By what name should the lottery be known

[mranderson]

Toonsy: Will take it for granted you are kidding. The vast majority of us take the stand that we have had it with these hokey cowboy and Indian names. We are trying to project an image of this city that reflects what it is. A modern, cosmopolitian city that is home to nearly one and a half million people. Not a backwater, backward, redneck haven.

[Midtowner]

Let's name the lottery what it is all about. More money for the Indians lottery. Don't they have enough already, the Chickasaws have more money than the state has. The Choctaw tribe comes in second, why do we keep giving the indians money and not getting anything in return.

What does the education lottery have to do with indians?

[toonsey33]

I have no problem with a lottery to help fund this state, but what good is a lottery if we don't get out of the hole we dug for ourselves. With the indians they do not pay state or federal taxes on gas, casinos or the bingo halls that we are all fimiliar with. When the state puts in there lottery the indians will also put in a lottery of there own with all the gambling benifits that go into a casino. There payout will be bigger and the gamblings that take place in a casino will be bigger as well. The state lottery still has to pay for it's own state and federal taxes, and the indians do not. They have more money than the state right now because of there bingo halls, and if you are fimiliar with Goldsby the gas station with slot machines they do not have to pay for any taxes. In Ada they have a Family fun center with lazer tag, skating, video games with hotels around it. No taxes are being paid. So what's fair? In a state that I love people always tell me that we are equal here, I say untill we are all on the same level we are not. I am a white female, but in this state I am the miniority. I can't get grants like I could if I was indian.

[toonsey33]

No, I wasn't joking. I am a white female but in this state I am a minority. I cannot get the grants to go to college like I could if I was Indian. When my daughter was younger I worked my butt off to get diapers, formula, and healthcare. I stayed off the state welfare plan. The indians get ALL there healthcare free, which includes vision, dental, childbirth, and speciality doctors. You can even get an MRI done free. Whn my daughter got older I worked my butt off again to get school supplies, when I could have easily gone to the indians and showed a CDIB card and got all the supplies that my daughter needed for free including a backpack and a lunchbox. How do I know this you ask? My husband is half indian and half white and goes to the indians to get free medicial, dental, and vision. A few years ago he hurt his knee and had surgery, all free. Why don't I get a CDIB card for my daughter you ask? I belive in working for what you get, not to have something handed to you because you are a different race. This country was built on hard work not on "give me this because I am entitled to it". You said this state has one and a half million people in it, what percent is indians? Of course they are going to vote for the lottery, it benifits them it the long run. We are also supposed to be ONE Nation Under God, but how can we be if we have the Chickasaw Nation, the Choctaw Nation, and any other indian nation. They have there own laws that do NOT follow the state laws. Tell me how is this fair? I noticed that I didn't write to much on the lotter on how it benifits the indians, if you would like to know I will be happy to tell you.

[Midtowner]

How is it fair?

They are sovereign nations. That's how it's fair.

Actually, they do pay money to the state under the Indian gaming compacts. That was part of the deal that we voted on that allows them to have Blackjack, etc.

I do think that it's high time that we round-eyes wake up and legalize gaming so that we may tax the living heck out of it here in OKC. Let the injuns come too. I'm for a free market, not this restrictive good 'ol boy gamblin' light crap. We either do it, or we don't it in my opinion.

(verb left out for emphasis)

[toonsey33]

I know the gov. of the Chickasaw nation and i know for a fact that at least that tribe ( I can't speak for any others ) does not pay taxes. This state will be sorry I say in five to seven years for putting in a lottery. On year eight we will be voting to have it taken out. It will hurt us in the long run. Our own gov. Brad Henry before it was built ( talking about the capital dome ) said that is was paid for with private funding. That funding came from two tribes. Now I hear that he is wanting bond money to finish paying for the dome, which we didn't need. There were only two states left that had capital buildings with no dome and we were one of them. Why does Oklahoma have to "follow" every other states lead? First a dome now a lottery, can Oklahoma not think for it's self. We should come up with our own plan to get business here, and to keep our teachers from going to a different state. My mother-in-law graduated from OU, then went to Southeastern in Durant and got a masters degree in teaching, but then drove an hour to Texas to teach. My husbands family is about an hour away from Texas, although they have a Wal-Mart supercenter in there town they go to Texas and buy groceries, because in Texas you don't pay taxes. Oklahoma needs to wake up and be a different state if it wants to survive. But a lottery is not the answer.

[Midtowner]

Okay, I will address your concerns one at a time.

The tribes will be able to offer electronic machines that meet definitions laid out in the measure. Three racetracks, one of which is owned by the Choctaw Nation and another by the Cherokee Nation, will be able to offer the same games.

In exchange, the tribes and the tracks will share a percentage of revenues with the state. The state estimates a $71 million annual windfall that will go to education.

http://www.indianz.com/IndianGaming/2004/005143.asp

Pay particular attention to that last sentence (I put it in bold for you because I'm just nice like that). They share some of their revenue with the state.

As for your earlier allegation that the tribes are richer than the state... not even close:

Even without Las Vegas-style slot machines, Oklahoma's Indian gaming industry is growing at an almost unmatched pace, a national study indicates.The number of electronic gambling machines nearly doubled between 2001 and 2003, as did the revenue those machines produced.

Gaming at 73 Oklahoma locations earned tribes $465.9 million, up from $245.7 million two years earlier, according to a report by the Analysis Group.

http://www.casinoman.net/Content/cas...ry_growing.asp

Oklahoma collects BILLIONS of dollars in tax revenue. Maybe you meant to make a comment about our financial health and wisdom in spending our money. Members of tribes might disagree though. Different tribes distribute gaming revenue in different ways. The most popular, however, is a committee system in which private indian citizens appeal to a committee that awards $ based on perceived need (good 'ol boy system).

As for the dome... hey, have you seen it? It's the nicest structure in the state in my opinion. If you've got a pretty girl, you have to buy her something nice every once in awhile whether you can afford it or not

[toonsey33]

Keep telling yourself that the lottery is the answer. Look me up in 5 to 7 years and I won't even tell you that I told you so.

[mranderson]

Keep telling yourself that the lottery is the answer. Look me up in 5 to 7 years and I won't even tell you that I told you so.

That is because Texas will lose revenue from Oklahoma and Oklahoma will gain. Tourists also buy lottery tickets in other states to increase their chances of winning. However, Oklahoman's will not go to Texas by the thousands to buy lottery tickets. Maybe one here and ther on occasion.

[Midtowner]

Keep telling yourself that the lottery is the answer. Look me up in 5 to 7 years and I won't even tell you that I told you so.

Did I say it was "the" answer? No.

Will it put positive dollars in the ledger for education? Yes.

Will it mean more money paid by tourists as well as Oklahomans that will go to the betterment of our education system? Yes.

On the other hand...

Do I think this proposed 500 million $ higher ed thing is a good idea? Nope. You can't count your chickens before they've hatched.

Do I think this proposal would be okay a few years down the road when we prove that we could actually pay the bond with the lottery money? Yes.

******

I see any kind of gambling as a voluntary tax. If people want to voluntarily give money to the state, why should I stop them. I'll tell you that I have no intention of ever buying a lottery ticket. That doesn't mean that I think it's a bad idea at all.

In my very humble opinion, we need to work at this problem from both ends. To get more money in the classrooms doesn't mean that we just throw money at the system. It should also mean that we reduce the system's overhead and try to ensure that it's as effective and efficient as possible. Doing both of those things, not one or the other can really leave us with a very healthy system.