40 CFR 230) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) regulations (codified at 33 CFR 320.4(r)), the Corps is obligated to require mitigation (i.e., compensation) for any unavoidable impacts on a wetland as a condition of permit approval. The developer can be required to enhance, restore, or create wetlands on or near the development site. Mitigation projects are meant to replace, on at least a one-to-one basis, the lost functions and values of natural wetlands affected by development activities.

Here is some interesting insight into wetland mitigation:

Although mitigation ideally provides a mechanism for accommodating both development and the protection of wetland functions and values, the low rate of success of mitigation projects is a subject of concern (Wolf et al. 1986, Kusler and Kentula 1990, Dobberteen and Nickerson 1991, Salveson 1995).

Successful wetland creation and major restoration projects still involve a great deal of uncertainty, particularly those that attempt to create or restore difficult wetland types (Kusler and Kentula 1990). Many types of freshwater wetlands that are slated for development are difficult or perhaps impossible to reproduce (Dahl and Johnson 1991, Kentula et al. 1992b 1990).

In a given permitting scenario, a decisionmaker faced with proposed wetland impacts must decide whether a functional equivalent of the wetland that will be eliminated by the permitted activity can be successfully created. Given the uncertain technology of mitigation, regulators sometimes face difficult decisions on what is too questionable, often in the face of substantial pressure to permit the activity.

Mitigation activities for forested and shrub wetlands typically result in out-of-kind creation because of the difficulty, expense, and uncertainty associated with creating such wetland systems (Kentula et al. 1992a, Bohlen and King 1994). Some forested wetlands represent advanced successional stages, and perhaps the most successful replacement efforts for these systems to-date have attempted to relocate system components intact, which has required large up-front financial expenditures (Gannon, pers. comm.). These efforts have been few in number. In a significant percentage of cases, the verdict is not yet in because of the decades-long time frames minimally required for the functional establishment of these mature systems.
- information courtesy of North Carolina State University-

Gee…..I guess Herb better had get some investors real quick…he is going to need all the money he can get for wetland mitigation…or will that cost fall to Sol and gang?

The letter goes on to explain that under the CWA and the Massachusetts Water Quality Certification Program (314 CMR 9.00) a 401 Water Quality Certification (WQC) is required for the proposed fill of wetlands over 5,000 square feet to ensure the project will comply with state water quality standards and protection of state and federal wetland resource areas…..

Wait a minute….who cares, right? The Tribe is federally recognized, deserves the land, so I am told, and has already stated in their scoping report that they will not be following state environmental protection laws….but here is the thing… this is a federal statute, so they need this permit....but it is the state DEP who typically issues said permit.

Tsk..tsk….now, I have to imagine that the MA DEP is going to be none too happy about the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe…aka…people of the first light…aka…stewards of the land, totally dissing their regulations in their EIS scoping report – the very regulations that have been put in place specifically to protect the natural resources unique to the needs of our state. Yes, it will be quite interesting to see if the MA DEP will follow Massachusetts or federal laws for this permitting process – and please keep in mind that Massachusetts environmental regulations are more stringent than Federal environmental regulations.

The irony of this entire situation is that the Mashpee Wampanoag cannot or will not build a casino in Mashpee. Want to know why? Well, let me have the Tribe explain it to you as they did to the BIA and DOI in their Land in Trust application.

Lands in the town of Mashpee are unsuitable for a gaming facility or for other economic development ventures. First, lands owned by the Tribe or related entities in the Town of Mashpee are already being used for other purposes, and are not available for a gaming facility, hotel, etc. In addition, there are no readily available large tracts of land in the Town of Mashpee that could be used for a major economic development project such as that contemplated by the Tribe. There just are not sufficient lands available for purchase and/or development, and the available lands that are not developed are environmentally sensitive due to wetlands. In addition, the Mashpee area could not handle the traffic that would be created by a major casino resort given that Mashpee is located on Cape Cod which is accessed by only two bridges of four lanes each and all roads to Mashpee are two lane. This road infrastructure simply could not handle thousands of additional cars per day nor is it economically feasible to expand that road system.
- taken verbatim from the Mashpee Wampanoag Land in Trust Application-

Jeekers….that sounds a lot like our concerns! First of all, the available undeveloped land in Middleboro that the Tribe bought to build their monstrosity is also environmentally sensitive due to wetlands. How is it that they can mitigate the wetlands in Middleboro and not in Mashpee??

Oh, and the last time I checked….the land in Middleboro may not have a bridge separating it from 495, but it does have a nightmare of a rotary and only two lanes as opposed to the four lanes on the two bridges going to the Cape – which actually makes it eight lanes…ooh….sure….the new route 44 extension coming from route 3 is really nice – until it loses a lane at route 58 in Carver, that is. That, and all the other side roads going to the land in Middleboro are also two lanes…heck – on some of those back roads, your lucky if you have 1 ½ lanes….So again, how is that the road infrastructure in Mashpee is so less economically feasible than the roads in Middleboro…and Carver…and Plympton…and Bridgewater….and Lakeville…and Halifax….?

Sigh……the irony of it all.

I want to extend a big thank you to MA Audubon for the fantastic article, and for all that the organization and its members do to protect our wildlife, and educate the public about its wonderous opportunities as well as its much needed contribution to the health and well being of Mother Earth. In this chick's eyes, you are true stewards of the land.

The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.
- Charles Darwin

The question is not, Can they reason? nor Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?
- Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)

“And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward.”

Bald Eagle over casino site

- be the change you want to see in the world -

A Shadow of Doubt

2008-12-20T11:43:00.011-05:00

The indictment of Glenn Marshall has brought into question the Mashpee Wampanoag's Federal Recognition process and whether or not illegal contributions played a part in them receiving said recognition. Let's face it, Glenn Marshall has plead guilty to federal charges of illegal campaign contributions and embezzlement of Tribal money. These are some serious charges, and if you take the time to read the indictment, it is painfully clear that Glenn Marshall, in kahoots with casino investors attempted to influence political decision makers through this entire process from Federal Recognition to where we are now....Land in Trust to build a casino on sovereign land exempt from local and state regulations. Wow....is it any wonder why people are questioning this?

I was really happy to see that CasinoFreeMass is calling on Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley to open an investigation into the Mashpee Wampanoag's federal recognition process. President Rich Young, who is also the president for CasinoFacts.org really said it best:

"The citizens of Massachusetts should be able to feel confident in the legality and truthfulness of the Wampanoag's claims, and clearly, these guilty pleas and very serious breaches of public trust cast doubt over the entire process"

Yes, the citizens of Massachusetts should feel confident that the Federal Recognition process was legal and truthful, and right now, many of us really don't. I find myself questioning how the Mashpee Wampanoags were able to meet the seven criteria for recognition. In fact, people should write letters to their senators in DC asking that the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe's federal recognition be “re-examined”. In light of Glenn Marshall's recent indictment and guilty plea, it seems that the tribe may have had to resort to bribery to get their recognition, and it’s possible that they did this because they weren’t eligible under the 7 criteria. Not to mention, anyone who has taken the time to read the findings for the final determination can easily see that the tribe didn’t have sufficient evidence - yet they got it anyway.

I have always brought into question the Tribe's claim of historical ties to the land in Middleboro, and I am certainly not the only one.......... (video courtesy of Bellicose Bumpkin)

Below is an essay that was written by Jim Lynch, a nationally recognized Ethno-historical research consultant. With permission, I am sharing his findings with you. I think it is important to understand why so many of us question the Tribe's claim to historical ties in Middleboro and why we continue to question everything about their application. It's quite simple really.....we have had this cloud of doubt and mistrust hanging over our heads for 19 months now. If you haven't already, then maybe you too will begin to question this entire process and how we wound up in the fight of our lives, for our lives - for our quality of life, and for our right as American citizens to have a fair and honest process for federal recognition and land in trust decisions made by our elected officials. Thank you Mr. Lynch for this well written and insightful look into the historical claims to the land in Middleboro made by the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe.

Mashpee: A Question of Fact versus Fiction

James P. Lynch
Historical Consulting and Research Services LLC.

In the shortest, yet most instructive of his published writings, “History: Remembered, Recovered and Invented,” the eminent historian Bernard Lewis wrote of three different types of history that confronts the contemporary reader in the various media.

In his 1972 book, Professor Lewis noted “critical [recovered] history begins with dissatisfaction with memory and a desire to remedy its deficiencies.” Invention, as he noted, passes over recovered history and resorts to the “embellishment” of the past,” which Lewis noted, “influences inscriptions and chronicles, monographs and textbooks, and all the other media used to project an image and present a case” It is to certain “inventions” of Mashpee history that this short essay will address: the Mashpee are Wampanoag; the Mashpee greeted the Pilgrims when they landed at Plymouth in 1620; the Mashpee have historical and cultural ties to the lands in the southeastern Massachusetts Town of Middleboro.

How does a historical “invention” contrast with historical fact? Let’s start with the question of “Wampanoag.” Historically there was never a Wampanoag tribe per se. The term Wampanoag is a general linguistic descriptor. Its root lies in the Algonquian “Wa.panwi” which literally means “it dawns” or “easterner” It was a generalized term used by Algonquian-speaking tribes to refer to peoples to their east where the sun rises. In the case of “Wampanoag” we find the suffix “oag” (some Algonquian tribal dialects use “aug”) which denotes near water, or near a body of water. Thus a literal interpretation of “Wampanoag” is: a people who live where the sun rises near a body of water. In the case of southeastern Massachusetts , this descriptor was used as a term of reference by the Indians residing to the west of those Indians who resided along Buzzards Bay , most notably the Pokanoket. This term of reference was picked up by the early colonists at Plymouth who equated the term Wampanoag with the Pokanoket tribe in contrast to the neighboring Massachusett, Nipmuck and Narragansett tribes. With the advent of King Phillips War in 1675, the term became associated with those regional (eastern) Indian groups that joined Phillip (Metacom) in his conflict against the colonists. Thus we hear of a Wampanoag confederation in various historical writings.

Did any “Wampanoag” greet the first arrivals at Plymouth ? No. No Indians did. What William Bradford and those other first arrivals found were deserted Indian villages, the victims of smallpox epidemic that had spread south from Newfoundland . Were there “Wampanoag” in the region? Yes. The boundary between the Pokanoket and Massachusett tribal lands was in this area. Were these “Wampanoag” members of the Mashpee tribe? No.

Why weren’t the Mashpee there? Simply there was not a Mashpee tribe in existence at the time of historical contact (1620) in Massachusetts . Mashpee, as a self-governing distinct Indian community or enclave, having its own defined territory did not come into existence until 1665, that is, some forty-five years after the point of first sustained Indian contact with non-Indians (1620) in this region. Mashpee was a product of the collision between two cultures, English and Indian. Mashpee is not what is commonly called an “historic or historical tribe” that is, a politically organized tribe, having its own defined territory that was inexistence at the time of first sustained contact with the colonists (1620). Mashpee was the produce of tribal disintegration and fissioning as a result of this bi-cultural collision. The Mashpee enclave that came into existence in 1665 consisted of expatriate Indians from many different tribal groups who, having adopted Christianity, shed their previous tribal political relations and portions of their own cultural ideology, and came together into what was known as a “Praying Indian Town ” or simply “Praying Town .” There were many such towns established in eastern Massachusetts for these convert tribal fragments. Most importantly, the Mashpee did not represent a political or social continuation of a specific historic tribe or historic tribes that voluntarily and politically merged to form a new tribe. These converts, with their new Christian ideology were drawn together mainly through the efforts of a colonist named Richard Bourne who, being a friend to the Indian groups residing at the western end of Cape Cod convinced the sachems of two of these groups (Tookonchasm and Weepquish) to convey via a legal deed dated December 11, 1665, lands belonging to their respective groups to the convert community that had congregated on the Capes south shore. These extra-tribal convert Indians who initially resided on these conveyed lands became known as the “South Sea Indians” which later morphed into the name “Mashpee.” At this point in time the Mashpee formed their own town government, established land governance rules based in large part upon English law (Proprietorship) and town organization, had a defined bounded territory in which to live over which they asserted local jurisdiction. We find even as late as 1753, the Mashpee reminding the Massachusetts General Court “that the same sachems who had given most of the Cape to the English had also created Mashpee.” How Mashpee passed muster concerning the descent from a historic tribe requirement (25CFR 83.7 (e)) with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, thus gaining federal recognition leaves one wondering. With the name of the notorious Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff now connected with the Mashpee’s recognition quest and his close association with former disgraced Interior Department administrator Steven Giles, one begins to see a picture, a not very pleasant one at that.

Thus the Mashpee cannot be considered Wampanoag in any political or tribal sense in that they were never part of the Pokanoket tribe nor were they part of King Phillips wartime confederation. Mashpee came into existence in 1665 as a Praying Town under colonial jurisdiction. As a matter of fact, Mashpee remained loyal to the colonists during King Phillip’s 1675 conflict, with some members of the community fighting against the Wampanoag confederation of tribes. Mashpee did not come into existence until 1665, thus making it an historical impossibility of having met the Plymouth colonists upon their landing in 1620, nor was there a Mashpee tribe present to have aided the new colony during those first terrible and trying years of Plymouth’s existence.

Now what about Middleboro, a town at the center of present-day controversy concerning Mashpee historical claims and assertions to the area? First, if the Mashpee were never politically or culturally affiliated with either the Massachusett or Pokanoket tribes, how can they make such a claim, especially given the fact that the Mashpee sided against the Pokanoket-Wampanoag confederation during King Phillips war? Second, the Mashpee cannot make a cultural affiliation with either tribe. They maintained a particular cultural and ideological base (Christianity) from their very inception that was vastly at odds with that of the traditional Pokanoket-Wampanoag. Third, from a historical perspective there was prior to Middleboro’s 1669 founding one named Indian village in the Middleboro area (Nemasket) which in 1622 was under the dominion of the Pokanoket sachem Massasoit, Yet we later find two such villages, “Assawompsett” and “Titicut” located near Middleboro. The historical records clearly depict Titicut as a Massachusett tribal village, while Assawompsett appears to have had a polyglot Indian population of former Pokanoket and Massachusett (with many moving there from the former Massachusett village of “Mattakesitt” in 1674). There is also evidence of Abenaki Indians who had been re-settled on the Freetown reserve having moved into and settled at Assawomptset. It was from the remnants of these two village populations that the name “Middleborough Indians” evolved during the eighteenth century. No where’s in this matrix is Mashpee to be found. In fact, presently only two associations directly mentioning an association between Middleboro and Mashpee are to be found in the April 1859 Report to the Governor and Council concerning the Indians of the Commonwealth, (Earle Report) a William Lee from Middleboro who had married a Mashpee woman and was presently residing in California, and a widowed state pauper named Sylvia Casco also from Middleboro.

One fails to see any Mashpee historical or cultural connection to Middleboro without the coverage of the historically unsupportable “Wampanoag” umbrella. Their request to have lands that they purchased in that town taken into trust by the Department of the Interior appears to lack a necessary historical or cultural foundation.

As is so often the case, the chasm between invented history and historical fact only widens with the application of what the late anthropologist Clifford Geertz called “thick description” or critical historical analysis.

Mr. James P. Lynch is a nationally recognized Ethno-historical, research consultant. He has authored numerous books, research publications, and articles on tribal land claims, tribal sovereignty, tribal recognition, tribal land into trust issues, and tribal history. His professional services are used by law firms, local, state and federal officials and agencies, and private sectors such as businesses, authors, and network news media. He has also testified as a qualified expert witness on historical and anthropological issues in federal and state courts. Mr. Lynch is the owner of Connecticut-based Historical Consulting and Research Services LLC.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T21:19:00.008-05:00

So after a long and wonderful day feasting with friends and family, I cleaned the kitchen, packed up the leftovers for later and snuggled up on the couch with my son to watch A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. The cool thing was, there was a bonus cartoon after called This is America, Charlie Brown - a Charlie Brown cartoon I had never seen? Awesome....

It's not surprising that I had never seen it because it was aired originally as an eight part mini-series in 1988 and I was much too busy doing teenager things to care about a Charlie Brown cartoon. Funny how now, 20 years later I was more than happy to watch it and just relax. Here is the other funny thing....as we were watching the Charles Shultz version of the pilgrims landing and subsequent salvation due to the kindness of the local Indian Tribe....I felt myself being vindicated. Here I and my fellow blogger have been berated on the local cesspool topix as a racist, a liar and an Indian hater. Wow.....all because Gladys Kravitz blogged about the true history of the pilgrims landing and how it was not the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe that welcomed them.....and I commented on her blog about some of the not so nice past actions we have read about over the past year regarding Mashpee Tribal leaders and members. How horrible of Gladys to debunk the Mashpee Tribe's claim to fame as being the tribe that met the pilgrims and how absolutely scandalous of me to remind everyone of the only times we hear anything about the Tribe....heck, it's not like they have come to any public forums and talked to the the community about their casino-resort plans....but I digress.

