So do you think it is unfair that the Twin River slot parlor is getting the opportunity to upgrade to a casino when the tribe did not have this chance? Who's side are you on?
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Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Narragansetts Challenge 2012 Gambling Referendum
In this article, the Narragansett Tribe is suing the Twin River slot parlor because they have been advertising themselves as a casino. The Twin River slot parlor is a privately owned business. Slot parlors are currently legal, but the gambling games that Twin River is attempting to add, such as blackjack, are currently illegal. The tribe sees Twin River having the opportunity to become a casino unconstitutional because the tribe had previously attempted to build a casino and the state did not allow them because they said casinos created "economic wastelands." A vote in 2012 will determine whether or not Twin River will be turned into a casino.
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I do think it is unfair that the Twin River slot parlor is getting the opportunity to upgrade to a casino when the tribe didn't have a chance because the Native Americans didn't even have a chance to vote to determine whether they could have a casino. I also don't think it's fair because of the fact that casinos originated on Native American's Reservation Land, so therefore the Native Americans should have a say in where casinos are created. Overall, I'm on the Native American's side because I don't think it's fair that they don't have a say regarding the Twin River slot parlor.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Alex, it is unfair that the Twin River " Casino" is allowed to upgrade. They are technically stealing business from the Naragansetts tribe. I think it's bad business to open two similar businesses in close vicinity of one another, customers start comparing the two and usually the newer one is better in the way that it draws in more customers. This unfair to the tribe because it is their main source of economic profit, if anyone is getting their casino upgraded, it should be them.
ReplyDeleteI somewhat agree with both Laura and Alex because Native Americans do really need money from casinos, and that money can help the dramatic poverty levels on reservations. However I need to think about the other side, the state may vote for the slot parlor not be upgraded (which would be the fairest thing to do) but as of right now all the slot parlor is, is a slot parlor. They are just adverting them selves as a casino which is in there legal right to do. So over all I think that the advertising the slot parlor as a casino is fair but I do not think it would be fair to upgrade the slot parlor and not give the native Americans their casino, but the state does have the legal right to vote to upgrade the slot parlor to a casino because of popular sovereignty they are aloud to vote however they would like to on domestic policy.
ReplyDeleteI agree with some of the valid points above. It is obvious that Native Americans really do need the money earned by the casinos, as long as they use their money wisely. The money from the casinos, would improve the drastic poverty levels amongst the reservation. I believe the fairest thing to do is have the state vote finalized be for the slot parlor not to be upgraded and leave the slot parlor as is. It is legal to advertise the casino, which essentially is all the NAs are doing. Overall, I believe advertising the slot parlor as a casino is fair! The unfair side of this is upgrading the slot parlor and not allowing the Native American’s their casino, because they need that money. As John said, the state does have the legal right to vote and upgrade the slot parlor to a casino because of popular sovereignty they are allowed to vote what-ever way they chose.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Allie said about the need for revenue due to the amount of poverty of most tribes. However, I do not think that the state is trying to be in any way discriminatory to the Narragansett Tribe. I feel that they most likely have decided that the state itself needed the revenue and they decided that it was finally time for them to allow casinos to be built. I bet that if the Narragansett tribe wanted to build one after the Twin River slot machine company upgrades to a Casino, the state will have no problem with allowing the Narragansett Tribe to own one. The part of the Narragansett Tribe that would like to establish a casino should have as much rights as any other establishment to own a casino once it is legalized. I feel that when or if the State of Rhode Island decides that the Narragansett tribe shall not own a casino, then they have the right to sue for discrimination.
ReplyDeleteI agree with alex's point of view that if the Narragansett tribe wasnts to establish a casino, then they should have every right and authority to. It is the Narragansett tribe's reservation and if the Twin River slot machine parlor is being permitted to have black jack tables, other gambling games and establish their buiness as a casino, then the state of Rhode Island should review and agree on terms and conditions for the Narragansett tribe to build a casino on the resevation land. Rhode Island state officials should come to a conclusion to decide how much the casino will benefit the tribe economically and have a fair vote on wether or not the tribe will be able to build a casino and if Twin River should be established as a casino to costomers.
ReplyDeleteI mostly agree with what everyone has said also. Like Allie said, the casino would bring in so much money that the Native American people really do need. But keeping in mind, that just because a casino is on their land doesn't mean that they're all going to split the profit evenly among the tribe. Most likely, there will be a few people who benefit from it greatly, and others will barley benefit at all. I also agree with Alex Rawley when he said he doesn't think the government is trying to be racist towards the Native Americans. They may have just changed their minds now not necessarily because the Native Americans wanted a casino before. I hope this is right because honestly by this point the government should be past discriminating against the Native Americans.
ReplyDeleteI somewhat disagree with what Alex and Kayla have said. I think the government knows what they are doing. Alcoholism has been a huge problem in reservations for a long time. Like Kayla said, having a casino on the tribes land does not mean that the money will be split equally to the tribe. It also doesn’t guarantee that the tribe will use the money to improve the reservation. Like we saw in the episode of 30 Days yesterday in class, alcohol is still affecting Native American tribes, and I believe that the government is completely aware of that. I also agree with Alex in the fact that the State most likely decided that it needed the revenue the casino would bring in, but I don’t believe that they decided that without thinking of Native Americans first. I believe that they could have made this decision based on the fact that Native Americans used what little money they had in the past on alcohol.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what people have been saying so far that it is not fair to allow the parlor to upgrade to a casino, but many people are making it sound like they should not upgrade it for the sake of Native American revenue. I personally think that the parlor should not be allowed to upgrade for the sole reason that the government did not allow the Native Americans to open another casino when they tried, so it would not be fair to allow this parlor to become a casino. I do not think that it should matter if the casinos would cut into the profit of the Native Americans casinos because businesses should not be discouraged to open just to benefit another social group. The American economy thrives off of the competition between businesses, so if the government had not said no to the Native Americans before, I think it would be completely fine to upgrade the parlor; however, the government did say no. For that reason alone, the parlor should be forced to stay a parlor and not be allowed to advertise as a casino.
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