Enrollment for Dummies

Earlier this month, the Tribe hired a company known as the Falmouth Institute to fly into Grand Ronde and lecture a number of us on enrollment requirements. The name of the training was “Amending and Updating Enrollment Requirements”. Costs for this training were more than $5000, in fact it might have been closer to $8000. We had elected to bring the training to us because most of Council and the Enrollment committee expressed a desire to attend the conference/workshop, what with our present situation and all, and the session that drew interest was to be held in Las Vegas (for the record I’ve never attended a conference in Vegas, but of all places I can’t think of one that would provide more distractions from any sort of productivity.) Our decision to host our own Falmouth deal was purely because had we spent the money for airfare, per diem, hotel rooms and conference registration, the cost would have soared who knows how high.
I haven’t finished reading the 1.5 inch-thick booklet that accompanies the training. But I did sit in on the two-day session that was held at the Education Division classroom, along with four other Council members and nearly the entire Enrollment Committee, plus various staff from Enrollment Dept., Member Services, and invariably, Legal.
To say that the training was “enlightening” might be a stretch, and somehow “informative” seems like an understatement. I can definitely say “insightful”, because the man who they sent to lecture us, Terry Rainey, also works for us through the Election Board. He is the tall professional-looking fellow sent down to oversee our Tribal Council elections as a third-party administrator. His knowledge of other tribes, while not scholarly, is somewhat encyclopedic–he know the goings-on of numerous tribes, and that information came in handy throughout our discussions.
Given that we met for 12 hours over two days, it would be hard to give a brief summary. While enrollment seems like a simple subject on its face, it becomes quite complex when you start getting into family histories, blood quantum (one tribe has got the denominator down to 2048), and the increasingly complicated realm of DNA-testing. In Grand Ronde we have a simple line, you are either a Tribal member or you ain’t. With other tribes its not quite so simple.
Some tribes, Rainey told us, have “standings” for their members. Felonious tribal members might find themselves getting less benefits. One tribe will garnish per capita should they prove that a man is selling his sperm. In the case Rainey cited, a fellow was penalized $500,000 in per capita for selling his sperm to five different women. Of course, that particular tribe also gives out $20,000 per month in per capita. Another tribe also penalized an incarcerated tribal member who impregnated two different women during conjugal visits.
Rainey also pointed out the chaos that ensues when tribal laws are inconsistent. With a tribe in the mid-West, one man was elected to the Chair position by reaching out to non-local members and campaigning on high per capita. It worked in the election. Problem was that same tribe could remove Council members with a certain number of votes at General Council meetings, which is precisely what happened. Not surprisingly, with such a law, Rainey added, that tribe had gone through eight chairs (presidents, actually) in 10 years, with only one serving the entire duration of the four-year term.
A lot of what this training confirmed for me was how chaotic many of the situations have become in Indian country, and not with just enrollment. My suspicions these days are that Indian gaming brought more problems, like high-stakes greed and power-mongering, that many tribes weren’t prepared to deal with, as is demonstrated by what appears to be loopholes in tribal laws and constitutions. I think sometimes that tribes must be very hard entities to work for, being constantly political, and stability more a dream than reality.
I believe enrollment, like gaming, is the one issue that symbolizes the struggles tribes must face, and even then it all boils down to a struggle for resources, to keeping the slices of pie thick versus thin. In many ways, its sad. I thought about all this during the training because it was obvious that there were people present who wanted the upcoming Constitutional election to crash and burn. As we introduced ourselves during day one, and revealed our expectations, even that took a political tone. The movement to amend our Constitution was blown off as people just wanting money and benefits. I had to bite my tongue on a couple of occasions. For one, it bothers me to no end to hear one or two Council members popping off about his whole issue when only two weeks previously they sat there at the General Council meeting and told the membership it was important to not have an opinion. Second, it would seem that opposing the amendment is fueled by a fear of getting less. Because if it cost us nothing (or little), but would mean a better life for others, why on earth would we oppose it?
Insightful, indeed.

