tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post4618954602682729083..comments2024-02-10T18:19:36.406-08:00Comments on Newspaper Rock: Kristof's Pine Ridge columnRobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01478763837213733775noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-67313838180991947822012-06-06T00:23:49.330-07:002012-06-06T00:23:49.330-07:00For more on the actual subject of this posting, se...For more on the actual subject of this posting, see:<br /><br />http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2012/05/30/prweb9535622.DTL<br /><br /><b>The Roots of Tragedy: Lakota People's Law Project Challenges New York Times "Poverty's Poster Child" OpEd by Nicholas Kristof</b>Robhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01478763837213733775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-61053445345578512662012-06-06T00:22:22.595-07:002012-06-06T00:22:22.595-07:00As for Obama's record on the national debt, yo...As for Obama's record on the national debt, you can read about it here:<br /><br />http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/is-obama-responsible-for-a-5-trillion-increase-in-the-debt/2012/05/15/gIQACA0QSU_blog.html<br /><br /><b>Is Obama responsible for a $5 trillion increase in the debt?</b>Robhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01478763837213733775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-88708965816751707132012-06-06T00:20:42.969-07:002012-06-06T00:20:42.969-07:00Democrats support Indian gaming more than Republic...Democrats support Indian gaming more than Republicans overall.<br /><br />"Greed" is a description of people's mental state. Tax hikes aren't "greedy" since they benefit the country, not individuals.<br /><br />The conservatives' record is to benefit from America's government without paying for it. Specifically, to avoid taxes through legal tricks whenever they can. That's greedy.<br /><br />Democrats have a much better record than Republicans on almost every issue of fiscal management. As I've noted in <a href="http://www.bluecorncomics.com/moneymgr.htm" rel="nofollow">Democrats Are Better Money Managers</a>.Robhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01478763837213733775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-39553724965555674662012-05-29T12:43:26.412-07:002012-05-29T12:43:26.412-07:00@dmarks: Yeah, maybe he just realized just what an...@dmarks: Yeah, maybe he just realized just what an earmark is. Technically, money to fix the interstate highway system is an earmark.<br /><br />Most people just thought of the bridge to nowhere.<br /><br />I was more referencing how wrong political stereotypes are, though.<br /><br />Feinstein's weird. She also advocated racial profiling post-9/11.<br /><br />One of the biggest issues facing all indigenous peoples, though, is the "oil curse". Once a country finds a resource they need, usually on indigenous land (which is basically the only land not taken for some previous resource), bad things happen.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-7802072081469481132012-05-26T18:26:25.260-07:002012-05-26T18:26:25.260-07:00"What little impact gaming has brought to Ind..."What little impact gaming has brought to Indian country gets met with white anger and rhetoric of "preferential treatment" from Republicans and white America in general"<br /><br />Actually, this is quite poorly informed, as you get major state Republican leaders like John Engler expanding Native gaming, and strongly liberal Democrats like <a href="http://www.appeal-democrat.com/articles/feinstein-115288-casinos-enterprise.html" rel="nofollow">Feinstein</a> opposed to gaming.<br /><br />"conservatives insists it is not their support for excessive greed and corporate profits that keep ALL Americans in poverty."<br /><br />Conservatives have a record of opposing excessive greed: a great example of this is the opposition to the tax hikes.<br /><br />And corporate profits keep people in jobs and out of poverty. Once "excessive greed" comes into play in the forms of tax hikes and other destructive policies, the corporations are forced to fire people or leave the country.dmarkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07269773990064736457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-43128095620886741602012-05-26T18:22:52.288-07:002012-05-26T18:22:52.288-07:00"(As an aside, this reminds me of what I said..."(As an aside, this reminds me of what I said to a friend. "I shouldn't have loaned her any money. She's a Republican, they can't plan a budget for their lives.""<br /><br />Tell this to Obama, who has chosen to increase the entire national debt by 50%, and quickly tossed away great promises like to never sign earmarks as soon as he gained office.dmarkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07269773990064736457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-60967148888758123882012-05-26T14:00:30.623-07:002012-05-26T14:00:30.623-07:00If you look at income levels across the board, Ind...If you look at income levels across the board, Indian reservations are not unlike inner city ghettos or Latino barrios. There's just no jobs, period. What little impact gaming has brought to Indian country gets met with white anger and rhetoric of "preferential treatment" from Republicans and white America in general, but my point here is that what most Americans feel today in the areas of unemployment; homelessness and health issues has always been a way of life for many native people, yet, amazingly, conservatives insists it is not their support for excessive greed and corporate profits that keep ALL Americans in poverty. This is a phenomenom Americans refuse to change or try to re-approach from evolving better ideals into policy. Natives are no different. We create and harbor our own poverty or prosperity. Lakota people may seem poverty stricken to the world, but they still manage a radio station, an impressive campaign to save the language and traditions some so-called progressive tribes cannot maintain, particularly in Oklahoma. Truth be told is that social programs and Indian gaming take nothing away from anyone compared to what goes into the CIA; FBI; law enforcement and the defense industry, and what do these entities gain the working poor? America is one of the only alleged modern countrys where you can be employed, pay taxes and still be homeless. And Americans insist this is the best nation on earth?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29769707.post-36131413519410316842012-05-26T12:46:10.895-07:002012-05-26T12:46:10.895-07:00Yeah, I think a lot of it is that you can deal wit...Yeah, I think a lot of it is that you can deal with "issues" a certain way, by overemphasizing them. A few months ago, the National Native American AIDS Prevention Center said that the HIV-positive population of the Navajo rez doubled. From 40 to 80, out of 173987 people in 2000. Statistically, that's 0.046%, far less than the United States at large. (My old statistics teacher had a maxim: "The unicorn population of Atlantis doubles every day." Meaning relative numbers like "doubled" are worthless.)<br /><br />That, my friends, is poverty porn.<br /><br />A big part of it is crime. Back in the 70s, there was something white kids did called "Injun rollin" where they'd take a passed-out wino Indian, roll him in a blanket, and throw him off a cliff. It's still done to this day, of course, but again, as far as Indians are concerned, conservatives are soft on crime.<br /><br />(As an aside, this reminds me of what I said to a friend. "I shouldn't have loaned her any money. She's a Republican, they can't plan a budget for their lives."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com