February 11, 2007

The facts about Indian gaming

The ka-ching doesn't ring for everyone

Indian casinos are thriving but they haven't made most Indians wealthy, and they can't solve the myriad problems that exist on reservationsIndian casinos nationwide now gross more than $20 billion annually, according to the National Indian Gaming Association. That is the headline. Back on reservations with casinos, there is much more to the story.

-- Ka-ching fact No. 1: Casinos have not made all, or most, American Indians wealthy.

-- Ka-ching fact No. 2: Indian casinos vary enormously in revenue. The universal reason: location, location, location.

-- Ka-ching fact No. 3: Indian tribes vary widely in how they spend casino dollars.

-- Ka-ching fact No. 4: Casinos are controversial in Indian Country, too.

1 comment:

writerfella said...

Writerfella here --
And writerfella supposes that there is a Ka-Ching factor no. 5 -- Oklahoma has 35 tribes and most either run a casino operation or are planning to enter the field. A large number of casino operations within one state can only result in destructive competition that will see smaller operations actually going bankrupt. But no, the state of Oklahoma saw a statewide lottery as a means to fund education and the enabling of Native compacts for casinos as a further increase for such a purpose. Upshot? The 'frybread-in-the-sky' amounts from casinos that were predicted by the Oklahoma state treasurer's office have not come to pass, meaning that the very easily-seen competition has reduced income for all the casinos. And still more are being built...
All Best
Russ Bates
'writerfella'