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In framing an argument over whether or not casino gambling hurts some undefined aspect of what it means to be a Native American, it must be stated that Native American issues are for Native Americans to worry about. Anyone that thinks that they know what is best for Native people is misinformed, misguided, paternalistic, or all the above. The Congress of the United States approved Indian Gaming as the last resort for finding a way to foster economic development in Indian Country. Like it or not, it's here to stay.

The argument over the benefit of gambling on reservations is being fought both on and off the reservations. Native Americans can be either for or against gambling depending upon many different social, cultural, and religious values present among the tribal membership. Arguments for or against are influenced by the history and presence of various forms of Christianity and traditional forms of religion among the people. Most tribes in the United States have accepted casino gambling with some degree or reluctance and suspicion.

The seeds of struggle between the "white man's way" and "traditionalism' were sown over two hundred years ago with the establishment of the first reservations by treaty and the creation of an institutionalized government welfare system, known as the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Their overzealous accomplices in this act were self-serving religious institutions, including the Roman Catholic Church. In the name of Christ, the church and socialism, Native American communities, families, children were devastated in a cultural and social genocide second only to the holocaust of the Second World War.

If you ask yourself if a hundred years of forced civilization help or hurt the Native American, what would your answer be? Before you answer, perhaps you should ask a survivor. Perhaps you should come to terms with the devastation wrought upon an unsuspecting and powerless people. Perhaps you should seek atonement and seek forgiveness from the ancestors. The sins of the father are many and weigh greatly upon the generations that follow. Think carefully about how you would feel if it were your family, or nation.

You may consider Native American casino gambling hurtful because you choose to project your value system upon other people. If you are "Euro-Centric", or believe that your social, cultural and religious system must be right and therefore impressed upon everyone that is not included in your system, if you listen closely, you may hear the

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