The Audacity of Hope

“The Audacity of Hope” (2006)

I can’t defend the fact that the age group which I belong to, that of the 18-40 year old demographic, is one of the worst in terms of political involvement and voter turnout. As a matter of fact I would almost bet the percentage is the same if not worse for presidential elections as in Grand Ronde Tribal Council elections. There are probably all sorts of theories, some of them correct and others way off, which can explain this—laziness, disinterest, self-absorption, iPods, MTV, the internet, rap music, etc. I am not even going to try and weigh any of them against one another.
However, in my own personal view, there have been enough ugly episodes in Presidential politics over the last ten years, and to be fair this includes Bush and Clinton, and few candidates or politicians who have made a sustained genuine attempt to reach out to my generation, that it isn’t shocking that I don’t exactly jump with excitement with the approach of 2008 and its elections. But I must admit in 2004 seeing Barack Obama speak during the 2004 Democratic convention perked my interest. He definitely caught inspired me more than John Kerry did that year.
I am really kind of happy to see him catching up with Hillary Clinton in the polls. Rooting for the underdog is something I routinely do. In 2000 both Bill Bradley and John McCain, the two runner-ups during the respective party primaries, caught my attention more than either of the final candidates. It seems that in Democratic and Republican parties the more ambitious candidates spread themselves too thin, trying to pose some sort of mass appeal. I realize that is probably the wiser course of action for a candidate really trying to win, but they end up watering themselves down so much I personally lose interest.
After reading Barack Obama’s book I must say he really is good at instilling a sense of hope in people. Whether or not he can sustain that sense if elected is probably another story, but for now he is the first candidate in a long time to actually get me excited, no offense to any Hillary or Giuliani supporters. What I especially like about him is he can write really, really well.
His book doesn’t sidestep any of the major issues, and he gets really personal with a few of them. There are some interesting stories about the tribulations of being a high-profile politician, like one about an aide trying to make him use French’s mustard instead of Dijon on his burger lest any photographers be around and snap him living the high life. He is also very candid about his faith and race. I had no idea he spent a good portion of his childhood in Indonesia, which has undoubtedly been very influential in shaping his view of the world. One of the more interesting chapters deals with his family, and I wonder whether his wife might have gotten upset with his openness.
Whether you are a Republican or Democrat, I think “The Audacity of Hope” is worth reading, at the very least for an honest glimpse at some of the day-to-day occurrences that a Senator must experience. There is one section towards the end that I can really relate to, and that is being in the minority and knowing an idea will go nowhere. But I guess the real definition of hope is optimism against the odds, knowing that if you keep fighting, maybe that idea will one day come to fruition.