So I am watching this new to me Charlie Brown cartoon and guess what??? According to Mr. Shultz in 1988, it was not the Mashpee Tribe who met the pilgrims. Huh.....go figure....but hey, it is just a cartoon, right?

Could Charles Shultz have gotten it wrong too?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I hope your day was full of good times, close family and good friends. I am truely thankful for all of you who continue to fight for our quality of life, get the real stories out there, and never ever give in to our adversaries.

Here is a little update for my dear flying monkey friends who seem to think I take history lessons from cartoons. Well, at least I don't take history lessons from the Mashpee Wampanoag website....by the way, it would seem that Charlie Brown is smarter than a flying monkey....go figure.

It was an ordinary day when a cry suddenly went out among the settlement of “Indian!” Everyone became on guard. The figure of a lone Indian came walking towards them. What could this Indian want? They were all shocked when the Indian began speaking to them in English! How had this Indian from this wild land come to know English? He introduced himself as Samoset and told them his story: Samoset was a chief of the Algonquins of Maine. He had been exploring these parts for the Council of New England, having begged a ride with a Captain Thomas Derman, an English sea captain. Samoset had learned English over the years from the various sea captains who had ported in Maine, and he had a love for travel.

It was Samoset who told the Pilgrims of the Patuxet tribe who had lived on the very place the Pilgrims had settled but had been wiped out by a mysterious illness four years before. It was they who had cleared the land. No other tribe would live on this ground because of how the Patuxets had been wiped out. Their nearest neighbors were the Wampanoags, fifty miles west. The Pilgrims then wondered who it was that had attacked them upon their landing on the shore. Samoset told them it was the Nausets. They hated the white man because of the trickery of an English sea captain named Thomas Hunt. Hunt had deceived several Patuxets into coming aboard his ship. He then took them to Spain to be sold into slavery.

Samoset left the Pilgrims but returned a week later with yet another English-speaking Indian. This Indian’s name was Tisquantum, or Squanto, as he is better known. Squanto had quite a story to tell the Pilgrims: He had been taken captive, along with four other Indians, by Captain George Weymouth. They were taken to England and taught English so they could be questioned as to the best places to settle in the New World. Squanto spent nine long years in England until he met a Captain John Smith of Jamestown,VA. Captain Smith returned Squanto to his village on his 1614 voyage. The former mentioned Thomas Hunt was sailing with Smith on a separate vessel. Smith had ordered Hunt to stay behind while Smith attended to some business elsewhere. But, alas, Thomas Hunt had something else up his sleeve! No sooner had Squanto returned home than he was captured again! Squanto, along with 19 other Patuxets were of those who were lured aboard Hunt’s ship under the pretense of trading beaver pelts only to be captured again! So once again Squanto was taken to Spain and sold into slavery. How discouraging it must have been for Squanto. But God’s providence was at work. Some local friars bought (rescued) a few of the Indians, including Squanto. They introduced them to the Christian faith. Squanto later left the monastery, found a way to England, and attached himself to a wealthy merchant there. He lived there until he departed with a Captain Dermer in 1619. It was on this trip that he first met Samoset, who was traveling with Dermer. They were both dropped off at Plymouth just six months before the Pilgrims would be arriving. But it was then that Squanto learned of the tragic end of his tribe. Squanto, having no one, attached himself to the neighboring Wampanoag tribe. However, once he found the Pilgrims, he had found a new home and family. He stayed with the Pilgrims and as Bradford wrote, “was a special instrument sent of God for their good, beyond their expectation.” (1) It was Squanto who taught the Pilgrims many things about living in the wilderness, such as planting corn with fish for fertilizer, hunting, and many other life-saving skills. http://www.americandestiny.com/settlement.htm

Oh, and if this website causes the flying monkeys to start throwing poo again, I can certainly provide many other links to this time in history that also reference Samoset and Tisquantum as helping the pilgrims, such as this one and this one. Then again, according to monkey philosophy, every historian who writes about the first meeting with the pilgrims must be wrong and a lying, racist, indian hater because it had to be the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe that met the pilgrims....they said so.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The Real McCoy

2008-11-11T20:10:00.019-05:00

On Monday, there was an article in the Enterprise reporting that a draft environmental report was released regarding the land in Middleboro, land the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe is attempting to place into trust for the specific purpose of building a casino – I mean bingo hall. This report has been recently released a short 8 months after the scoping hearing held in Middleboro in March. The article states:

The questions that will have to be answered by the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe concerning its proposed casino have been outlined in a newly released draft environmental report.

The 1,306-page report, prepared according to the National Environmental Policy Act for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, contains written and verbal comments submitted in response to the proposed land-taking by the Mashpee.

The interesting thing here is that suddenly, a scoping report that outlines and categorizes the comments submitted from the March hearing has, according to some casino advocates, morphed into the Tribe’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement. According to some, this is the actual Draft EIS, which it is not. This report is just that….a scoping report and not the draft EIS we are all patiently waiting for. If this was the actual draft EIS, it would have been posted in the Federal Register (which it is not), and the public would be given a 45 day comment period and another public hearing to address the content of the draft EIS itself.

I can’t say I really blame the pro casino side for thinking this, especially after reading the article in the Enterprise and reading the summary of the article on Indianz.com. Jeesh, just by reading what the Indianz website posted, I can see why some may actually believe this is the Real McCoy. Unfortunately but not surprisingly, both the Enterprise and Indianz.com got it wrong. The funny thing is, we have had this report in our hands for over a month now and have had the opportunity to read it…..and get a good laugh, at that. Seems the Enterprise is not on top of its game regarding Middleboro casino news ‘cause if they were, they would have been a bit less misleading on what the report really is AND they would have reported on it weeks ago. Again, I can’t blame the newspaper itself or the author of the article….they just repeat what they are told and it would seem to this Chick that they are getting their information from people who want to continue the myth of inevitability…….sigh……..

The other interesting thing is that for some reason, casino advocates see this report as a blow to the anti-casino movement when in actuality, it has helped us tremendously. Heck, we already know and expect a draft EIS to be written…..duuuuh…..that is why we have spent the past 8 months going through and categorizing the marked comments from letters submitted to the BIA. The nice thing is this report has done the same thing so now we actually know what comments are being addressed and which ones are being dismissed.

The majority of the concerns will be addressed in a final report, but some of the issues have already been dismissed.

Yes, some very important concerns have been dismissed - like the concerns regarding the socioeconomic issues of violent crime or the fact that the mitigation money the Town will be receiving isn’t nearly enough to cover the costs of the negative impacts. Well at least from reading the scoping report, we know how the Tribe is going to try and address some issues while skirting around others. The Scoping Document was reviewed by members of the CFO environmental subcommittee when it was first received over a month ago. Let me break it down for you…..

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe is pursuing a Dual Initial Reservation which we already know and have already addressed. As we know, the Tribe’s complete lack of historical ties to the land in Middleboro makes it ineligible as an initial reservation. However, seeking a dual initial reservation status is serious business because this has never been done before. It really is a precedent setting case and anything can happen. Yet again, the Tribe has no significant historical ties to the land so I cannot see how the Secretary of the Department of the Interior would ever place this land into trust.

The Tribe has stated that the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Act (MEPA) will not be followed because is illegal for them to do so. This means that no State Environmental laws will be considered in the EIS. The Tribe will only follow the National Environmental Policy Act which does not address environmental issues specific to our region. This is bad news for our area. If you consider only one MEPA law that won’t be followed – Massachusetts Water Management Act - you will understand why this will impact us – and how far reaching the impacts will be…..not to mention the host of other Massachusetts Environmental Laws that are designed to protect our air, water, open space, threatened species, and so on and how that will impact our lives and our livelihoods…..and the Tribe calls themselves the stewards of the land….

The Tribe has stated that it will not look at alternate sites for the casino because they are unable to prove historical significance to anywhere else, which is funny because they certainly can’t prove it in Middleboro either. In addition, they will not consider non-gaming revenue and will only settle for casino gambling. The interesting thing is, they don’t actually mention slot machines in the report, only video lottery terminals – probably because they know slot machines are illegal in this State and they can’t have them. Oh, and our Governor can’t be forced to negotiate with them and the tribe won’t negotiate anyway because there is no compact required for Class II gaming, otherwise known as bingo hall. Sigh….so much for all the promises about further mitigation being negotiated by our Governor.

The Tribe is claiming that the BIA has authority to take the land into trust because the Aquinnah Tribe has trust land. Ummmmm….okay…..the problem here is that the Aquinnah have a land claim settlement with the State of Massachusetts so that argument just doesn’t wash. Gosh, they must think we are dumb as stumps…..they continue down this path by mentioning the First Circuit Court of Appeals being a basis for taking the land into trust, but that’s misleading because that Court ruled that a 1983 land claim settlement, where the tribe agreed to abide by state and local zoning laws, trumped the federal sovereign doctrine of immunity. The land for the Aquinnah was not taken out of the state tax rolls, and the tribe must obey all of the local and state zoning laws with respect to use of that land. So the case doesn’t actually support the DOI’s ability to take land into trust, and it’s not exactly the “land into trust” scenario the BIA would have you believe.

The Mashpee tribe is also stating that Mashpee is not suitable for a casino because there is a strong anti-gaming sentiment.

Really?….how nice of them to consider the anti casino sentiment in Mashpee. Perhaps they could be so kind as to consider the anti casino sentiment that was clearly expressed by the citizens from Middleboro with the Article 3 vote. You know the one….the vote that said the residents did NOT want a casino in their town….

Also, here is some food for thought….we did have an opportunity to speak with the EPA officer in Boston who is overseeing the Tribe’s EIS. We were told that the Draft EIS (DEIS) should come out in the next couple of weeks, which we already know and anticipate. This would actually be a good thing for us because issuing it so quickly will only mean a poorly written draft EIS which should be easily defeated.

It would seem that apparently the Tribe is not looking at the broad effects of the project - meaning they are not addressing issues with roadways such as Rte 44. The reason for this is if they did look at altering these roadways they would be subject to MEPA , which they have clearly stated they will not follow. This translates to meaning the promised $200+ million in road improvements including the rotary elimination is not going to happen. This also means, at least to me, that they could care less about the broad effects a mega casino resort will have on our communities and we will need to address that when the real draft EIS is released and we are given our 45 day comment period including another public hearing.

So no…this scoping report that was written by a local environmental consulting company and reported on by the Enterprise is not the Real McCoy, but considering that the same environmental consulting company is also producing the draft EIS, we can look at this scoping report as an outline of the draft EIS. We can look at this report and easily identify issues we will have with the draft EIS and inform our towns and our residents of the issues. So far, it has been a huge help! The report will actually give all of us equal opportunity to prepare comments for the draft EIS and focus on the things that concern us the most – to be heard and to demand that the Tribe be held accountable for all our concerns and not allow them to be labeled “not applicable”.

Rest assured, when the Real McCoy is actually released….we will let you know. In the meantime, this scoping report has been a huge help in our efforts and we can actually start drafting comments based on the information contained in the scoping report. If you can, take the time to borrow the report from the Middleboro library – read it. If you are unable to do that then I urge you to check the CFO website for updates and information so when the time comes, we can all be prepared for another Call to Arms!

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The Ties That Bind

2008-10-27T21:04:00.010-04:00

When one thinks of the phrase “the ties that bind”, many different thoughts come to mind. In the course of our lifetimes, we all become bound by invisible chains that bind us to people, places and things. These ties can either help us or hurt us depending on the situation. For example, one could reasonably argue that the first lines in the Constitution are words, or rather, ties that bind the American people in a common cause "….. in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." To me, these words are about the ties that bind the American people, not twist the fundamental fabric of our Nation, yet I have been told again and again over the past year that I have no rights in regards to the Mashpee Wampanoag Land in Trust process. I have no say in what happens in my community and all I can think is….why? Having been witness to the so called process of Land in Trust as it has unfolded here in our small corner of the world, I wonder about those words written in the Constitution and I wonder about the written words of the Tribe itself…the words, or ties that bind them, and where those ties bind them.

So I find myself still arguing about the Mashpee Wampanoag’s claims to significant historical ties to land in a Town that I don’t even live in. I am speaking out because our Constitution gives me that right even if the land in trust process doesn't. But why even bother, right? I mean, they were here first so who am I to say they don’t have significant historical ties to Middleboro? All I can say to that is, I am an American citizen who happens to believe in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all…and I just so happen to be someone who has read the Tribe’s Final Determination..you know, the evidence they used to gain Federal Recognition, and are now using in their mad dash attempt to build a casino on land they have no right calling an “initial reservation”. The enhancements in the Section 20 regulations clearly and distinctly define the requirements for significant historical ties to land being sought as an initial reservation. In reading the Federal Register to learn about the new regulations I quickly realized that they are written so clearly that even your average citizen – John Q. Public – can understand and follow what the Federal Government is requiring for proof of significant historical ties to land.

When talking about “significant historical ties”, aren’t we really talking about a cultural landscape? I am talking about a landscape created by humans in the natural world, one that reveals fundamental ties between people and the land – ties based on the basic human need to grow food, give form to settlements, to provide recreation and even suitable places to bury our dead….our cultural landscape that we call home. In the case of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, claiming the land in Middleboro as their own is more than just saying “I was here first”…it is about demonstrating that the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal ancestors lived on the land in Middleboro, had a burial ground on the land in Middleboro or hunted the land in Middleboro to feed their tribal members. This is about significant historical ties to the land, which according to their own Final Determination that was submitted as part of the application, there are none. There is no documented evidence that the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe has significant historical ties to the land in Middleboro. But there is evidence that it belonged to another Tribe…..but that is not why I am writing this. I am writing this because I want to clarify why we say the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe does not have significant historical ties to the land in Middleboro…why they are not bound to Middleboro, but to Mashpee.

If we could, let us take a moment and examine the Tribe’s trust application through the eyes of the Secretary of the Interior and look for evidence of the Tribe’s significant history to the land in Middleboro. In order to do this, we need to look at the Tribe’s Final Determination, which as I stated, was included in the trust application. But first, let’s clarify the significance of the Final Determination to the Tribe itself.

In order to receive Federal acknowledgement as an Indian tribe, the following seven (mandatory) criteria had to be applicable and demonstrated in the Tribes Final Determination:

1. The tribe has been identified as an American Indian entity on a substantially continual basis since 1900.

2. A predominant portion of the tribe comprises a distinct community and has existed as a community from historical times until the present.

3. The tribe has maintained political influence or authority over its members as an autonomous entity from historical times to the present

4. The tribe must provide a copy of the group’s present governing document including its membership criteria. In the absence of a written document, the tribe must provide a statement describing in full its membership criteria and current governing procedures.

5. The tribe’s membership must consist of individuals who descend from a historical Indian tribe or from historical Indian tribes which combined and functioned as a single autonomous political entity.

6. None of the tribe’s members can be part of any other federally acknowledged Indian tribe.

7. The tribe nor its members cannot be the subject of a congressional legislation that has expressly terminated or forbidden the federal relationship.

The first requirement regarding their existence as a tribe since 1900 is accomplished mostly through newspaper or magazine articles that mention the tribe. The next four requirements are important because of what they show in the way of the Tribe’s history and geography. The last two items on this list requires no action from the Tribe as it’s the Federal Governments’ job to check these out.

When the Federal Government acknowledged the Mashpee tribe, they provided a summary of the evidence they had considered. Because there are so many details in the summary itself, I have abbreviated the comments so as to focus only on the geographical references and how these references pertain to the Tribe’s significant historical ties to Middleboro….or more accurately, how they don’t……

Distinct Community

“….since first contact to the present day they comprised a distinct community from non-members in and around the Town of Mashpee.”

“….almost all of the Mashpee lived in a defined geographical area, the Town of Mashpee.”

“….defined geographical area comprised almost exclusively of their members, while those who lived elsewhere usually did so on a temporary basis….”

“….those few who lived elsewhere were very close by in adjacent communities….”

“….few Mashpee who lived outside of the town, often in adjacent towns or other areas of Cape Cod, maintained contact with those in town as evidenced through a high rate of return migration.”

“….concentrated residential patterns indicating that a significant part of the group still lived in an exclusive settlement in the Town of Mashpee.”

“….residency patterns were good evidence of community.”

