Gaming impoverishes the soul

Wealth breeds 'poverty of soul'

Old demons of substance abuse, lack of education, apathy still plague tribeCEO and Chief Marshall McKay sees trouble behind the opulence. The demons of the past that have plagued his tribe since they lived in trailers and scrounged for work haunt them still: diabetes, substance abuse, fierce family feuds and chronic apathy.

"I call it wealth shock … the poverty of the soul," said McKay, who's fighting to save his nation by pushing cultural rebirth and education. "I stress to members we can do a lot of damage by providing too much."

Only three tribal members have finished high school since the casino money started rolling in. They know they'll never have to work as long as they stay out of jail.

Wealth shock in Indian country is a largely untold story–members fiercely guard their privacy, and their finances.

But it's a challenge facing several thousand California Indians whose Vegas-style casinos–which grossed nearly $8 billion in 2007–have given them per-capita incomes far greater than Qatar, the world's leading country at $81,000 a year.

"The whole group of gaming nations are struggling with this in a very serious way–some successfully, some unsuccessfully," said McKay, 56. "I don't want to give a talented young person a disincentive to go to college."One tribe's partial solution:Lorenzo shares McKay's views on the challenges of overnight riches.

"What I didn't want the tribe to do was create a welfare state in our community," she said at the counter of her new restaurant.

"Getting money when they turned 18 wasn't helping them–they were attracting the wrong crowd. I wanted them to go to college and there was no incentive, so they quit school."

She instituted a sliding scale for gambling payouts starting at $1,500 a month for 18-year-olds. The more you worked or went to school, the more money you got.Comment:  As I've said before, it's probably a mistake to give people money unconditionally.

For more on the subject, Seminoles Have Gaming "Disease." For more on gaming in general, see The Facts About Indian Gaming.

Below:  "Tribal Chief and CEO Marshall McKay reads to Briana Roberts, 9, center, and Paige Kinter, 8, at the tribe's Yocha-De-He tribal school, where 20 students learn native culture and virtues along with history, science and the three R's."