Us versus Them

They are up to something, I was told. Just watch, the way they are acting. They are being very quiet. That guy, who is usually pretty friendly, won’t make eye contact. He is usually reliable for a “good morning” at the very least. So-and-so seems very nervous and apprehensive. There is some tension in the air, and it is thick, just about undeniable. The ultimate historian, time, will soon let us know what is afoot. Until then I must choose between being on guard or being amused, if not both.
I like watching “Survivor”, because so often certain aspects of the show mirror my job. The bigger differences are that over here it’s not a game, and what is at stake is much more than a million dollar payday for some lucky or wily individual. Plus we don’t have physical challenges, and depending on who comprises the Council there might as well be multiple immunity idols. Other than those, a lot of details are the same-- the scheming, the alliances, the sharing of spoils for victors, the hushed conversations that suddenly end when a non-trusted person enters the vicinity.
I try to be realistic and convince myself that perhaps I am making too many assumptions, maybe once in a while my co-workers, some of whom signed their name toward efforts that amounted to ousting me last election, should be afforded the benefit of the doubt. Maybe this isn’t some grand war for control of our Tribe and resources.
But as I drive towards lunch today in Willamina, it is hard not to notice the four cars of my co-workers all parked within feet of one another outside of Coyote Joes, a diner that some go to for privacy as the only other two in Grand Ronde, Legends at Spirit Mountain and Fort Hill, are like midday employee hotspots. It’s either an odd coincidence or perhaps they really are up to something.
Realistically, they very well could be deciding a major decision there that will eventually end up in chambers for a formal vote. To my knowledge there is nothing illegal about that, even if one were able to prove it. But for some reason in the present context of our Tribe, amidst some supposed effort to unite everybody, such a scenario doesn’t seem right. As a matter of fact, it would seem outright wrong, once again though not illegal, were that really the case.
But then again maybe it really wouldn’t be wrong if we were to be more open about stances on certain issues, and more importantly, whatever allegiances we may have towards one another and fellow Council members. What I mean, really, is that if this Council would be honest about whatever political alliances exist, about the fact that despite the effort to the contrary our Tribe has become so partisan that yes, there are political parties and yes, some of us belong to them.
I think back to the 2004 ABC campaign and the subsequent PPP endeavor that followed the next year. We were being very, very open about whom we were, who we supported, and what we stood for. I still think that this is the way to be in politics. The downside to that though is you take some lumps, and in Grand Ronde there was an “old guard”, to borrow a saying from some Californian Tribal Chair who was referring to the former ruling class of his own tribe, who were not too happy about our movement, probably because for some of them it meant the end of their political careers. As I’ve seen the last two elections, that same “old guard” united and won five out of six seats. In other words, they mimicked what we did. What happened in 2007 was a coordinated effort to kick out the reformers, regardless of accomplishments. I might have been lucky to survive.
I take none of that personally because historically devotion to party lines a good deal of the time means opposing someone you like and agree with on some issues. I can say with absolute certainty that in 2004 not all the incumbents deserved to be ousted so lopsidedly. But change then was desperately needed and there are bystanders to every upheaval.
What I do take personally though is promoting the notion that this is a more unified Council than before when in fact that is not the case. One group has gained control which will not be yielded for a while if at all, even if there is a change of heart in one of their members. Knowing some of the people I work with, unity will never come until their party occupies each and every seat of Council. And I am almost positive such a takeover would not be beneficial to the Tribe. Eliminating all other competing political parties is hardly unity.
There have been three decisions made since the election that smacked of partisan politics. The discussions leading up to them all had that rehearsed quality and feel to them which made me almost certain they had been plotted out beforehand. One was to stop the Constitutional election and resubmit language into three separate parts. Another is the new censorship on the “Tilixam Wawa”. The last was one made in total confidentiality last week and I am very reluctant to disclose because it seems I won’t be cut much slack, and quite frankly I am uncertain of the legal issues. But it was precedent-setting, that much I know. All three of these decisions were 6-3 votes, with the Council who ran under or endorsed the Wisdom, Integrity, Family slates voting one way, the remainder, me and two others, voting in the minority. Furthermore, they are decisions that before September 8, 2007 would have never been made.
Is Grand Ronde on its way to a two-party system? I don’t know. Parties need to stand for something, to have qualities and beliefs that they supposedly uphold and represent, and once again that requires more candidness than we’ve seen the last two years. Plus it might be easier for one party to win more converts if they deny all allegiance and blind loyalty to one another, and constantly proclaim they stand for unity...logos, slogans, and private lunches notwithstanding.