“….significant number of members living within or very near the group’s traditional location in the center of the Town of Mashpee.”

Political Influence

“….political control of the Town of Mashpee….”

“….evidence of the Mashpee’s residential patterns….was also sufficient to demonstrate political influence.”

“….gave the Mashpee greater self-government by establishing an “Indian District” in Mashpee, Massachusetts.”

“….as part of an Indian District….the Mashpee gained complete control of political, legal, and economic affairs in the town...”

“….Mashpee adapted the principal elements of the town governmental system….”

Criteria for Membership

“….'near Mashpee' means having a residence within 20 miles of Mashpee.”

Descended from a Historical Tribe

“….historical Indian tribe was the Wampanoag Indians residing at Mashpee, Barnstable County…”

“….88 percent of the petitioner’s members descended from the historical Mashpee tribe…”

“….petitioner submitted evidence that 97 percent of its members descended from the historical tribe…”

(Note: this number increased when new records were produced after the preliminary report was compiled).

I have two personal favorites from this list:

The first being the Tribe requiring their members to live near Mashpee….within 20 miles of Mashpee to be exact. Middleboro is definitely within 20 miles of Mashpee, right? Ummmmm….weelll…. it is if you fold the map like one of those back pages from a Mad Magazine. Remember those? First there is the original picture but you could fold the page and it would become another (usually more comical) picture. Yeah, it’s just like that. A quick fold here….and viola!

Or, perhaps they meant 20 miles as the crow flies….or a flying monkey…

I also love that the Tribe’s current members must be descendants of a historical tribe and in this case, the Federal Government defines historical tribe as ‘the Wampanoag Indians residing at Mashpee, Barnstable County”. Yet the Tribe is trying to claim significant historical ties to Middleboro. Really….I couldn’t make up stuff this amusing!

Here are some more fun facts from the Final Determination:

The number of times Mashpee is mentioned: 265
(this number does not include the footnotes or page headings)

The number of time Middleboro is mentioned: 0
(this number does include the footnotes or page headings)

So if I was reading this from the Secretary of the Interior’s point of view, I would have to conclude based on the Tribe’s own Final Determination, the Mashpee Wampanoag Indian Tribe has significant historical ties to Mashpee….not to Middleboro. In fact, Middleboro is so insignificant, it wasn’t even mentioned at all in the Final Determination – yet the Tribe wants to claim significant historical ties after the fact so they can build a casino that happens to have a resort attached to it. Well, all I can say here is that the ties that bind have bound this Tribe not to Middleboro at all -- but to Mashpee alone. Claiming significant historical ties to the land in Middleboro at this point is nothing short of a hysterical attempt to try and hold onto the casino pipedream.

So if you were reading the Final Determination through the eyes of the Secretary of the Interior and trying to make a decision that will affect an entire region and making that decision in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity….and ensure fairness to both the Tribe and the surrounding community, I must ask dear reader…… do you see any significant hysterical…..eeerrr….historical ties that bind the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe to Middleboro?

“Bound by hundreds of ties of desire and enslaved by lust and anger; they strive to obtain wealth by unlawful means for the fulfillment of desires.” - Bhagavad Gita

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Wag the Dog

2008-10-14T16:27:00.018-04:00

Why does a dog wag its tail? Because a dog is smarter than its tail. If the tail was smarter, the tail would wag the dog!

Do you remember the movie “Wag the Dog”? This is the one where Robert DeNiro stars as a Washington spinmaster who needs a war to distract public's attention from a sex scandal involving the President. In the movie, De Niro plays a presidential spin doctor, who is hired to do what he does best: con the American public on behalf of his clients, in this case, the American Government. All in all, it was a pretty funny movie based on the the old “tail wagging the dog” joke that to me is not so much a joke, but more of a metaphor or philosophical observation about how politics and propaganda influence the public into thinking how things should be – or are. In this case, the dog is the people and the tail is the government.

In our case, it is the Tribe or the Town of Middleboro BoS or even our own Governor telling us how things should be – or are….

Kind of like “there is an Indian Casino coming to Middleboro and there is nothing you can do about it….it is inevitable….”

Kind of like “casinos are economic engines that will bring jobs and stimulate the local economy, and heck…we need these jobs and we need the money from casino revenue or else we are doomed.”

Kind of like “the communities surrounding Middleboro had better put together their impacts – put together their numbers and give them to the Governor…”

The only joke here is that we are constantly being told by casino supporters that this isn’t a casino we are talking about, merely a resort which happens to have a casino. This entire thought process - no, this entire LIT process has really cranked up public opposition to the Land in Trust process and the support for an entire region to defend its quality of life – not be told a casino is inevitable, so take some money and live with it.

I recently spoke at the Regional Task Force Meeting held in Taunton in regards to where the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe was in the process of gaining Land in Trust in Middleboro as an initial reservation – land as an initial reservation wanted by the Tribe solely to build a mega-casino resort. I mainly spoke to the recently released regulations enhancing section 20 of IGRA and why these changes make the land in Middleboro ineligible for an initial reservation. It is important to understand that the new regulations do not change IGRA. IGRA prohibits gaming on Indian lands acquired after 1988, with a few exceptions. The new regulations were put into place to define and clarify these exceptions. As such, the regulations are a positive improvement towards maintaining a fair and well-regulated industry.

Here is a breakdown of my update on the changes to IGRA and how they relate to the Mashpee Wampanoag’s application for Land in Trust in Middleboro.

I told the RTF that CFO had confirmed with the Office of Indian Gaming that the regulations of section 20 went into effect on August 25, 2008.

There were significant clarifications to the initial reservation exceptions that make initial reservations eligible for gaming.

Under the new regulations, the Mashpee Tribe must demonstrate the land is located within an area where the Tribe has significant historical and modern ties to the land. Modern connections requirements are met when a Tribe can demonstrate the land is near where a significant number of tribal members reside. Well, according to their own application, the Mashpee Tribe has 1531 members – of the 1531 members, 838 live within 10 miles of Mashpee, 88 live in Plymouth County and 70 live in Bristol County.

The land to be placed into trust as an initial reservation must be within a 25 mile radius of the tribal headquarters or other government facility that has existed at that location for at least two years at the time of the application. The land in Middleboro is 39 miles away from their headquarters in Mashpee.

The Tribe must demonstrate other factors that establish the tribe’s current connection to the land.

According to the exception rule, the Tribe needs to meet at least one of the other requirements in order for the land to be eligible as an initial reservation and used for gambling. Well, as far as having modern connections demonstrated by having a significant number of tribal members residing near that land…I gave you the numbers they provided in their application, you do the math. They must also show significant historical ties to the land – I love that the comment from the government in the Federal Register says, “…it can’t be any ties to the land, it must be significant”.

So what is considered significant historical ties? The new regulations define this for us: The tribe must provide evidence to show that, at one time, they had lived on that site, or that they had a burial ground on that site, or even that they had hunted the land as a means to feed the tribe.

One could argue this point, but the Tribe’s other application, the one where they provided evidence to gain federal recognition, very clearly states, in all seven required criteria for historical ties, that their history is in Mashpee...no mention of Middleboro. It actually says that the Tribe has proved its presence since first contact to present day in Mashpee. In another section, the Tribe states that historically, a majority of their members lived in Mashpee, and some occasionally moved into communities adjacent to Mashpee or other areas of Cape Cod, but always with a high rate of return migration to Mashpee.

That is not evidence of significant historical ties to Middleboro. Unless adjacent means within 50 miles or so….which the last time I checked, it didn’t.

To the second point, as I said, the land in Middleboro is 39 miles away from their headquarters in Mashpee and even provided a map in their application that counted out the miles. Also, did you notice the wording “…or other governmental facility that has existed at that location for at least two years at the time of the application….” If I am reading this requirement correctly, the land is not within 25 miles of the Tribe’s headquarters and there certainly is no tribal government facility on the land in Middleboro.

To the third, and seemingly most vague requirement of “other factors” to determine the tribe’s current connection to the land, we need to know what else the modern requirement connection entails. Well, according to the lengthy explanation provided in the Federal Register, aside from the significant number of tribal members living near the land in question, the modern connection requirement is meant to provide an element of notice to the surrounding community -- the FR’s words, not mine. So the bottom line is if the Tribe has modern connections to the land, the surrounding community has notice of the tribal presence (again…the FR’s words, not mine). Yes, I can see them meeting this requirement in Mashpee…..but not in Middleboro – well, at least not until they announced that they had some foreign casino investors agree to build a casino on their behalf and had their buddy Herb Strathers back them financially and purchase land for them in Middleboro to be placed in trust to build a casino. Yeah – they certainly got their “community awareness” then….yet the community wasn’t even allowed to speak, at least not speak negatively about the casino and the host Town BOS is legally required to support the Tribe in their efforts, thanks to good old section 22B in the agreement between Tribe and Town. The only thing the Middleboro residents knew last year was that It’s coming so sign an agreement to get mitigation money – or get no money and a casino…..

Then I hear on a local radio show that I had apparently avoided talking about the grandfather clause in the new section 20 regulations and that the Tribe’s application is grandfathered in and the RTF would be better off getting their impacts and cost figures together and give them to the Governor so he can negotiate for these Towns with the Tribe. The conversation went on to say that the Towns will not get a seat at the table and their only hope was to tell the Governor how much money they needed.

Resistance is futile…..

Ummm…..huh?! Didn’t the Town of Middleboro do just that 18 months ago to the tune of 7 million dollars, an amount which is looking smaller and smaller even to casino proponents as time goes by and no casino is built. So small in fact, that the Town feels the need to also ensure they get more money from the State because 7 Million just isn’t going to cut it where mitigation and infrastructure and local public safety support are concerned. Yet, the same individual who helped push the Middleboro agreement through is now telling the surrounding communities to come up with a number and hope they get it. It is a situation of the tail wagging the dog, but it is better to be prepared than to get nothing or not enough.

My goodness, how we have come full circle and yes, all I can see is that pesky tail desperately trying to wag the dog casino style. Eighteen months ago the town of Middleboro was told to take the money because it was coming anyway…now we have someone who sits on the Middleboro BoS telling the other Towns the exact same thing. We even had the Tribe attempting to convince our Governor that he had better start negotiations because no matter what ultimately happens with the negotiations, please know that it is the tribe’s intent to operate America’s most successful casino resort in Middleboro.

I could say the tribe meant to say bingo hall resort because the Governor can’t be forced into a compact, but there is no need. The application does not meet the requirements for an initial reservation, and the land itself does not qualify for gaming under IGRA….and the application is not grandfathered.

I did have the opportunity discuss the grandfathering position with Adam Bond recently on his radio show. For the record, he was a gracious host and I truly appreciate that. I also appreciate his willingness to discuss his position that the application is grandfathered and allowing me to discuss my position that it is not. Under the grandfathering section of the regulation there are certain situations where an application will be processed under the old regulations.

According to section 292.26 Subpart D – Effect of the Regulations – the new regulations apply to all requests except they do not alter final agency decisions made before the date of enactment of the new regulations and….the new regulations apply to final agency action taken after the effective date except that they shall not apply to applicable agency actions when, before the effective date the Department (Department of Interior) or the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) issued a written opinion regarding the applicability of the land to be used for gaming and provides that the Department or the NIGC retains full discretion to qualify, withdraw or modify such opinions.

Here is how the Grandfather section is explained:

Section 292.26 was added in order to address these issues. During the course of implementing IGRA section 20, the Department and the NIGC have issued a number of legal opinions to address the ambiguities left by Congress and provide legal advice for agency decision makers, or in some cases, for the interested parties facing an unresolved legal issue. These legal opinions typically have been issued by the Department's Office of the Solicitor or the NIGC's Office of General Counsel. In some cases, the Department or the NIGC subsequently relied on the legal opinion to take some final agency action. In those cases, section 292.26(a) makes clear that these regulations will have no retroactive effect to alter any final agency decision made prior to the effective date of these regulations. In other cases, however, the Department or the NIGC may have issued a legal opinion without any subsequent final agency action. It is expected that in those cases, the tribe and perhaps other parties may have relied on the legal opinion to make investments into the subject property or taken some other actions that were based on their understanding that the land was eligible for gaming. Therefore, section 292.26(b) states that these regulations also shall not apply to applicable agency actions taken after the effective date of these regulations when the Department or the NIGC has issued a written opinion regarding the applicability of 25 U.S.C. 2719 before the effective date of these regulations. In this way, the Federal Government may be able to follow through with its prior legal opinions and take final agency actions consistent with those opinions, even if these regulations now have created a conflict. However, these regulations will not affect the Department's or the NIGC's ability to qualify, modify or withdraw its prior legal opinions. In addition, these regulations do not alter the fact that the legal opinions are advisory in nature and thus do not legally bind the persons vested with the authority to make final agency decisions.

Here is how a Tribe would go about getting a legal written opinion in order to meet the exceptions in IGRA, and please keep in mind that the Mashpee Tribe has no newly acquired lands….

Section 292.3 How does a tribe seek an opinion on whether its newly acquired lands meet, or will meet, one of the exceptions in this subpart?

(a) If the newly acquired lands are already in trust and the request does not concern whether a specific area of land is a ``reservation,'' the tribe may submit a request for an opinion to either the National Indian Gaming Commission or the Office of Indian Gaming.

(b) If the tribe seeks to game on newly acquired lands that require a land-into-trust application or the request concerns whether a specific area of land is a ``reservation,'' the tribe must submit a request for an opinion to the Office of Indian Gaming.

The land in Middleboro falls under paragraph (b).

Let’s look at this for a minute. Tribes are able to submit a request for an Indian lands opinion to either the NIGC or to the Office of Indian Gaming (OIG). A tribe should only submit a request to the NIGC when newly acquired lands are already in trust and, for example, there is a pending gaming ordinance or management contract before the NIGC and should submit a request to the OIG if the request concerns reservation boundaries or reservation status. In the case of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, the NIGC could not have written an opinion on the Middleboro land because the land is not in trust, and neither did the OIG or it would have been listed, which was so kindly pointed out by Gladys Kravitz recently.

Even so, if there was an opinion written about the Mashpee Wampanoag’s application, it needs to be stressed that an opinion provided in response to a request is not a final agency action under the Administrative Procedures Act (APA). According to APA, final agency actions only occur when agency official’s act on a determination pursuant to powers granted them by Congress. Therefore, any communications by the opining Agency are informal pronouncements. But again, there is no record of an opinion listed with the BIA or with the State of Massachusetts.

Now, before these new regulations went into effect, there were six hearings held to discuss the proposed changes to IGRA. Because of the six hearings by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and what they had learned about the abuses of IGRA, the new regulations were meant to apply to all of the active applications, most of which had been on hold since the regulations were first withdrawn from the Federal Register. Because the old regulations were so ineffective at preventing “reservation shopping”, which was heavily frowned on by the government, the Committee wanted to be sure that no more abuses of this process would continue. It was for that reason, most of the pending applications at that time are now being processed under the new regulations.

The only applications that were allowed to be grandfathered in were the ones that had land opinions written by NIGC (because IGRA only allows gaming on Indian Lands, no matter when they were taken into trust). These opinions were for gaming on land that was already in trust (state or federal) or within a Tribe’s reservation boundaries. This was allowed because some Tribes already had governorship over land in which the NIGC had written an opinion and the BIA thought it would be fair to process these applications under the previous regulations due to the assumption that the tribe may already have made an investment, or had taken steps towards building a casino. But even then, the new regulations still do say that an opinion by NIGC could be withdrawn, or modified.

This is why the Mashpee Tribe’s application will be processed under the new regulations and are not grandfathered in….they do not have land already in trust and they do not have an opinion written for the land they want Herb Strathers to give to the Federal Government on their behalf to be taken into trust. The Mashpee Tribe has asked for two pieces of land, both as Initial Reservations. Unfortunately for them, requirements that were difficult to start with now just got all that much harder under the new regulations.

So try and explain all that in five minutes or less at an RTF meeting – or on a radio show for that matter….

In short, the expression “the tail wagging the dog” refers to any case where something of greater significance to one group of people (such as greed and money) is driven by something less significant to another group of people (such as not wanting a casino built in their community). The fact that the Mashpee Wampanoag’s application is weak at best and the notion of a casino actually being built in Middleboro is nothing short of a pipe dream, casino advocates still continue to try and wag that dog. Tell everyone it is coming…. tell every surrounding town they had better throw mitigation figures at the Governor now before it is too late….tell the Governor and the entire state that they are going to build America’s most successful casino resort….wag wag wag..

