Don't you just love it....

...when out-of-area Cowlitz Tribal members tell us how to live?

I don’t often comment on letters to the editor, but there is a disturbing pattern that I’ve seen among out-of-area Cowlitz Tribal members.

In today’s episode, tribal member Rod Van Mechelen, who doesn’t live anywhere close to here and who will benefit directly from the development of this economic leviathan, attacks a La Center letter-to-the-editor writer for objecting to Cowlitz location shopping.

Now, ol’ Rod has written on this subject many times. He’s all about “economic self-sufficiency,” no matter the cost to those of us who do or who actually have lived here.

This is an easy position for Rod to take. If this thing is built, he can expect access to a variety of goodies, including a series of checks in his mailbox on a regular basis. Clearly, Rod doesn’t give a damn about the numerous downsides and injuries to the local community this casino will cause. And he doesn’t give a damn about those effects because HE DOESN’T LIVE HERE.

The only thing more bizarre than his selfish positions are that any newspaper would print them. We, frankly, don’t give a damn what out of area tribal members think. We all know damned well that what drives their word processors and pens is what they, personally, will get out of this.

And I’ve got news for you: Rod Van Mechelen doesn't "fit the profile of an impoverished Cowlitz Tribe member," either. Don’t believe me? Google him.

Self-sufficiency is goal

Bill Beyer, in an April 4 letter, "Go past smoke & mirrors," said David Barnett doesn't "fit the profile of an impoverished Cowlitz Tribe member." True, he's a successful businessman. Like his father, John, he serves our tribe with honor, and his cause is noble: to bring self-sufficiency to the tribe and its members who are impoverished, so we won't have to rely on nontribal members.

Beyer said our effort to build a casino "isn't an issue of reparations for past wrongs or helping a downtrodden native people." Indian rights have nothing to do with reparations for wrongs. In broad terms, they are compensation. Insofar as being "downtrodden" is concerned, that's a matter of perspective and not worth arguing.

Since time immemorial, we have lived in Cowlitz Country, a territory that today encompasses several counties, including Clark. This is our home; it's where our heart lives. Our hope is to bring economic development to Cowlitz Country, including a casino in Clark County, that will benefit not just our tribal members, but all of Southwest Washington.

If I may be blunt, the counties within Cowlitz Country aren't the most prosperous in the state. We would like to change that. We might not succeed, but we want to try. Won't you help us?

Rod Van Mechelen

Olympia

No, Rod... I won't.... because YOU DON'T LIVE HERE.

If economic self-sufficiency is your only goal, then go find it somewhere else. Because here's my bulletin for you, if *I* may be blunt:

I don't give any more of a damn for you then you and your Tribe does for me. And based on the actions of David Barnett and your Tribe...

That is none at all.