Anecdote as Policy

Back in 2005 I attended the Native American Journalists Association Annual Conference in Lincoln, Nebraska. NAJA’s theme that year was “A Free Press, A Free People”, which is ironic given our meeting last Wednesday regarding how we could develop some neo-censorship policies about the Tilixam Wawa, a discussion I thought was going to die, or at least would kill me.
But more on that later.
At this conference I was lucky enough to sit in on the filming of a program for Nebraska Public Television, and the show was really a debate featuring a wide range of guests, from a professor, to a priest, to a Tribal leader, to most importantly, what appeared to be some sort of specialist in Tribal economic development. The purpose of the debate was to argue the merits, or lack thereof, of Indian gaming.
Given the audience was mostly people attending the NAJA Conference, in other words, Indians, I can’t really say the debate ended up being very fair for the priest, who appeared to be the only one that opposed tribal gaming, mostly on his own moral grounds. To be completely fair though, he didn’t do himself any favors by denouncing Indian gaming due also in part to his own experiences counseling people who came to him with problems. The professor and economic development specialist in particular had a lot of fun at his expense. At one point I remember very clearly the E.D. fellow, an Indian from the Dakotas, calling the priest out and telling the audience “He likes anecdotes. I like facts myself.”
I am very well aware that Indian gaming arrives with new problems. But watching that show, it would have been hard to walk away feeling convinced that the problems of Indian gaming outweigh the benefits. The Economic guy and the professor were able to point at very concrete examples of poor Tribes digging themselves out of poverty, of a least one scenario of how unemployment dropped once a certain reservation built a casino, and a number of other occasions that demonstrated the merits of Indian gaming. The poor priest got flustered because his own arguments were often really anecdotes, like “well one guy at my church developed a serious problem” or “one family really had problems”. At the end they all shook hands of course, and the priest disappeared from the set instantly, a little embarrassed, while the other guests stayed and mingled with us.
Ironically, the whole point of my anecdote here is that I had never spent much time considering how misleading anecdotes can be when used as a tool or guide in policy making. Anecdotes are experiences. Experiences affect our worldview, our beliefs, and for many if not most are the foundations of our opinions. All of us like to believe that the opinions we hold are right. And when considering some of the graver issues facing us in our lives and politics, Tribal or mainstream, nobody likes to be told that their opinion is wrong, especially when the person telling us has had completely different experiences from us. If they had seen what I saw, or been through what I’ve been through, we think, they would certainly see that I am right.
The problem is, even then, we can be off the mark, or worse yet, dead wrong. Our experience could have been part of some freak occurrence, rare event, or infrequent slice of a larger context. I could go to New York City twice, for one day each time, get mugged, and from then on nobody would convince me that NYC isn’t amongst the world’s dangerous places, right on par with the Gaza Strip or the barrios of Rio de Janeiro maybe places I’ve also been. Every time I go to the Bronx, I would tell people truthfully, I get mugged.
This seems like something problematic that all of us must grapple with in our own individual ways. I think it becomes a greater problem when people in positions of power or authority use misleading and sometimes over-exaggerated anecdotes as a means to convince others that the decisions being made are what is in the best interests of whichever constituency they govern. For reasons that are probably a lot simpler than I would like to admit, the anecdotes of others in positions of power tend to be taken as fact, probably because the deliverer of the anecdote has carefully crafted or worded his anecdote in a way everybody can understand and agree with. Plus, I think that the authority which accompanies a position of power often times gets mistaken with expertise, which in turn enhances the anecdote and confers greater credibility than if some person off the street said the same thing. You will be seeing this a lot in the upcoming presidential elections, as candidates will each share their anecdote about whatever issue is pertinent, in the hopes that voters should think “Yeah, you know he’s right! Why I’ve experienced a similar situation myself.”
Anyhow, I am not ranting, but getting to my ultimate point, which is that anecdotes, while entertaining and insightful, can be misleading, not only to the person who experienced it but to those who listen to the story. And my ultimate point is I think that sometimes the teller knows it is misleading.
Our meeting about the Tilixam Wawa on Wednesday was a classic example of using anecdotes as justification for making a decision that is clearly not right, and I am not buying it for one instant. In what seemed like a rehearsed discussion, I was informed by numerous Council members how they had been “hearing from the membership” that “the members” are tired of the “us vs. them” mentality, of seeing nine different Council members express nine different opinions. In the interest of unity, we need to be united, and not be having articles expressing different opinions. If a Council member wants to express their opinion, the Council member who appears to be driving the issue told me, then they should spend their own money and mail out a letter to the membership. I didn’t ask if that meant Council would supply me with a mailing list to do so, my hunch is no.
Now to be fair, I must consider whether what they say is true. I find myself being incredibly skeptical. I’ve generally got a good memory of what comments are made during Council meetings. Furthermore, I doubt anybody on Council spends more time actually reading the comments of the few Tribal internet sites than I do. I really can’t think of any threads or comments from people making the kinds of complaints that are supposedly being made to my fellow Council members. If anything, I think the membership would love to have all nine Council members every issue explaining some of their opinions. I think this because the only time we did such a thing, the August 2007 SMGI issue, more than 1200 Tribal members voted! Furthermore, I am not sure if there was a single comment about the Wawa and opinions at our Strategic Futures Conference, which was all about member input. Lastly, my own personal anecdote-esque experiences usually are people indicating how much they appreciate what I’ve written. Not everyone agrees, but it’s nice to have a Council member explain something.
Now unless my fellow Council members can provide me with a survey or some sort of written log of member comments that mirror what they told me last Wednesday, and really it would take a lot of comments to convince me, then I can only assume that this is all politics. Vague and maybe even unsubstantiated comments are being used as grounds for a decision, partisan government censorship, that historically has never been popular, nor the sign of good intentions. It would take a whole heck of a lot of anecdotes to convince me of anything else.