Say what they will, or assume what they will and present it as truth, they cannot change the fact that around here, the tail is not smarter than the dog….and the dog ain’t listening anyway.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The Elephant has left the Building

2008-09-03T20:50:00.011-04:00

Mere hours after I posted “When Elephants Speak”, the Enterprise posted yet another casino related article that in my eyes, really showed the Tribe’s and investors true colors. They have made it perfectly clear how much they care about the host community of Middleboro by excluding them in the negotiations and their actions left me thinking “this is proof positive they don’t care at all about any of us”.

The Tribe had planned on hand delivering a letter to Governor Deval Patrick this morning, formally asking to begin compact negotiation talks….it seems they forgot to mention one tiny little request that has not sat well with some….

The tribe’s seven-page formal letter to the governor, scheduled to be hand-delivered today, makes no provision for a representative of Middleboro to be at the bargaining table.

Middleboro Chairman to the BOS, and avid casino proponent, Adam Bond, had a few things to say this morning on his blog about the exclusion of Middleboro in the letter. I read his blog and I could have sworn that Hell had frozen over because I found myself not only agreeing with him, but actually outraged for him , his Town and for all the good (and not so good) folks who have supported this Tribe’s plan from day one. No….I don’t agree that the casino is a good thing, nor do I agree with his and others infallible support of this project, but I most certainly do agree that the Tribe had an agreement with the Town and they had better damned well stick to it! I mean, how dare they attempt to ignore provisions in the IGA and exclude Middleboro? Makes one wonder how many other provisions in that agreement they may attempt to ignore in the future if that land is ever actually placed in trust.

He calls on the tribe to “repair the wound” caused by the lack of an invitation to the bargaining table and wrote: “If it doesn’t, is there any reason to continue to support an illusory partnership?”

Yes…why support an illusory partnership? I guess when you have been sucked into the illusion long enough, you actually start to believe it is real. I hope this is a wake up call for all the pro casino people out there. I am not saying its time to stop supporting the casino, I am merely saying that it is time to hold the Tribe accountable for all the promises, written or said, public or private that were made. Hold them accountable and don’t let them continue to bamboozle you too.

And the saga continues. This is Middleboro, you know….

I just finished reading the latest installment of the Casino Chronicles in the Enterprise and in the course of minutes my outrage had morphed into….you got it….jaw dropping amazement. It has been a matter of hours since the first article came out and it is now being reported that the Tribe had every intention of including Middleboro in the letter and it is so unfortunate that the letter they gave the press was a draft….yes…..a draft letter and they hadn’t yet finished the final letter – the one that will include Middleboro – the one that wasn’t delivered today, and it is unclear when the revised letter will be delivered to the Governor.

The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe says a letter floated yesterday requesting official compact negotiations with the state about a proposed casino was just a draft, and tribal leaders are now revising it to include a representative of the town of Middleboro at the bargaining table.

Hmmmm…..I see a pattern here. Poor Mr. Hendricks, his legs must be exhausted from all that back- peddling he has done today. Funny thing about this “draft” letter…..it was signed by Mr. Hendricks in the presence of the media. Now why in the world would he sign a draft letter and give it to the media?

Anyone?.....anyone?.....

On a brighter note, it seems that our Governor has seen the light and is now clearly not ready to pull the rope for the Tribe. Be sure to watch the video...

He said the tribe needs to get a hold of the land first before formal negotiations can really take place. "We want to be constructive, we need to be responsible. We don't want to be hasty," he said.

The governor said any talks right now would be hypothetical. "I respect the tribe, and I respect their interests, but until the land and trust is sorted out, there's not a whole lot that's meaningful about those conversations."

Finally!! Our Governor seems to be working in our best interests. Thank you Governor Patrick…..haste makes waste!

If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters. ~Alan Simpson

You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him. ~James D. Miles

- be the change you want to see in the world -

When Elephants Speak

2008-09-02T22:09:00.015-04:00

Here we go again…the Enterprise is reporting that the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe will begin talks with the State on the proposed casino. This recent article comes on the heels of a similar article from Monday, which Bellicose Bumpkin blogged about. What bothers me about these news articles is that in reading them, one could begin to think that we have some sort of short and long term memory malfunction...that we cannot remember the issues surrounding the Tribe's application or all the events that have happened over the past year. Luckily, us anti casino bloggers are blessed with memories like elephants....we never forget.

Sometimes I feel like I am on this not so merry-go-round of “the casino is coming…the casino is coming….time to make a deal”. Haven’t we already covered this ground? First of all….the Tribe can talk to the State or Governor Patrick all it wants but that doesn’t change one simple fact – they cannot enter into an agreement with the State when there is no land in trust to negotiate about. It will be denied by the Secretary.

Second of all, as we have learned, the State does not have to negotiate anything with the Tribe – land in trust or not. Once again, the Tribe can talk all they want…heck, they can even write up a Tribal-State compact but that does not mean Massachusetts has to play. Class III gambling is illegal in this State and according to section 2710 of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA)….

Class III gaming activities shall be lawful on Indian lands only if such activities are….located in a State that permits such gaming for any purpose by any person, organization, or entity, and…conducted in conformance with a Tribal-State compact.

So let’s break this down. The State of Massachusetts does not allow Class III gaming so technically, it does not need to allow class III gaming for the Tribe if they ever manage to get the land in Middleboro placed in trust. Oh sure, our State allows non-profit organizations to conduct “bazaars” to raise money for specific purposes and has strict regulations specific to these types of events. For example, in order to have gaming events such as raffles, casino or Las Vegas nights, or poker tournaments, they may only be conducted by a non-profit organization (whether or not incorporated) that has been organized and actively functioning in Massachusetts for at least two years and is one of the following:

Veterans’ organization chartered by Congress;
Church or religious organization;
Fraternal or fraternal benefit society, such as an Elks Club or union:
Educational or charitable organization;

Civic or service club; or
Other club or organization operated exclusively for nonprofit purposes.

These groups are qualified nonprofit organization and represent limited exceptions to the general law prohibiting gambling (I love that this State calls it what it is...gambling) in the Commonwealth.

- mass.gov-

So yes, this State does allow certain groups, organizations or entities to conduct class III gambling under strict regulations so I am sure the Tribe will try and force the Commonwealth’s hand with their inevitability scare tactics and say that since these non-profits can have certain class III games, then they can too….oh yeah, they already did that.

Gosh, perhaps the State should ban class III gambling all together for everyone so the Tribe can’t try and force us to give up our sovereignty….oh, but then all the other groups who use these events to raise money for charities would lose out. Some also might say that the right thing to do would be for the Tribe to not ask for class III gambling at all as not to potentially ruin it for all those non-profit organizations who hold these events to raise money for good causes…..but then again, I highly doubt the State would go to such extremes to try and make a point. Nope, all the State has to do in this case is follow Texas' lead and not negotiate a compact.

The important thing to remember here is that even if our Governor goes ahead with these “talks”, slot machines are not legal in this State so there will be no slots for the Tribe even if they do manage to get the land placed into trust and are able to negotiate a compact and have it approved by the Legislature…and we all know its about the slots.

The fact of the matter is, the Tribe must have an approved Tribal-State compact in order to conduct any class III gaming and as we have learned from Texas, we have sovereign rights as a State that the Tribe cannot take away from us. I would hope they understand and honor the sanctity of our sovereignty just as much as they expect us to honor the sanctity of their sovereign nation status. For the record, I do not believe that I, nor anyone else, is required to support this casino project to honor the sanctity of the Tribe’s sovereign rights. Call me what you will, but the Tribe’s sovereignty, though long awaited and well deserved, does not guarantee them the right to build a casino that will rival Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun, which brings me to my next “bone of contention” with this LIT process.

The above mentioned Enterprise article quotes Tribal Leader Sean Hendricks as saying

“No matter what ultimately happens with the negotiations, please know that it is the tribe's intent to operate America's most successful casino resort in Middleboro," Hendricks wrote in his request to open negotiations. He said the tribe plans to "build something that's equivalent to Fox Woods or Mohegan Sun."

Really? But…but…just five short months ago, this Tribe presented a casino plan for the land in Middleboro to the BIA and to us, John Q. Public, at a Federal hearing specifically designed to identify real environmental impacts - a plan that did not look anything like a Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun. I am talking about the same casino plans that were submitted to the BIA and posted in the Federal Register… you know…the plans that the Environmental Impact Statement will be addressing. I seem to remember these plans did not reflect a facility that’s equivalent to Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun….not even close. So….those plans were what?.....nothing? a farce? ….maybe a lie or misrepresentation meant to mislead the public as to the real plans the Tribe and investors have for the land?....maybe they were hoping to make the whole environmental impact statement easier to deal with, or hope the BIA would say an EIS wasn’t needed, that it would issue a FONSI (findings of no significant impacts) or maybe they were hoping to just do an environmental assessment? How can anyone address real impacts from their “casino plans” when what they really want to do once the land is in trust is to build a monstrosity to rival Foxwoods on 500 acres of land – forested wetlands, no less.

How in the world can anyone, including our Governor, think that the Tribe or the investors are being open and honest with them about anything? Jeez….they have already bamboozeled the BIA with their so-called plans…now they want to bamboozle our State too. Here is another jaw dropper of a statement:

Hendricks said he will lobby for Middleboro to get a larger piece of the state's share of the casino profits, and said he's not forgetting about the surround towns. "We want what's best for the whole region."

Again…..really? Aside from the fact that Middleboro has already made their bed with the investors and don’t deserve to take any more, especially from the State’s share, I highly doubt Mr. Hendricks really wants what is best for the whole region. In fact, I seem to remember a certain local radio show where he made his cameo appearance and said he the Tribe would not deal directly with surrounding Towns ….they would need to go to the State with their issues, not the Tribe. So my question is, if the Tribe won’t even talk directly with the surrounding Towns, how in the world can he say they will negotiate for these Towns?

I seem to remember sitting in a hot stuffy auditorium a little over a year ago at my Town's Community Forum on the proposed Middleboro casino, a forum that the Tribe was invited to attend....which they didn't. My Town's BoS held a forum for it's residents to discuss their concerns over a proposed casino.....the BoS and our Town Planner was hoping that someone from the Tribe would attend so they could talk to us about our concerns...maybe even alleviate some of them.....but they didn't come. They didn't care about our concerns over potential impacts then and I am certain they don't care even now, and if they do, they have a funny way of showing it. So again I ask, how in the world can Sean Hendricks say he will negotiate for my Town when he doesn't even know what the specific impacts to my Town will be....or those impacts specific to Lakeville, Plympton, Halifax, Plymouth, Kingston, Bridgewater, and all the other towns in our region.

My personal take on all of this is that the Tribe will say and do anything it needs to get this land placed in trust so they can build their pipe dream. In order to improve their chances, they not only scared the hell out of residents of a small quiet southern New England town to get them to approve an Intergovernmental Agreement between the Tribe and town, but they were also less than honest with the BIA and the public about the scope of their project at the hearing in March, and are now saying whatever they need to say to get our State willing to negotiate with them.

Since we are like elephants who never forget, let us not forget a few other very important facts here . First of all….as other States have shown, Massachusetts is not required to negotiate with the Tribe and without a compact the best they could hope for is a glorified bingo hall. Secondly….. the new section 20 regulations are now in effect and the land in Middleboro does not qualify as an initial reservation. As it stands, their application does not show past and current significant ties to the land in Middleboro and will most likely be denied. And last, but certainly not least, the Amicus Brief will be heard by the Supreme Court in November and the outcome could very well make their application null and void. Requesting that our Commonwealth begin negotiations is quite premature at this point and our Governor is better off telling them that this State will not even entertain the idea of compact negotiations over land that is not only not owned by the Tribe, but will not make negotiations about land that is not in trust. There is no point in negotiating something that does not exist.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Topix of Conversation

2008-08-20T21:33:00.021-04:00

Why We fight

Recently, our extremely talented and educational blogger Gladys Kravitz answered her own question to us as to why we fight. She wanted to know what motivates us to fight a casino in our community. Here was my response:

What keeps me fighting is the wrongness of this entire situation. The more I learn, the more I want to fight. I got into this because I am worried about the future of our community and the irrepairable damage to our quality of life a casino would bring.

I do it for my family...
I do it for my friends...
I do it for my neighbors....
I do it for my community....

and I do it for me because I know in my heart, not fighting, not standing up for my own rights, for all of our rights, and not demanding a fair and honest process is even more wrong than the casino itself.

NO CASINO!

here is another answer to that question:

Why do I keep fighting? Because it's wrong. It's wrong to be blindsided by a land sale whether or not you've been involved in the politics of the town or not. Our elected officials should have had the forethought to warn us all, knowing the potential impact a sale like this could have to a town and community(...and I'm not talking about some small advertisement in the Middleboro gazette)I fight because will live in a country where things like this should not happen. The process is done so coyly that unless you've lived through it, noone would believe you.I fight because it's important to have a voice and speak out....this is America after all, although that past year has made me wonder how this could happen here.

and another....

I continually remain in the fight for the quality of life for my children. My family has lived here longer than the Mashpee were a real "tribe". A polyglot of "praying indians" gathered in one place does not automatically make any one group a "tribe". I'm not in it for power, popularity or political agenda. I'm in it because it is the right thing to do, win or lose.

and another...

What keeps me fighting? I believe good will overcome evil, but "the good" have to group together & fight long & hard. All of you anti-casino people,cfo.org,all you bloggers, are the good & you all have been fighting this evil, long & hard, so I thank all of you & may the god of your choice BLESS YOU for all you've done in the past yr.

WE WILL WIN, THERE WILL BE NO CASINO IN MIDDLEBORO!!!!!!!!!!

and another...

I fight the casino knowing that it is the symptom of a bigger problem, and that communities all over the country are faced with the very same "done deal" scenario, complete with local elected leaders who have failed to successfully manage a budget and need an easy answer to thier fiscal problems.I fight the casino because the M'boro BOS didn't.I fight the casino because through research I have learned that an apathetic public has saddled me with an inept government, and maybe our battle will help change some of that. I fight this casino because I was one of those people who wasn't paying attention, and I was forced to fight if I wanted to have a say in what I wanted for my community.And I continue to fight because I am paying attention now, and after the casino issue is done, my job as a citizen isn't.As a greatful citizen, I would like to tip my hat to everyone in this fight:-CFO (past and present officers/members); good people who dedicated themselves wholeheartedly to what they believed in.-Bloggers like Bellicose Bumpkin, Gladys Kravits and Carver Chick. Keeping the public informed would have been impossible without you.-And last but not least, I wish to thank everyone who said we had no choice. It forced me to do my own research, and through it, I learned how to effectively oppose you.Keep well & keep fighting, Gladys!

and another....

I fight to educate and share the research with those who; don't have the motivation, the need, the compassion for their neighbors, feel that geography will keep them safe, are hoodwinked by their leaders, mis-informed by the media and feel-good politics. Expanded gambling is not the answer. We should look to build our future on our strengths, and not our weaknesses.

and another...

I was lied to.My property was vandalized.My town and my way of life is threatened.I will never forget.We cannot let this happen.

Now if you consider how this all came about...then I would hope you can begin to understand why we fight. My point here is that people who are against a casino in Middleboro are against it for real and valid reasons. Whether it is because we don't like how this was shoved down our throats and told it is inevitable

resistance is futile...

or how it will destroy our quality of life in our hometowns, or because the process is flawed and the Tribe has no right to call that land an initial reservation, we fight because we know that everything about this nightmare had been wrong from day one. Yet we are constantly told that a casino in Middleboro will bring jobs and money, and how a casino on sovereign land will jumpstart our economy because it is a super special and magical economic engine.... and let's face it, the Mashpee Tribe deserves the land regardless of how the surrounding communities feel or what the law says because the pilgrims were nothing but a bunch of murdering thieves....and if we don't bend over and take it, well....

resistance is futile...

then we are nothing but a bunch of racist, indian hating, evil, lying, ignorant people. We are nazis and dictators...we are scum...and you know what.....it doesn't matter what they say because we know who we are, we know the law and we know our rights.

So we fight.

How anti-casino people fight

Casinofacts.org

Casino Free Mass

How "evil" anti-casino bloggers fight

The Blogfathers

How (some) pro-casino people fight

XXX (cfo member) and XXX (CFO Director) scum sucking toads.

Mommy, why do all the kids at school call you a liar?
Mommy, why is daddy never here when uncle Adam is?
Mommy, why do we have chicken every night?
Mommy. why are you always on the computer?Mommy, when is the man with the marshmellows going to visit you again?

being descended from those dregs of society england sent over on those first boats to plymouth ain't exactly something to brag about. have you read their bios and histories? omg, what a bunch of losers. no wonder the Brits jumped at a chance to dump them here. wicked losas! lmao!

and the pure-i-tans were exactly pure. francis eaton, 1st plymouth carpenter, had a mistress to keep him warm. haha! too funny! lice infested, disease ridden bunch of fornicators...why is everybody so proud to trace their roots back to the mayflower?

This entire area was founded by theives and murderers.

which part of the CFO chicken tastes best? Wing, legs or breast? Time for a pig roast? Anyone know where I can get three little piggies?

Are CFO dumb or just stupid?You people keep saying that this is about a casino. You are nothing but indian haters. You would hate it if they decided to build a dry cleaners or a mall or anything on the land they will own through a legal purchase. It isn't about a casino it is about your hate of them. Well you know what. Why doesn't everyone just go back to where their ancestors are from and who ever remains gets the land.

Call the police. Call DSS. She has kids too.

Casino Factless has done one piece of research and nothing else. Over and over and over again they have been proven wrong.Casino Factless are bigots and racists. They say it will bring crime. Middleboro's got it. They say it will bring prositution. Middleboro's got it. They say it will bring bad elements to town. Mary Tufts won't leave Middleboro alone. Call someone other than the guy from North Stonington who fights against the recognition of Native Americans. If you do call him, ask him what happened to housing prices in his community since Foxwoods opened up as compared to the region. Ask him why he is against Native Americans providing for themselves. Ask him if he blongs or supports CERA (look them up and see what you find).

Well, if they are going to let CFO use the lawn, why not host the KKK's next fund raiser? These secretive harassment groups seem to have quite a bit in common.

and my personal favorite...

If RY is really serious his oranization will get rid of MT's Mini-me CC and the pathetic "1623." Then they may be able to sit at the table with a shread of dignity.

Hey...if I am going to be called a mini version of Gladys Kravitz, then my work has been done. My goodness...I can't think of a better compliment than that. I mean, here we have an extremely talented blogger who has personally witnessed the atrocities of a defunct BoS for the past year, found the courage to actually talk about it and have the "spit in your eye" attitude to call out bad town government and stand up for what is right .... and yet somehow continues to stand up for what she believes in lieu of luid photo contests, threats, harrassment and downright nastiness from a group of people who call themselves "kind and caring citizens" -- and I am being called her mini-me. I am being compared to a woman who has more integrity in her little finger than an entire flock of flying monkeys combined and all I have to say to that is...

THANK YOU!

I am honored. I cannot think of another woman who I know (besides my most excellent mom) that I would like to be considered the same calibur as.....Gladys, you are an inspiration to us all and we love you for it. You ROCK!

And for all the flying monkeys posting on topix, please do us all a favor and just zip it. The gossip, harrassment, paranoid insinuations, cyberbullying and juvenile posts are not helping to heal the damage that has already been done to this community by a casino that isn't even here.

And because I just love this video.... (thank you Gladys - number one on youtube. ya!)

Never give in.. never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force.. never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.
- Winston Churchill -

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Amicus Briefly

2008-08-11T21:16:00.016-04:00

Where the Middleboro casino issue is concerned, when it rains it pours. The just released Spectrum report has re-kindled the casino debate with it’s not so independent analysis of casino gambling in Massachusetts and actually, I am happy about this. No, not about the content of the so called independent analysis…which can hardly be called independent., but because this report seems to have knocked some sense into our Governor where the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s LIT application and specifically the tribal/state compact is concerned. It is now being reported that the Governor will not entertain compact negotiations unless the land is put into trust. This is good news because I recently received notification that the Supreme Court of the United States will be hearing the Carcieri v. Kempthorne case on November 3rd, 2008. The outcome of this case is a huge deal and is being watched by tribes and casino opposition groups alike nationwide. The bottom line is, the outcome of this case has the potential to change how LIT applications are reviewed and approved for tribes recognized after 1934. The Supreme Court has decided to hear this case and rule on two very important questions:

1. Whether the 1934 Act empowers the Secretary to take land into trust for Indiantribes that werenot recognized and under federal jurisdiction in 1934.

2. Whether an act of Congress that extinguishes aboriginal title and all claims based on Indian rights and interests in land precludes the Secretary from creating Indian country there.

The argument for these two questions is summarized below:

The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 permits the Secretary to take land into trust for certain Indian tribes, significantly impairing state jurisdiction. The Fifth Circuit held that the 1934 Act “positively dictates” that the only Indian tribes for whom land can be taken into trust are those that were “recognized” and “under federal jurisdiction” as of “June 1934”. This Court similarly concluded in that the 1934 Act contained a temporal “recognized [in 1934] tribe” limitation. United States v. John, 437 U.S. 634 (1978). The Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court decision to the same effect.
The Rhode Island Indian Land Claims Settlement Act provides land specifically for the later recognized Narragansett Indian Tribe and comprehensively disposes of all Indian land claims in Rhode Island. The Tribe received 1,800 acres of land for free. In exchange, Congress extinguished aboriginal title and all Indian interests in land in Rhode Island.

- lower court case number 03-2647 -

Simply put, the Governor of Rhode Island is challenging the Secretary of the Interior’s power to take land into trust for Indian Tribes recognized after June of 1934, after the enactment of the Indian Reorganization Act. This is the Act that gives the Secretary the authority to take land into trust for Indian tribes. The questions posed in the petition challenges the First Circuits decision to uphold the decision made by the Secretary of the Interior to remove 31 acres of land in Charlestown, RI from the State’s civil and criminal jurisdiction by acquiring the land in trust for the Narragansett Tribe. The Governor of Rhode Island is challenging this decision because there are two independent statutory provisions that prohibit the Secretary from using his trust authority to divest the State of jurisdiction over the 31 acres of land and create sovereign Indian territory in Rhode Island. Twenty-one other States have signed on to this case as Amici Curiae in support of the petitioners. These States are: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas and Utah.

I had the opportunity to read the arguments presented by both Rhode Island and the other Amici States. What I thought would be a boring read actually was quite interesting, and addressed a particular section of the IRA that I have pondered over since the day I read it for the first time. Question one asks that very question so I thought I would share what twenty-two states are saying about the powers of the Secretary to take land into trust for Indian Tribes recognized after 1934. Let’s face it, if the Supreme Court rules in favor of Carcieri then in my opinion, they will be upholding Congress’ intent of the regulation, and what they meant when they used the phrase “...any recognized Indian tribe now under Federal jurisdiction…”

I will save question two - which speaks to the misconstrue of the Settlement Act - for another day. For now, here are the arguments for question one.

What Rhode Island Says

The argument submitted by the petitioner (Donald L. Carcieri), is 88 pages long. In a nutshell, the Governor is arguing that the Secretary may not take land into trust on behalf of the Narragansetts because they were neither federally recognized nor under federal jurisdiction in 1934 and because the text of the IRA unambiguously establishes that the Secretary lacks the authority to take land into trust on behalf of the Naragansettts. He argues that Section 5 of the IRA provides that the Secretary may “acquire through purchase, relinquishment, gift, exchange, or assignment, any interest in lands …..for the purpose of providing land for Indians.” Therefore, the Secretary must establish that the members of the tribe are “Indians” within the meaning of the IRA.

Section 19 of the IRA provides that “..the term “Indian” …shall include [1] all persons of Indian decent who are members of any recognized Indian tribe now under Federal jurisdiction, and [2] all persons who are descendents of such members who were, on June 1, 1934, residing within the present boundaries of any Indian reservation, and shall further include [3] all other persons of on-half or more Indian blood”.

Rhode Island goes on to say that when the Secretary relies upon tribal membership – rather than descent or blood quantum – to establish that trust beneficiaries are “Indians” under the IRA, the plain language of Section 19 – which encompasses “any recognized Indian tribe now under federal jurisdiction” – restricts the Secretary’s trust authority to property acquired for person who are members of tribes that were both federally recognized and under federal jurisdiction at the time of the IRA’s enactment in 1934. The Secretary may not – through the promulgation of a regulation, or otherwise – expand his trust authority beyond this statutorily imposed boundary.

The argument goes on to define the word “now” from dictionaries published shortly before, or contemporaneously with the enactment of the IRA. The definitions establish that the word “now” means “at the present time” or, synonymously, “at the time of speaking” so to interpret the word “now” to refer to the time that it the IRA is applied, rather than to the time it was enacted, would render the term utterly superfluous.

- brief for petitioner Donald L. Carcieri -

What the other 21 States say

The amici curiae states submitted a 34 page brief in support of the brief filed by Rhode Island. These States have vital interest in this case because of the misinterpretations of the two federal statues, the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 and the Rhode Island Indian Claims Settlement Act. The States argue that land taken into trust for Indians by the Secretary and removed from state authority in several significant respects (including taxation, land use restrictions and certain environmental regulations) limits the States’ ability to exercise their sovereign powers to protect the public on the trust land, which results in the creation of an area largely controlled by a competing sovereign within a state’s borders without its consent. This is contrary to core principles of federalism.

The States point out that the Secretary has already taken into trust several million acres nationwide under the IRA – an area approximately twice the size of Connecticut and Rhode Island combined. The Amici States have a compelling sovereign interest in having the Supreme Court define the proper application of the IRA, particularly in conjunction with settlement acts.

When the Secretary exercises his power to take land into trust, there are substantial and permanent consequences for the impacted state and local communities. This power gives the Secretary the capacity to change the entire character of a state, particularly when the Secretary uses it in coordination with modern Tribes who build casinos that are located in populated areas and existing communities. The States feel that it is incumbent on the courts to vigilantly enforce the limits Congress has placed on the Secretary’s power in order to maintain the proper segregation of powers.

The precise question at issue regarding the Secretary’s power to take land into trust in this case is whether Congress in the IRA intended to allow the Secretary to take land into trust on behalf of Indian Tribes that were not recognized and under federal jurisdiction in 1934, when the IRA was enacted. Congress addressed that precise temporal question in the IRAs text and clearly provided that the Secretary’s authority to take land into trust is limited to pre-1934 tribes. The IRA allows the Secretary to take land into trust “for the purpose of providing land for Indians” (25 USC 465), and defines the term “Indian” to “include all persons of Indian descent who are members of any recognized Indian tribe now under Federal jurisdiction.” (25 USC 479). The States argue that Congress’ use of the word “now” in the definition of an “Indian” unambiguously expresses its intent to limit the Secretary’s trust authority to tribes that were recognized and under federal jurisdiction at the time of the IRAs enactment in 1934. The argument cites several cases where courts have repeatedly held in similar circumstances – both before and after the passage of the IRA – that when Congress uses the word “now” in a statute, it intends to incorporate a temporal limitation as of the date of enactment. Therefore, the context of the IRA strongly supports the conclusion that by using “now” Congress intended to limit the Act’s application to tribes recognized and under Federal jurisdiction in 1934. If Congress had intended that land can be taken into trust on behalf of tribes recognized at any time, they would have used the phrase “now or hereafter”, or similar language, or simply deleted the word “now” altogether. There is simply nothing in either the text or the context of section 479 to support the Secretary’s reading of “now” to mean whenever in the future the Secretary chooses to act.

The States also argue that the plain reading of the IRA is consistent with its background and legislative history, meaning the circumstances surrounding the enactment. They argue that the legislative history of the IRAs “now” limitation is consistent with Congress’ intent to limit the IRAs application to 1934 tribes. Representative Howard and Commission of Indian Affairs Collier – two key players in the IRAs enactment – made statements that directly indicate that the IRA was intended to apply only to tribes recognized as of 1934.

“….section 479 defines the persons who shall be classified as Indian. In essence, it recognizes the status quo of present reservation Indians and further includes all other persons of one-fourth Indian blood”

- Representative Howard on the IRA-

Commissioner Collier spoke even more clearly on this issue. An early draft of the IRA defined “Indian” to among other things “include all persons of Indian descent who are members of any recognized Indian tribe.” Senators expressed concern about whether that definition would sufficiently ensure bona fide status and, in response, Commissioner Collier proposed the “now” limitation, which Congress adopted.

The Amici States conclude that reading the IRA to apply only to tribes recognized and under federal jurisdiction in 1934 is not only consistent with the legislative history directly related to the “now” limitation, it is also entirely consistent with the Act’s broader purposes and history. The IRA intended to help remediate the impact on the then recognized tribes of pre-1934 federal policies and bureaucratic failings, and the intent and purpose of the IRA was “to rehabilitate the Indians economic life and to give him a chance to develop the initiative destroyed by a century of oppression and paternalism” resulting from the government’s allotment policy, which began with the passage of the General Allotment Act of 1887 and lasted until 1934, when the IRA was enacted. It was reasonable for Congress to direct remedial efforts toward the tribes that has suffered as a result of disastrous federal policies and bureaucratic failings, rather than allocating scarce resources to tribes that, from the federal government’s perspective, did not yet exist and would not be subjected to those policies.

The Amici States also point out that reading the IRA as it is written does not leave post-1934 tribes unable to obtain land. It simply insures that such grants of land are made by Congress, not the Secretary, thus guaranteeing that the States and their citizens have the full ability to protect their interests through the democratic process.

- brief for Amici Curiae States -

I must say that I am extremely pleased that our Attorney General, Martha Coakley signed onto this brief. If anything, it gives weight to the idea that perhaps our State isn’t so enamored with the idea of an Indian Casino. Even our legislature has shown its reluctance to legalize class III gambling or allow Deval Patrick’s casino dream to come to fruition so voting quickly to approve a tribal/state compact is highly unlikely. Also, the State's newfound reluctance to even think about compacts before a LIT decision is made is a good thing. Best to wait and see how the Supreme Court rules on this case. If they favor Carcieri, then it will take an act of Congress to approve that land in Middleboro – and it will allow us the full ability to protect our interests through the democratic process.

Each State, in ratifying the Constitution, is considered as a sovereign body, independent of all others, and only to be bound by its own voluntary act. In this relation, then, the new Constitution will, if established, be a FEDERAL, and not a NATIONAL constitution. - James Maddison

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The big bad wolf is not so big and bad

2008-08-02T13:32:00.005-04:00

Can the antics on the topix forum bring down the CFO house?

not by the hair of our chinny, chin, chin............so huff and puff, but you can't blow this house in.

No Casino!

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Left Ahead..Invasion of the Anti Casino Pod People!

2008-07-22T22:12:00.007-04:00

Who needs a radio show when you can podcast your thoughts, feelings, and most importantly your facts regarding local and State politics on the web? Apparently not Ryan Adams, blogger extrordinare. He is an advoacate for a better future by giving an analysis of the current political situation in our wonderful State. It is no wonder that he has much to say about politics in Massachusetts and is a powerful adversary of expanded gambling in Massachusetts. I have recently had the pleasure of meeting Ryan in person and I must say that he is a wonderful, passionate and extremely dedicated political voice. I highly recommend reading his blogs. He has been and continues to be, a strong voice in the CasinoFreeMass movement, as well as other anti gambling issues our State faces year after year.

So on that note, if you missed it, our beloved (not to mention educational and enternaining) blogger friend Gladys Kravitz was a guest speaker on Ryan's podcast. You can listen to the podcast at Left Ahead.

Thank you to Ryan and thank you to Gladys. I think my favorite quote of the podcast was "...it's like a flesh eating bacteria..."

Note to Ryan:

I too love the Gladys Kravitz videos you posted, but my personal favorite is.......

"Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience above all other liberties." - John Milton, Areopagitica, 1644

"Let thy speech be better than silence, or be silent." - Dionysius of Halicarnassus

- be the change you want to see in the world -

The BIA Behaving Badly

2008-07-15T22:28:00.023-04:00

So here I was having a perfectly glorious summer when I hear something that brought my lazy summer days to a screeching halt. Apparently there is this rumor floating around the area that the Mashpee Wampanoag Land In Trust Application will be approved this summer. Now I am not one to take any rumor too seriously but I must admit, I was a bit taken aback by this one. So of course, I looked into it….or, more accurately, several of us looked into it.

Come to find out by doing a bit of research, the BIA has this nasty little habit of approving LIT applications for Tribes before an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has been completed for the land in question. This news is a bit distressing, especially when you consider the fact that Land in Trust regulations requires compliance with NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) Regulations. As stated on their home page, NEPA requires federal agencies to integrate environmental values into their decision making processes by considering the environmental impacts of their proposed actions and reasonable alternatives to those actions. To meet NEPA requirements federal agencies must prepare a detailed statement known as an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

Basically, NEPA requires an environmental scoping session and a completed Environmental Impact Statement for all Land in Trust Application decisions. It would seem however, that in some instances, the BIA has approved Land in Trust applications without a completed EIS, such as what happened recently in Rohnert Park, California. Here is what the Attorney who filed the suit has to say:

The Bureau of Indian Affairs jumped the gun by attempting to transfer title to this poorly planned site even before completing the environmental impact statement,” Volker said. “Operating a casino at this site poses huge environmental impacts, including massive traffic congestion on Highway 101 and over-pumping of local wells."