Training Day

I can honestly say that over the past year, there have been only a few meals that surpassed this one. Before me was an untouched cheese plate, sporting two brie wedges, a slab of gorgonzola, and some white and golden slices of cheddar. I sliced off a hunk of brie, rind included. This was after dishing up a salad, of course, and also some poached lobster tail, iced shrimp, and the same delicious salted salmon coated with savory spices. Moving up the buffet-style line, I also nabbed and English banger, and a slice of breaded cod.
Dessert was equally sumptuous. I had two types of crème brulee to choose from, as well as a mound of profiteroles, and some tender walnut coated fudge, or should I say fudge-like substance. It was definitely chocolate. I felt a twinge of guilt after eating all that I did.
So what occasion would demand such a feast? Lunch with the governor? A meeting with some other Tribal Council, perhaps? Far from it, really. No this meal was what I had heard of but never actually experienced, and that was the lunch accompanying the SMGI Board meeting that generally takes place the third Thursday of every month.
I’m not writing about this to inform people of some of the lesser-known excesses that seem so endemic to our business. Admittedly, though, I would be curious to know how much such a lunch costs. Stuff like that just fascinates me. Why I am writing about this is because a) it was my first official meeting as an SMGI Board member, assuming I am issued a license, not always a guarantee; and b) there was a certain level of professionalism that seemed casual and normal here that I feel the need to tell people about, because I can see now why given enough meals and meetings like this, Council/Board members might get a bit of an ego boost. You couldn’t help but feel important somehow, like a high profile executive.
There wasn’t much on our agenda for this meeting. But as a rule of thumb I guess all of Spirit Mountain Casino’s major Directors—Marketing, Gaming, Finance, etc. are still asked to sit in on these meetings, even though most of them spoke very little during the meeting. In fact some said almost nothing, they just sat there quietly watching Council and the Board discuss business and inevitably fall into, dare I say it, micromanaging. It occurs to me that we must sometimes be a bit of a spectacle.
I don’t have a whole heck of a lot of background knowledge in some of what was discussed, so trying to follow the discussion is honestly a little confusing. A couple of items in particular interest one Council member, so about an hour into the meeting Executive Session is called for, and all the staff present, with the exception of one Tribal attorney and the Finance Officer, are asked to leave and wait out in the hallway. I am going to honor the rules of Executive Session and not tell people here what went on in those two sessions. But I will say it saddened me to leave the room and see all these employees, some of them top directors waiting in the hallway while our conversation inside meanders on. I can’t help but think of the DMV. After nearly 45 minutes they are allowed back in, momentarily, while we attend to one other business item and then go back into Executive Session to talk about something I found a little bit questionable, given the amount of time spent dwelling on it. Staff are given permission to leave.
We end the meeting at about four in the afternoon. Of our nearly three-hour meeting, almost two hours of it is spent in Executive Session. And that was my first real foray into the world of Spirit Mountain Gaming, Incorporated. Productive? Maybe, though I don’t really have another meeting to compare it to. Informative? Definitely. Encouraging? I’ll have to think about that one.

Time Off

Because we always take a day off around Restoration, usually the week around Thanksgiving ends up being a one or two-day work week. I took personal time off in an attempt to give myself a mini-vacation. Of course, between one work errand on Monday, and a Council of Governments informal meeting on Wednesday, plus that I for the first time ended up hosting a Thanksgiving dinner at my house, the time off I hoped for was chiseled away at somewhat. As somebody pointed out to me, it almost takes discipline just to really take time off from this job. No checking email, no phone calls to the office, no errands pertaining to work. I don’t know, I so often find myself going through work withdrawal, it doesn’t seem possible. But in an odd way, I guess that’s good. Once I stop caring enough to think about the Tribe, then something is really wrong.
For whoever is interested, cooking a Thanksgiving dinner was like time off, because food and drink will always be a hobby of mine and today seemed like a perfect opportunity to experiment. Good thing my visitors were open-minded. I tried a molasses cranberry glaze for my 22-lbs. bird, stuffed with chorizo-celery stuffing. For a vegetarian guest I prepared fried polenta (had to keep corn in the mix) with mascarpone and olive sauce. My significant other made fried potato cakes laced with chives and diced bacon in place of mashed spuds. About the only thing generic was brown gravy. I don’t really know why I’m writing this, other than to say that times like these remind me how important it is for one to have the occasional creative outlet. My guests sure seemed to like it, as we sent home a lot of food.
Speaking of creative…

Films:

“Beowulf” (2007)

I find this very interesting that Robert Zemeckis would follow up “The Polar Express” with an animated movie that is really quite violent, and at times, sexual. But he did, and I must say that this is actually a very fun film to see. For one, the story of Beowulf has always been one that fascinated me, enough that where I’ve gone on to Amazon to order the full-length translation in print right after seeing this. Two, animation doesn’t always have to be for kids. There are probably plenty of old tales from throughout the world which could be brought to life in a similar manner. Beowulf is good enough to where you feel removed from the real world, transported to old Scandinavia. The story as presented here has a lot of depth, and the characters are all very flawed, which to me is important because you don’t always see that in mythological heroes, at least not in the glossed over versions we read about in grade school. This film probably isn’t for everybody, but if you like a good story, and a little joking around, this film does the job.