“The BIA has thumbed its nose at the public by attempting to end-run the laws that protect the public from needless environmental harm,” Volker said. - the press democrat

This bad habit is causing some major waves throughout several States. Throughout this Country, individual communities and States are standing up for their inalienable sovereign rights granted to them in the United States Constitution. They are questioning the BIA's decision making process and in some instances, the SOI’s right to take land off the tax rolls regardless of a State’s or community's position on the matter.

Consider the Buffalo, New York case that my friend Gladys Kravitz recently blogged about….or how about the Columbia River Gorge case in Oregon. These are but a few examples of the BIA behaving badly.

So what about us?

Please allow me clarify the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe's position with regards to their Land in Trust application.

The application is specific in that it asks approval for three things:

1. Land(s) into Trust
2. Reservation status for said land(s)
3. Permission to game under the initial reservation exception of IGRA.

This is an all or nothing situation for the Mashpee Tribe. They can't get just one of these things....the application has to be approved for all three requests or the application will be denied. Since we already know the land in Middleboro does not meet the requirements for an initial reservation, this application should be, and most certainly will be denied.

Furthermore, neither office of the BIA in Tennessee or Washington DC has the authority to approve the application because of the initial reservation proclamation request. This request leaves the authority squarely on the shoulders of the Secretary of the Interior. In the Mashpee Tribe's case, the BIA does not have the authority to make the decision on thier application. If they do, they are essentially violating federal statutes.

The question being raised in the Carcieri v Kempthorne case is whether or not it is unconstitutional even for the Secretary of the Interior to take land into Trust in certain circumstances. I had blogged about this several months ago. Recently, I received the following comment on that particular blog.

Adam B has left a new comment on your post "Don't Tread on Me":

CONGRESS delegated the authority to take lands into trust for Indians to the Secretary of Interior in the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. CONGRESS has plenary power regarding Indians and Indian tribes, leaving the States out of the mix (with the exception of the ability to appeal decision by the BIA). Since Congress has delegated the authority to the Secretary to do what the 1934 act proscribed there is left no claim that the BIA/Secretary is acting beyond their authority. - Posted by Adam B to carverchick at July 14, 2008 11:12 PM

This is an excellent, albeit misleading comment. First of all, States are not kept out of the mix in regards to LIT decisions. In fact, the regulations clearly state that once an application is received, the affected State, community and interested parties will be notified and allowed to comment. As far as Congress having plenary power regarding Indians and Indian tribes, this is the very argument that the Amicus Brief for the Carcieri v Kempthorne case is tackling, and which will be heard by the Supreme Court this fall or early next year.

This case is essentially questioning whether or not a Tribe recognized after the enactment of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 is actually covered under the Act. Several States, including Massachusetts have signed on to this case.

The Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) was enacted by the U.S. Congress on June 18, 1934 and its purpose was to decrease federal control of American Indians and to increase tribal self-government. The act sought to strengthen tribal structure by encouraging written constitutions and to undo the damage caused by the Dawes General Allotment Act by returning surplus lands to the tribes. The IRA says:

The term "Indian" in this Act shall include all person of Indian decent who are members of any recognized Indian tribe now under Federal jurisdiction, and all persons who are descendants of such members who were, on June 1, 1934, residing within the present boundaries of any reservation, and shall further include all other persons of one-half or more Indian blood.

It also says:

The term "tribe" wherever used in this Act shall be construed to refer to any Indian tribe, organized band, pueblo or the Indians residing on one reservation.

It goes on to say that the Act shall not apply to any reservation which votes against its application. The elections were to be held within one year of the passage of the Act, and it was the responsibility of the SOI to conduct the elections.

Sec. 18. This Act shall not apply to any reservation wherein a majority of the adult Indians, voting at a special election duly called by the Secretary of the Interior, shall vote against it application. It shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Interior, within one year after the passage and approval of this Act, to call such an election, which election shall be held by secret ballot upon thirty days' notice.

The way I read this is a majority of the Indians (identified in the first paragraph) in all tribes (identified in the second paragraph) had to vote to accept or reject the application of the IRA within one year of it's passage. Since the Act says that it covers all of the tribes that are recognized now and it requires all recognized tribes to vote on the Act, then it stands to reason if they didn't exist to vote on whether or not to reject the IRA, how are they one of the tribes covered under the Act? This is in essence, one of the arguments in the Amicus Brief.

So if the tribe is not recognized under the Act, then the only other way for the Mashpee tribe to acquire land is through an act Congress, as I tried to explain in Lucky Thirteen, and unless Adam B or anyone can provide me with irrefutable evidence and not some sentence that is cherry picked to make his argument, then I stand by what I say, and I stand by 25 CFR 151.3.

§ 151.3 Land acquisition policy.
Land not held in trust or restricted status may only be acquired for an individual Indian or a tribe in trust status when such acquisition is authorized by an act of Congress.

So the question is, does an Act passed by Congress (in this case the IRA) have authority over a States constitutional rights covered under the tenth amendment? I don't think it does, and apparently neither do the individual States. I guess that is for the US Supreme Court to decide.

Additional clarification on the Carcieri v Kempthorne case arguement: The Carcieri v Kempthorne case before the Supreme Court in November is not challenging the Constitutionality of the Indian Reorganization Act. The Act is constitutional as passed by Congress but it does not apply in the eastern states. It only applies to Federal reservations which already existed in the West.

So back to this rumor about the Mashpee Tribe’s application…..I find it highly unlikely that the BIA will behave badly with this application. In fact, given the testimony they heard at the March 25th EIS scoping session, the complications surrounding the Mashpee Tribe’s application asking for two parcels of land that are 39 miles apart as an initial reservation – one parcel specifically slated for a mega-casino resort, and the already pending legal battles from other States, I think the BIA will be on it’s best behavior in regards to the Middleboro land decision. But if they chose to try and circumvent Federal laws, we will be there to call them out on it. In a court of Law.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, ... That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it. - The Declaration of Independence

- be the change you want to see in the world -

America the Beautiful

2008-07-01T20:45:00.026-04:00

Did you know that Gladys Kravitz has been blogging for an entire year now?! Gosh, time sure does fly when you’re fighting a mega-resort casino from being built in your community. Well, as I was reading her latest, she linked to an earlier blog of hers, Gladys Kravitz Goes to Raynham, and it reminded me of a question she posed while commenting on the highlights of her evening listening to the Chairman of the Casino Resort Advisory Committee (CRAC) try to assure the Raynham Board of Selectmen that Middleboro has everything under control, to which Selectman McKinnon replied:

“Son, I guess I just don’t understand why your town would…give up it’s own control, and chose to depend on the Tribe’s benevolence.”

Gladys goes on to pose the question that I have been pondering about since the day she posted this blog:

But it’s clear that this is one of those infinitesimally few things that Brian has no answer for. And I don’t have any profound wisdom to impart to help him understand. I mean, how do you explain America? -- (courtesy of Gladys Kravits – thank you Gladys!)

When she asked this, I couldn’t help but wonder….how do you explain America? Seriously, how does one explain a Country’s soul…it’s spirit and how the concept of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness is the foundation on which this Country stands?

In the Declaration of Independence, our founding fathers, ..”held certain truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” So is this how you describe America?

Many say that America is all about the American Dream…a term first used by James Truslow Adams in his book The Epic of America written in 1931. In his book, he says, "The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position."

Many people seem to feel that the American Dream has become the pursuit of material prosperity because the more stuff you have, the happier you will be. . Yet others live the American Dream with less focus on financial gain and more emphasis on living a simple, fulfilling life that does not include living in the vicinity of a mega-casino resort on sovereign land, you know....a seperate country, like England.

Our Country could also be explained by our Flag, and what it stands for:

The 13 stripes in the American flag represent the original 13 colonies . The 50 stars represent the States and a new constellation, a new nation dedicated to the personal and religious liberty of mankind.

Red stripes proclaim the fearless courage and integrity of American men and boys and the self-sacrifice and devotion of American mothers and daughters. White stripes stand for liberty and equality for all. blue is the blue of heaven, loyalty, and faith.

But what does that mean to me, to you, to anyone….heck, I couldn’t even explain America to myself when I read the question, at least not without taking the time to really think about it. I really find this to be a fundamentally profound question and it really got me thinking a lot about it off and on for the past several weeks. America means so many things to so many people….how does one explain that?

So, in the spirit of Independence Day, I have decided to go out and find the answer to Gladys’ super important question, but wanted to keep it simple, and honest, and true. So I asked some friends and family one simple question….

If you had to describe America in three words, what would those words be?

Here is some feedback to my question. No editing....only the freedom of my family and friends expressing their right to free speech...ain't this an awesome country?

Home, Family, Liberty

GENEROUS CARING GREAT

LAND OF HOPE.

Beware of Bush

Corrupt government officials

No educational investment

Arrogant political leaders

Too much violence

Life, Liberty, Happiness

Freedom to Blog!

Freedom, Rights, Independence

beautiful,free and home

Frustrated, Worried And, I am very, very confused that the “ US ” could be in such trouble/need from more than one area.

Freedom to be

opportunity to excell

Freedom, choice, liberty

But by far, the one answer that left me speechless came from no other than my blogger friend herself, Gladys Kravitz:

“Never Give Up”

...and to me....the three words America the Beautiful says it all.

So, how would you describe America in three words?

“Patriotism is easy to understand in America; it means looking out for yourself by looking out for your country." - Calvin Coolidge, 29th President of the United States of America

"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill,that we shall pay any price,bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and success of liberty." - John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th president of the United States of America

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Nothing Good Ever Comes

2008-06-24T20:17:00.009-04:00

All violence, all that is dreary and repels, is not power, but the absence of power. Ralph Waldo Emerson

So the Cape Cod Times is reporting today that the restraining order on Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Leader Shawn Hendricks has been lifted. Our blogger friend Bellicose Bumpkin posted the article today on his blog. You know...when I read this I was really surprised. Here is a guy who has scared his wife and kids to death with his spur of the moment rages and bad temper. He has also admitted to steroid use. Steroids? Gosh, where is the Senate when you need them? Too busy looking into the alleged steroid use of professional baseball players....to heck with one certain Tribal Leader who wants to build a mega-casino resort on sovereign land. Honesty and integrity in baseball is obviously way more important than honesty and integrity in LIT applications.

From the Cape Cod Times:

In court yesterday, she spoke of her husband's violent temper, which she says escalated over the past three years, and even more so since he stepped into the role of tribal council chairman last August when his mentor, Glenn Marshall, was forced to resign.

Federal investigators launched a probe into the finances of Marshall, Hendricks and other tribal council leaders shortly after Marshall stepped down.

"It'll be a spur-of-the-moment rage that he'll burst into," Elizabeth said. "Most of his (anger) is directed toward me."

"My husband is a fourth-degree black belt and has firearms," she wrote in the affidavit. "He has a very bad temper toward me and enjoys intimidating me."

My goodness, my heart really goes out to this woman. No wonder she declined comment after the hearing! This guy has firearms, a third degree black belt and has a history of steroid use. The sad thing here is that victims of domestic violence almost always go back to their abuser. I say almost, because some are actually able to find the strength and courage to just leave....that is not an easy thing to do especially when you consider that physical abuse is always coupled with psychological abuse, leaving the victim to feel like they can't leave. So, I guess it is back to the "honeymoon stage" for this couple. I hope it works out for them and I really hope that Shawn Hendricks gets some help so that they and their children have a chance at some sort of happiness.

So, here is where I become dumbfounded at this restraining order being lifted. Our Governor just recently announced his plans to combat domestic violence. Apparently Governor Patrick is alarmed by the sharp increase in domestic violent related deaths in our State. The article in the Cape Cod Times reports the unveiling of his plans to bolster police training and a statewide review of the data to determine the reasons for the rise.

"We have a public health emergency on our hands," he said.

Domestic violence-related deaths have nearly tripled in Massachusetts during the past three years, from 19 in 2005 to 55 last year, according to the nonprofit Jane Doe Inc., which advocates against domestic violence and sexual assault. There have been 24 deaths this year. - Cape Cod Times

Well, I give a big huge kudos to our Governor for this! He has certainly scored some major points with this chick. Domestic violence has apparently become an epidemic in our State and something needs to be done about it. Lifting restraining orders from men who carry firearms and could kick the living heck out of someone without even trying is probably not the most responsible thing for a court to do. It shouldn't matter that he had no prior record.....his own wife is afraid of him. Too bad the Probate Court in Barnstable County missed the Public Health Advisory released earlier this month by Massachusetts Health and Human Services. Maybe Judge's across the commonwealth will read this advisory and think twice before making decisions that could put victims of domestic violence in further danger.

June 05, 2008 - For immediate release:

Public Health Advisory: Massachusetts Health Officials Issue Advisory to Public and Health Care Providers on Domestic Violence

Increase in domestic violence deaths spur call to action.

Download Word version of advisory in available foreign languages

Portuguese
Spanish

BOSTON — Driven by recent domestic violence killings, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) today issued a public health advisory on domestic violence.

Public health advisories are tools reserved for communicating urgent information to the public on health issues facing the community. Such advisories define the scope of the problem and provide important information on prevention and treatment.

“We use these advisories to alert the public and health care providers throughout our state to pay attention to a pressing health issue,” said DPH Commissioner John Auerbach. “The recent spate of domestic violence-related deaths in Massachusetts is disturbing. Domestic violence in any form is unacceptable and we can all play a part in preventing abuse from happening to anyone in the Commonwealth.”

Commissioner Auerbach added that he wanted to assure the public and health care providers that resources exist for victim advocacy, counseling and shelter services, as well as programs to hold batterers accountable and prevent domestic violence incidents. In addition to issuing the advisory through the media, DPH will also send a copy to all health care facilities in Massachusetts.

The Problem

The statistics on the impact of domestic violence are sobering, and point clearly to the extent of this serious public health problem.

The number of domestic violence deaths in Massachusetts was nearly three times higher in 2007 than in 2005. According to statistics maintained by Jane Doe, Inc., there were 15 murders and four domestic violence-related suicides in 2005, 28 murders and three suicides in 2006, and 42 murders and 13 suicides in 2007.

Additionally, according to Jane Doe, Inc., a total of 31 children were directly impacted by domestic violence in 2007. Five children were killed, 13 orphaned, 11 lost their mother, and two lost their father.

So far in 2008, Jane Doe, Inc. reports that there have been 19 domestic violence homicides and five domestic violence-related suicides for a total of 24 deaths.

A 2003 CDC study estimated that each year domestic violence involving an intimate partner results in 1,200 deaths, two million injuries among women, and 600,000 injuries among men.
That same CDC study estimated the costs of intimate partner violence exceeded $5.8 billion per year, including direct medical and mental health costs for victims and lost productivity.

Help for Victims and their Children

Health officials stressed that more can be done by government, the public, health care providers, and the media to inform victims about services that can help them.

“There are important messages that we can give victims of domestic violence. First, what they are going through is not their fault, next, that violence affects their health in many ways, and finally, that help is available and healing is possible,” said Carlene Pavlos, Director of the Violence and Injury Prevention Program at DPH.

If you or someone you care about is a victim of domestic violence, you are not alone. Programs across Massachusetts can provide free, confidential services to victims.

If you are in immediate danger, call 9-1-1.

For help you can also contact SafeLink, the Massachusetts Statewide Domestic Violence hotline. The SafeLink hotline is staffed 24 hours a day with trained domestic violence counselors who can provide help in multiple languages. If you need help, call the SafeLink toll-free number: 1-877-785-2020.

www.janedoe.org/safety.htm for a listing of local victim service programs.

Information for People who Are Using Violence in Relationships

If you are using violent, controlling and/or intimidating behaviors, your entire family including your children are impacted. You can stop. There are educational programs available to help you to recognize and change your behavior. People who attend batterer intervention programs are less likely to commit new acts of violence or to violate restraining orders. For information on a Batterer Intervention Program near you, call 617-624-5497.

Information for the Public

Domestic violence is sometimes referred to as a “silent crime” because victims are often too afraid to come forward, and friends and family often do not want to become involved in something that they consider a personal matter. The abuse can take many different forms including physical, sexual, economic, emotional and psychological abuse, and is often a pattern of these behaviors. Domestic violence is a crime and stopping it requires help from family, friends and neighbors.

Tips for the Public to Help Identify and Prevent Domestic Violence in Their Community
Educate yourself on what domestic violence is and how to stop it. There are many resources available including these web sites:

www.cdc.gov/ncipc/dvp/ipv_factsheet.pdf
www.ovw.usdoj.gov/pledge.htm
www.janedoe.org/involved/involved_whiteribbonday.htm
www.endabuse.org/programs/publiceducation
www.janedoe.org/know.htm

Call the SafeLink number (1-877-785-2020). They can give you advice if you are trying to help someone you know who is being abused. They can also provide you the name of a Batterer Intervention Program if you are concerned about someone’s jealous, obsessive, controlling or abusive behavior.

If you hear or see a domestic violence crime, call 9-1-1 and report it to the police. If possible, write down specifics as to location, license plate numbers, and any other information that may be of help to law enforcement.

Speak out against domestic violence with your family, neighbors, and friends. Let people know in your house of worship, at work, school, and elsewhere that domestic violence is unacceptable in your community and share tips on how to identify and prevent it from happening.

If you belong to a civic organization, invite a speaker from your local domestic violence program to educate your group on the issue. Ask your local library to prominently display books on domestic violence and resource information on how victims can get the help they need.

Volunteer or donate to a domestic violence organization in your area. To find one close by, contact Jane Doe, Inc. at 617-248-0922, or visit www.janedoe.org.

Information for Health Care Providers

Domestic violence is a serious, underlying cause of poor health for many people in the Commonwealth. Health care providers can play an important role in identifying and responding to victims of domestic violence through routine screening and appropriate referral.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health recommends routine screening for domestic violence victimization in all health care settings. Providers should be appropriately trained in the dynamics of domestic violence in order to screen appropriately, and should be well-versed in appropriate and safe referrals for those victims who come forward.

Appropriate screening and referral has several important health implications:

An 11-city study of victims of intimate partner homicide and attempted homicide published in 2001 found that the majority of victims (74% of the nearly 240 murdered women and 88% of victims of attempted homicide) had been seen in hospital ERs for some ailment at some point in the year before the incident. Furthermore, nearly two-thirds of these women were evaluated in ERs, hospital in-patient or ambulatory care settings for injuries related to the domestic violence. (Sharps, et al, “Health care providers missed opportunities for preventing femicide”, Prev. Med. 2001; 33:373-380). Identification, assessment and referral of these victims could have been life-saving.

The February 8, 2008 edition of Mortality and Morbidity Weekly reported dramatic prevalence of violent victimization (1,200 deaths and two million injuries to women from intimate partner violence each year, and nearly 600,000 injuries to men) and further reported that women who have experienced partner violence are at significantly greater risk for heart disease, stroke, asthma, arthritis, heavy drinking, risky sex, and for needing a cane or wheelchair than women who have not experienced partner violence. Identification and referral can have important implications for a myriad of health risks, as well as implications for reducing health care costs.
For information on training resources and screening and referral protocols for health care providers, go to:

www.endabuse.org/programs/healthcare – materials at this website include the National Consensus Guidelines on Identifying and Responding to Domestic Violence Victimization in Health Care Settings

www.massmed.org (see the public health materials regarding partner violence)

www.cobth.org/dom_violence.html for a listing of health care-based domestic violence programs in the greater Boston area and their available resources

Or call the Department of Public Health’s Division of Violence and Injury Prevention at (617) 624-5463.

For a listing of local programs that can provide critical victim services to patients/clients go to: www.janedoe.org/safety.htm

Information for Safely Addressing Someone You Think Might Be Abusive and Controlling
If you recognize someone who exhibits behaviors such as jealousy, obsession or possessiveness, take steps to assist that person to get help. This can be critical to the safety and well-being of intimate partners and families. Talk with others about your options. Call your local Batterer Intervention Program, SAFELINK 1-877-785-2020 or the DPH Batterer Intervention Program Services at 617-624-5497 for help.

- be the change you want to see in the world-

Spin City

2008-06-10T14:41:00.015-04:00

Sigh....here we go again, or so I thought at the begining of this past week. Once again the news was reporting that our dis-honorable Governor was once again spinning his web of inevitability in order to resurrect his three casino plan for the Commonwealth. In case you missed the 11:00 news on Monday night, here is the story that was originally reported by Joe Shortsleeve on WBZ local news with a story about the Governor entering into negotiations with the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe which would make an Indian Casino a reality in Massachusetts. Some great quotes from that story were:

"We are prepared to negotiate within the parameters we have under existing law," said Massachusetts Governor Patrick on Monday.

and.......

"Some form of expanded gaming is coming because the tribe has some tribal rights and we want to be ahead of that," said Patrick.

followed by the shot of inevitability.....

...the clock is ticking and WBZ has learned negotiations between the state and the chairman of the tribe, Shawn Hendricks, are expected to start this month.

So there I was, thinking....Wow!....REALLY?! I wonder who told WBZ that line of bull, and was our Governor really buying into it? I was dumbfounded and I couldn't even blame the reporter here. It was quite obvious from that report he is not familiar with Indian Gaming Law and from the sound of it, neither is our Governor.

Needless to say, all of us anti casino people went into DEFCON 1 mode on Tuesday, contacting the reporter and giving him the truth about the Land in Trust process and preparing and releasing a formal press release outlining the reasons why this news story was way off base. Well, the efforts paid off because shortly after, WBZ released another news story stating that compact negotiations were premature. Then on Thursday, the Governor was reported as saying there are no negotiations going on, and no compact is near. Apparently his words were overstated on Monday. Phew! Yeah right....not so fast...

Here are some words of.......ummmm....wisdom from our Governor.

"some form of expanded gaming is coming because the tribe has some tribal rights to that, and we want to be ahead of that, and we'd like that to be within the framework we define rather than having it defined for us."

okay.....so untrue! This Governor is so transparent, it is embarrassing at this point.

It gets better because the Governor's spokesperson Kofi Jones is quoted as saying:

"As a sovereign nation, the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe will have rights to open a casino on any federally recognized land, and it is in the best interests of the Commonwealth for the administration to remain in active conversations with respect to their plans,"

Huh? Where are these people getting their information? Has Kofi Jones or the Governor even attempted to read or understand IGRA laws or are they just spinning their web of inevitability to push their already dead three casino plan for the Commonwealth?

I really feel the need to point out that a federally recognized Indian Tribe does not automatically get federally recognized land, nor do they automatically get to build a gambling establishment on federally recognized land. It appears that the Governor is trying to resurrect his three casino plan for the Commonwealth with his “we can either do this ourselves or have this done to us” attitude, or he and his advisors really have no understanding of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act or the Land in Trust process.

So, here is Land in Trust Process and IGRA process 101. I hope the Governor is paying attention, he has a lot to learn.

The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed into law on October 17, 1988 and section 20 of that law prohibits gaming on lands taken into trust after this date unless the land qualifies for at least one of the exceptions contained in that section. Under the new section 20 regulations the land in Middleboro does not meet any of these exceptions. This was pointed out quite well by both Fiferstone and myself not too long ago.

It is quite simple, really. Recent changes to the exceptions rule in IGRA regulations have made the land in Middleboro ineligible for gaming. Under the new rules, the land to be taken into trust for gaming purposes must be within 25 miles of their existing Tribal Government. The land in Middleboro is 39 miles away from Mashpee where their Tribal Government presides. Also, under the new rules, the Tribe is required to prove it has historical and present ties to the land. Their Land in Trust Application does not show these ties.

Since the land in Middleboro does not meet requirements for an initial reservation, the application will most likely be denied. Sure, they can reapply but the land would then need to go through a two-part determination to gain approval for gambling if it is taken into trust by the Secretary of the Interior. The two part determination requires a consultation with State and local officials, including officials of other nearby tribes, and only then will the Secretary determine if gaming on newly acquired lands would not be detrimental to the surrounding community. If the Secretary finds that gaming will be detrimental to surrounding communities then gaming will not be allowed on the land.

There are several reasons why the casino in Middleboro is far from being a “done deal” so even thinking about compact negotiations on our Governor's part is extremely premature. My wonderfully educational and entertaining blogger friend Gladys Kravitz even offered up the Top 10 reasons why a casino isn't coming to Middleboro. Making statements saying that some form of expanded gambling is coming to the Commonwealth is quite a spin on the facts of this situation. The Commonwealth currently does not allow class III gambling and the likelihood of the casino investors putting money into a class II bingo hall is unlikely. The agreement between the investors and the Tribe has no stipulation for funding a bingo hall, and in fact, allows for the investors to back out of the agreement if a class III gambling facility cannot be built. The intergovernmental agreement between Middleboro and the Tribe outlines $220 million dollars of infrastructure improvements the Tribe will be responsible for, even with a class II bingo hall. There are three other casino’s within 2 hour driving distance that have class III gambling, including slot machines so the potential for profit at a bingo hall in Middleboro is extremely questionable. Take into consideration the financial woes of Twin Rivers and it would be fair to say, extremely unlikely. Maybe the Governor should take the time to read this article before he starts force feeding us the delusional financial security he believes casinos will bring to our State.

Also, let us please not forget that seven surrounding communities and the Governor himself in a 70 page document, have formally protested the Land in Trust application and the Town of Middleboro voted against having a casino in their community in a non-binding vote during last years Town Meeting in July. Other Tribes in the area have made claims to this land and have formally protested to the BIA and the DOI the Mashpee Wampanoag’s Land in Trust Application.

The Governor seems to not understand that he himself cannot negotiate and approve a compact with the Tribe. Any compact would need to be approved by the Legislature, which would be a difficult task considering that they have already voted against expanded gambling and any real inquiry into the Tribe’s application would quickly reveal the major milestones the Tribe faces in order to have the land placed into trust.....which it won't.

Most importantly, the State is not required to negotiate a compact with the Tribe, as determined in the Seminole Tribe of Florida vs. Florida case. The courts decided in that case, under the Eleventh Amendment, States cannot be forced to negotiate compacts with Indian Tribes. Under the Eleventh Amendment, the State has sovereign rights and a Tribe cannot force a State to negotiate a compact. The Mashpee Tribe should not be directing timelines or making the call on compact discussions, nor should our Governor allow them to. If we as a State stand up and protest this land in trust application and refuse to negotiate with the Tribe for gambling on the land in Middleboro, there will be no casino in Middleboro.

Lastly, the Supreme Court will be reviewing the case of Carcieri vs. Kempthorne this Fall or next Spring and Massachusetts is one of the States listed on the docket. This case will decide if land can be taken into trust for Indian Tribes recognized after 1934. If the court rules in favor of Carcieri, there will be no Land in Trust in Massachusetts. At the very least, our Governor should be holding his hat until that case is decided.

So the bottom line here is, the Governor is either lying or he just doesn't get it...and his spokesperson has no concept of how land is placed into trust nor how IGRA works. Shame on them for making such irresponsible and misleading statements to the citizens of this State!

Oh....and one more thing. The Tribe cannot begin negotiations with the State for class III gambling until the land is placed into trust and approved for gaming by the DOI. One news report stated:

Neither side would predict exactly when actual talks about a deal would begin. One possibility is later this summer or fall, just in time to set the agenda for next year’s legislative session.

Wow....just in time for next year's legislative session? Our Governor hard at work spinning his web and force feeding us his "we can do this ourselves or have this done to us" attitude. The truth is, any compact he starts means absolutely nothing because this land is not in trust. As a matter of fact, trying to negotiate a compact before the land is placed into trust is a big no-no in the eyes of the BIA and DOI....

Here's some food for thought.... some documentation (proof for our pro-casino friends) that land must be in trust. I offer this up because I certainly don't want me, any of my fellow bloggers or my wonderfully educated CFO friends to be called liars on a trashy public forum again.

Honorable Theodore R. Kulongoski
Governor, State of Oregon
State Capital,
Salem, Oregon 97301-4047

Dear Governor Kulongoski:

On April 8, 2005, we received the Tribal-State Compact for the regulation of Class III Gaming between the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon(Tribes) and the State of Oregon (State), executed on April 6, 2005 (Compact). Under the Indian Gaming regulatory Act (IGRA) 25 U.S.C. § 2710 (d)(8)(C), the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) may approve or disapprove the compact within forty-five days of its submission. Under IGRA, the Secretary can disapprove the Compact if she determines that the Compact violates IGRA, any other provision of Federal law that does not relate to jurisdiction over gaming on Indian lands, or the trust obligation of the United States to Indians.

Decision

We have completed our review of the Compact along with the submission of additional documentation submitted by the parties and some third parties. For the following reason, the Compact is hereby disapproved.

Discussion

Article V(C) of the Compact authorizes a gaming facility on the Cascade Locks Land, “provided that the federal government takes the Cascade Locks Land into trust for the Tribes for gaming purposes pursuant to Section 20(b)(1)(A) of IGRA, 25 U.S.C. § 2719(b)(1)(A) .” Section 2710(d)(8)(A) of IGRA authorizes the Secretary “to approve any Tribal–State compact entered into between an Indian tribe and a State governing gaming on Indian lands of such Indian tribe.” This section does not authorize the Secretary to approve a compact for the conduct of Class III gaming activities on lands that are not now, and may never be, Indian lands of such Indian tribe.

In addition, IGRA requires that gaming may only occur on lands subject to the tribe’s jurisdiction and over which the tribe exercises governmental power. Currently, the Cascade Locks Land is not currently held in trust for the benefit of the Tribes and will have to undergo a rigorous process under 25 C.F.R. Part 151 before a decision can be made regarding whether to take the land into trust. In addition, compliance with the requirements of Section 20(b)(1)(A) of IGRA will have to be addressed before the land is eligible for gaming. This provision of IGRA requires a Secretarial determination, following consultation with appropriate State and local officials, including officials of nearby tribes, that a gaming establishment on the newly-acquired trust lands is in the best interest of the Tribes and their members, and not detrimental to the surrounding community. After this determination is made, the Governor of the State must decide whether he will concur in the Secretary’s determination. Therefore, approval of the Compact before the Cascade Locks Land is taken into trust would violate Section 2710 (d)(8)(A) of IGRA, and thus, the Compact must be disapproved.

We are aware that the Department has previously approved compacts for the regulation of class III gaming activities before the specified lands qualified as Indian lands under IGRA. However, on closer examination of the statute, we have concluded that the Secretary’s authority to act on proposed compacts under 25 U.S.C. § 2710(d)(8)(A) is informed by Section 20 of IGRA. Thus, the proposed gaming lands are subject to a two- part determination and State Governor concurrence under section 20. These two conditions must be complete before Departmental action on a compact can occur.

This decision does not address the other terms and conditions embodied by the proposed compact. The Department is supportive of the efforts of the Tribes and the Governor to discuss Indian gaming. The Department is encouraged by the prospects that there is a foundation for mutual agreement on these issues at some point in the future.

Only after the Tribes have acquired the Cascade Locks Land into trust, will the Department consider the terms and conditions of a timely submitted compact pursuant to the applicable provision of IGRA. Until then, we trust that the Warm Springs Tribes will continue to engage in Class III gaming activities on its reservation.

We regret that our decision could not be more favorable at this time. A similar letter is being sent to the Honorable Ron Suppah, Chairman, Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon.

Sincerely,

James E. Cason
Associate Deputy Secretary

In this chick's eyes, it is quite apparent that compact negotiations cannot take place until the land is placed into trust and we all know that is not going to happen. The Governor is either clueless or is spinning the facts again to fit his own agenda. Think about it for a minute...why did he oppose the land into trust to the BIA to turn around after his casino dream was defeated and say he is ready to negotiate? Simple...he wants to ressurect his own casino pipedream.

Once again our Governor is spinning his tale of inevitability to push his casino bill and the Mashpee Tribal leaders and casino investors are trying to mask the fact that the Mashpee Wampanoag’s application is at serious risk of being denied by the DOI. The Governor is choosing to set aside and ignore the Commonwealth’s sovereign rights as a State as well as the major hurdles the Tribe needs to overcome to scare the pants off the citizens of this State to push his personal agenda for commercial casinos. The way I see it, the only way we are “going to have this done to us” is if Governor Patrick allows it to be done to us.

" I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts." Will Rogers

" Now more than ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness and corruption." -- James Garfield

- be the change you want to see in the world-

When is a Duck not a Duck?

2008-06-09T13:45:00.009-04:00

I have been really busy with my letters to the Department of the Interior so I haven't had much time to blog, nevermind hang out and have some much needed (and well deserved) down time with my family. With little free time, it really gets my dander up when I need to address yet again, pro-casino propaganda meant specifically to harm, harrass, humiliate and intimidate me, my fellow bloggers and casinofact.org friends. Jeesh....you think they would have realized by now that we will not stop fighting this casino and they certainly cannot divide and conquer our invincible anti-casino bond.

I recently have had my attention drawn to the anti-casino blogger witch hunt that is currently being facilitated by our self proclaimed "kind and caring" pro-casino friends. The funny thing is, the person who started this current pro-casino feeding frenzy is neither pro nor anti and has always seemed like a stand up guy to me. He apparently has had some frustrations with some alleged incorrect information posted on one bloggers website and on our local community forum run by Bellicose Bumpkin. I say "alleged" here because I haven't looked into it nor am I really inclined to at this point. Why? The answer is simple....my fabulously talented and entertaining blogger friend Gladys Kravitz already addressed it. Bravo to her for her articulate and quite moving blog that addresses this witch hunt over a simple mistake. I must say, I am completely disgusted with the actions of the posters on this forum but yet again, not surprised. I mean, it's not like they don't have a history of abusive behavior toward us bloggers on internet forums.

What has me perplexed is that this once stand up guy has made it a mission to publicly destroy the credibility of anyone and everyone associated with our anti-casino blogger friend without giving anyone the common courtesy of an email or phone call asking about it. Heck, I didn't even know what was going on until a couple of hours ago....but of course I was dragged into it, as was Gladys Kravitz, Bellicose Bumpkin and Casinofacts.org. What....did they actually think that they could make us think for one second that our incredibly dedicated blogger friend would lie? Nope, if it's one thing us bloggers totally get is that we are anything but perfect. Yeah, we make mistakes, but we don't lie. Had our pro-casino friends taken half the time to look into impacts on schools in casino towns as they did perpetuating this unwarranted attack, they may have actually learned something. Then in turn, they may have actually had something intelligent to say instead of stooping to such levels.

Bottom line...there is no excuse for this behavior. Anti-casino bloggers work hard to research and post accurate information about the impacts a casino will have on our community. We are not perfect, we are human. If someone wishes to ask us about how we get our information, we will be happy to share -- to educate....unless of course, if the person asking is doing so only to threaten or insult us, or perhaps to humiliate us in a public forum for the sole purpose of getting their own jollies. But of course, we already know they want to publicly humiliate us....in fact have tried again and again to do so without avail.

This forum is a witch hunt plain and simple. It is childish, ridiculous and pathetically amusing to those of us who actually take the time to do the research. My goodness....a bunch of "adults" acting this way....and they wonder why we don't respond. Why in the world would we want to participate in that kind of on-line behavior. They try sooooo hard to make us look foolish and are so intent on having our blogs shut-down and having CFO shut down, they can't even realize what a comedy off errors they are themselves.

So the question here is....when is a duck not a duck?

When it's a witch, of course....or in our case, when it's an anti-casino blogger.

quack....quack....

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Fear Factor

2008-06-01T23:27:00.007-04:00

I can’t resist. I have been trying to ignore it for a while now but it has reached such a level of hypocrisy it has become quite comical at this point. I thought for sure that by now they would have just given up…no….not given up but,

moved on.

Gosh, it seems like forever ago that we actually thought there was no hope at beating a bunch of greedy foreign casino investors and stopping them from building a mega casino resort in our community. They had land….they had a Tribe….they had the host Town’s BoS in their pocket and they had the fear factor.

The casino is coming, there is nothing you can do to stop it. Make a deal or suffer the consequences. Resistance is futile…..

The fear factor that worked so well in other towns in other states backfired. Not only did a group of concerned citizens band together to form a grassroots organization dedicated to educating the community about the negative effects of a casino, it created us bloggers, and we are a force to be reckoned with.

They have tried to quell our voices….they have used their own twisted form of the fear factor to shut us up. We have been raked through the coals by pro-casino forces. They have called us liars, ignorant, racists, classists, hate mongers and much more. We have been threatened with lawsuits, had our professional and personal lives threatened, and we have been publicly called bullies and cyberstalkers. It hasn’t worked. The funny thing is, we are the ones accused of cyberstalking and bullying, yet the ones who accuse us of this continue to troll our blogs looking for little nuggets of information to take back and twist into their own little warped version of reality. They are the ones who harass us in on-line forums and public comment sections in local newspapers. Heck, they are so desperate for some drama in their lives they have their own little blogger who thinks that copying one news article from almost a year ago while commenting about our current blogs is some form of revenge. It is comical to read the comment section of this blog….we are the hate mongers according to them, but apparently calling someone “that blogging bitch from Bridgewater” is okay….and calling someone else a “bag of trash” is perfectly acceptable and insinuating that a blogger is out of control and must be “headed for divorce” is normal. It is also acceptable to these “kind and caring” people to post this on a public newspaper’s webpage:

RAMBO TO CRAP PIERCE

YO DUDE,I'M GONNA AWARD YOU THE CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF UGLY. P.S. YOUR WIFE CAME IN SECOND. THEY HAVE YOUR SEAT AT THE ROYAL BRONZED. CONGRATS YOU LOW LIFE BUM!!!!!!!!!

Gosh….now that was completely uncalled for, yet not surprising...and we’re the bullies?! This comment was so way out of line that the website editor of the newspaper had to remove it…he also was kind enough to remove several other comments made about me and my fellow bloggers. The funny thing about it is the article was about the Town of Middleboro voting for a new Fire Truck and to purchase a tract of land that the owner didn’t want to sell to the Town until there was a Preservation Restriction put in the article. The comment section turned into a battlefield of pro casino posters attacking casinofacts.org, misquoting me, posting as me, posting as other anti casino bloggers and posting under anonymous names to write things about anti casino people and their families. These are the people who love to troll our blogs for anything to enhance the drama of their world….yet we’re the cyberstalkers?

I thought I would be kind enough to return the favor and troll their blogs and copy and paste their comments for posting, but honestly…the comments are so superficial and lacking in any creativity it isn’t worth it. I will say however that after calling one anti casino blogger a “blogging bitch” and another “a bag of trash” and going on a rant about the evils of the anti casino bloggers, the owner of this site who calls herself the internet avenger (insert rolling eyes and hysterical laughter here) had these words of wisdom to share….

On some level one has to see these people as pretty pathetic. I read somewhere that anyone who finds their sense of self esteem in diminishing others is clearly at odds with the laws of nature. Karma will come back to bite them threefold in the end. - the internet avenger

Hey, we can add pathetic to the list of names they call us!

I really feel the need to point out to our avenger friend here.... accusing other people of poor behavior while actually being the one doing the bad behavior is a form of psychological projection or narcissistic personality disorder. It is a defense mechanism where one person attributes one’s own unacceptable behavior or unwanted emotions or thoughts to other people, an aggressive man or woman who accuses other people of being hostile, for example . It allows for the expression of the unwanted subconscious impulses or desires without letting the conscious mind recognize them. Another example would be an individual who unconsciously recognizes his or her aggressive tendencies will then see other people acting in an excessively aggressive way."

According to a narcissistic personality disorder website, bullies project their inadequacies, shortcomings, behaviors etc. on to other people to avoid facing up to their inadequacy and doing something about it (learning about oneself can be painful), and to distract and divert attention away from themselves and their inadequacies. Projection is achieved through blame, criticism and allegation. Wow! I think I have hit the jackpot here….

So how does one defend themselves from the narcissistic projectionist? Well, I have found myself remembering that childhood poem "I am rubber, you are glue, whatever you say bounces off of me and sticks to you". Yeah, it may sound childish, but it does help separate your feelings from someone else's projection and allows us bloggers to focus on the issue at hand…stopping the casino.

Oh yeah, one more thing….apparently in the eyes of the avenger, karma functions like fate — bad fate, at that: an inexplicable, unchangeable force coming out of our past, for which we are somehow vaguely responsible and powerless to fight and us anti casino bloggers had better watch out because karma is going to get us. Too bad she doesn’t understand that the concept of karma is non-linear and complex. It does not promote resigned powerlessness, but instead focuses on the liberating potential of what the mind is doing with every moment. Who we are and where we come from is not as important as our mind’s motives for what it is doing at a given time. When a person can abandon his or her obsession with finding vicarious pride in his or her past, and can take actual pride in the motives that underlie his or her present actions, that person can drop his or her myths about who he or she is, and can instead be honest about what he or she is doing with each moment and at the same time make the effort to do it right. Karma implies that we ourselves are responsible for our own happiness and misery. We create our own Heaven. We create our own Hell. We are the architects of our own fate. That is karma.

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Men and Women of Honor

2008-05-25T10:56:00.012-04:00

Many people look forward to Memorial Day weekend as the unofficial start of summer. Many others don't look at it as a three day weekend, but as a time to remember those valiant men and women who have fought for our Country, for our freedom. I received an email this morning from a friend that I would like to share with everyone. While you are out enjoying your weekend with family and friends, please remember and honor those who have fought for us, and for those who continue to do so today.

For those of you who live in Carver, there will be two chances to honor our Veterans. The Carver Reporter has details of the events for Memorial Day which include the annual Memorial Day parade and ceremony on North Caver Geen. Here are the details:

The Parade starts at 9:30AM beginning at the Son of Union Veterans Hall on Main Street. It will proceed south on route 58, turn up South Meadow Road and continue down Crescent Street, looping back onto Main Street. Marchers will stop briefly at the bridge to allow for a small commemoration ceremony. The parade will continue on to Town Hall where local dignitaries will speak along with members of various veterans groups. It will conclude with the traditional ceremony in the Central Cemetary. Children from the various scouts and sports groups will be decorating headstones with the American Flag.

A memorial service will be held at North Carver Green in the Lakenham Historic District, more commonly known as Veterans of All Wars Park at 11:30AM. The ceremony serves as a reminder to all of us of the sacrifices local residents have made for our country.

It is the VETERAN ,
not the preacher,
who has
given us freedom of religion.

It is the VETERAN ,
not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the VETERAN ,
not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the
VETERAN ,
not the campus organizer,
who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is the VETERAN ,
not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the VETERAN ,
not the politician,
Who has given us the right to vote.

It is the veteran
who serves under the Flag,

ETERNAL REST GRANT THEM O LORD, AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON THEM.

I'd be
EXTREMELY proud if this message reached as many as possible. We can be very
proud of our young men and women in the service no matter where they serve.
God Bless them all!!!

- be the change you want to see in the world -

Land of the Lost Part Two - The Double Whammy

2008-05-20T21:07:00.009-04:00

This has been a great day…well, a great day if you are against a mega casino resort being built in your community. Yeah...not such a great day if you are a foreign casino investor banking on building that mega casino resort in a Town where the tribe you are sponsoring doesn’t have any significant historical or present ties to the land. Today I received two significant developments in our battle against having a casino in our community and feel they are significant enough to qualify as Land of the Lost blog series material. After today, the Middleboro land being placed into trust by the Secretary of the Interior has become, in my eyes, a lost cause for the Tribe and the casino investors.

If you remember, in part one of Land of the Lost, our fearless casino investors and the Mashpee Wampanoag Indian Tribe were hoping to get 539 acres of land in Middleboro put into trust for the specific purpose of building a mega resort casino. Their catch…..that gaping loophole in the IGRA regulations for land taken into trust after October 17, 1988. Specifically the exception to this rule that states an exception is granted for lands that are taken into trust as part of the initial reservation of an Indian tribe acknowledged by the Secretary under the Federal acknowledgment process. Well, as of June 19, 2008 the Department of the Interior will make that loophole much smaller with a bold move that redefines section 20 regulations for taking land into trust for gaming purposes, as posted in today's Federal Register.

Section 20 of the IGRA sets forth exceptions to its general ban on tribal gaming operations on land acquired in trust after IGRA's enactment on Oct. 17, 1988. Section 20 does nothing in itself to authorize taking tribal land into trust status, Interior officials have testified before Congress. Rather, the secretary of Interior must consider the Section 20 exceptions with regard to any tribal land that would be taken into trust for gaming purposes. The purpose of the regulations is to establish the criteria for Interior's consideration of whether ''after-acquired'' tribal land qualifies for gaming purposes under the Section 20 exceptions. – Indian Country Today

IGRA - Section 20

This section contains criteria for meeting the requirements of 25
U.S.C. 2719(b)(1)(B) (ii), known as the ``initial reservation' '
exception. Gaming may occur on newly acquired lands under this
exception only when all of the following conditions in this section are
met:
(a) The tribe has been acknowledged (federally recognized) through
the administrative process under part 83 of this chapter.
(b) The tribe has no gaming facility on newly acquired lands under
the restored land exception of these regulations.
(c) The land has been proclaimed to be a reservation under 25
U.S.C. 467 and is the first proclaimed reservation of the tribe
following acknowledgment.
(d) If a tribe does not have a proclaimed reservation on the
effective date of these regulations, to be proclaimed an initial
reservation under this exception, the tribe must demonstrate the land
is located within the State or States where the Indian tribe is now
located, as evidenced by the tribe's governmental presence and tribal
population, and within an area where the tribe has significant
historical connections and one or more of the following modern
connections to the land:
(1) The land is near where a significant number of tribal members
reside; or
(2) The land is within a 25-mile radius of the tribe's headquarters
or other tribal governmental facilities that have existed at that
location for at least 2 years at the time of the application for land-
into-trust; or
(3) The tribe can demonstrate other factors that establish the
tribe's current connection to the land.

This is an interesting development in our crusade to stop this casino because essentially the DOI is not only tightening the criteria for the IGRA exceptions for land taken into trust for gaming purposes, but is clearly defining what constitutes an "initial reservation". The prior regulation only stated that execptions were for lands that are taken into trust as part of the initial reservation of an Indian tribe acknowledged by the Secretary under the Federal acknowledgment process. This was a huge loophole and the only way to challenge a trust decision was to go to court and argue the July 2005 testimony before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs that decided in order to qualify for initial reservation exception, a tribe must show that it has strong geographic and historical ties to the land. It could be done and it could be won....but it would cost a lot of money to do.

However, under the revised regulation, in order for land to qualify as an initial reservation, the Tribe must have present and historical ties to the land as clearly defined in section 20 of IGRA. If you remember, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe tried to show ties to the land in Middleboro in their application by stating:

The Tribe currently has 1531 members, of whom over half – 838- live in Barnstable County (i.e. within 10 miles of Mashpee). Another 88 members live in Plymouth County (which includes Middleboro) and 70 live in neighboring Bristol County for a total of 984 members living within an approximate 50 mile radius of Mashpee Town.

Under the revised regulations, the land in question needs to be within a 25 mile radius of their headquarters, i.e. their governmental facilities that have been in existence for at least two years at the time of the application for land-into-trust. In the case of the Mashpee Wampanoag’s, that would be Mashpee. The last time I checked, the land in Middleboro was 39 miles from Mashpee and only six percent of their tribal members live in Plymouth County which is hardly a significant number of tribal members. I wonder how many tribal members actually live in Middleboro?

Prior to this regulation change, the Secretary of the Interior would receive the application from the BIA and make a determination to place the land into trust. The way I see this, with the regulation change, this land will not be placed into trust status and the application should be rejected by the BIA because under IGRA rules, the land is not within the 25 mile radius of their headquarters and the Tribe has failed to prove historic or present ties to the land in Middleboro. In a nutshell, they have failed to meet the requirements of the new regulations.

On top of this news, we also received the 881 pages of comments from the March 25th BIA hearing, most of which were from people opposing the casino. It would seem that many, many anti-casino people submitted letters to the BIA challenging the Tribe’s historical ties to the land under the ethno-historical section of the NEPA scoping process. The BIA has flagged these comments regarding historical ties as well as several other significant environmental issues that were raised by concerned citizens. It would seem that the BIA is taking a close and serious look at the questionable historic ties to the land and the claims made by so many of us that choosing the land in Middleboro was nothing short of reservation shopping. It will be interesting to see if this application even makes past the BIA, nevermind making it onto the desk of the Secretary of the Interior.

Everyone who took the time to write letters to the BIA should be proud of their accomplishments. Your voices have been heard! I would like to personally thank each and every one of you for your efforts, for speaking out against something you know is wrong for your community, without fear and without reproach. It is appreciated more than I could ever put into words. To those of you who are now working diligently at writing letters to the DOI, keep up the good work! We need to continue our efforts at ferreting out the endless flaws in the application. We had a good day….lets make sure we have a wonderful casino free future.

"Fear is not in the habit of speaking truth; when perfect sincerity is expected, perfect freedom must be allowed; nor has anyone who is apt to be angry when he hears the truth any cause to wonder that he does not hear it." --- Tacitus

"If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter" - George Washington

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