Books:

“Grendel” (1971)

There are not very many books that I have kept, much less read more than once. This novel written by John Gardner is the 1970’s is how I know the old story best. On top of that, it is I think one of the best books I’ve ever read. Gardner basically tells the old tale of Beowulf and Grendel from the monster’s point of view. Beowulf himself doesn’t come along until late in the story, and is never mentioned by name. He is just a mysterious stranger that for some reason strikes fear into Grendel’s heart. Most of the story is Grendel harassing Hrothgar and Unferth, and in general trying to pass the time. I wouldn’t know what it’s like to be in the mind of a literal monster, but for some reason I can’t help but think that this has to be pretty close. You actually come to appreciate Grendel despite that he is evil, cruel, and psychotic. More importantly you come to appreciate a writer’s skill to take an old folktale and make it seem so real.

A Revealing Decision

My decision to join Spirit Mountain Casino’s Board of Directors hasn’t been entirely without comment. The first two written remarks came my way last week while in Warm Springs. They were, unedited:

"Chris,
I was reading the Tilixam Wawa and was thinking about tribal concerns and the current leadership. Thus, I want to thank you for serving another term. I imagine that your efforts are often criticized and unappreciated; however, I believe that you are a very good representative and leader for our tribe. As you know, tribal members lack confidence and trust in many of our leaders. You are one of the few that I trust is strictly focusing on the job you were elected to do. Thank you again for your leadership.

Respectfully,
- (name omitted)"

And,

"Sorry to see that you gave in and joined the casino board. The directors should bring to the Board a wealth of business experience and a track record of good business judgement in a variety of situations "relevant to to the Casino operations." Reyn was a logger, Cheryle in thr health field, you are a writer and jack of all trades. I just hope it will work out.

(name omitted)"

And,

"I should he included Kathleen Tom in my earlier e-mail but her background is empty on the web site.

(name omitted)"


As you can tell, one was fairly encouraging, the other not. I would say that based upon the numerous verbal comments I’ve received, the split in opinions on this is on par with the actual vote itself. That belief was affirmed today as I was approached by a Council member in my office, who revealed that at least one other Tribal member had voiced their disapproval to him. Evidently they thought the presence of Kathy Tom and I at the casino was going to have some chaotic affect.
It reminded me for some reason of the old superstition that a vampire cannot invade your house unless you invite him in. The offended Tribal member, I was told, was very worked up. This had my fellow Council man at a loss. “Aren’t we all on the same team?” he pondered out loud, and besides, what on Earth kind of damage could the two of us do? I told him my own belief that in a democracy like Grand Ronde political parties eventually form, and they are in many cases personality driven; whoever this person was obviously didn’t object to other Council members sitting on SMGI, their problem was they didn’t like me.
But this is all beside the point. In summary the reaction to our decision has been very mild, and I would almost say non-existent. I can only guess why. Maybe with the election over (and won, depending on who you are), the issue no longer matters.
What I do know is that actually getting on the board is a minor undertaking. The Friday following the Council meeting in which the resolution appointing me (for the record an odd event, as the minutes indicate) I received my application for a gaming license. The application is nearly 12 pages long, more if counting the three pages of financial disclosures.
To make a long story short, what the Gaming Commission would like to know before granting me that high-security license is just about every notable event in my life over the past ten years. Being 32, that takes me back to college, which now seems like a dream.
I am twice required to account for the last ten years, one in terms of work history, the other in whereabouts. Do not, they let you know, leave any gaps in timelines. Those are red flags, and suspicious.
Because of my propensity to travel much after college, coming up with addresses is not always easy, especially after moving five or six times as well. Coming up with all my old mailing addresses is made easy by only one thing: my previous gaming license application, since I worked at Spirit Mountain Casino five years ago as a Cage Cashier, another position requiring a high security license. They had the application on file, thankfully, meaning I would only need to account for the last five years. I would have been hard-pressed to find old addresses in Ecuador and Germany.
Knowing all my working addresses, phone numbers, and supervisors over the last ten years is equally troublesome. But once again, the old application saves me.
So thorough this process is at one point I must call my significant other to ask her if she or anybody in her immediate family has any felonies. I must also account for my own legal mistakes, ranging from arrests to lawsuits to any sort of official state/federal investigation, including tax liens or plea bargains in exchange for cooperating with police. I halfway expect them to ask about the biological history of my cats.
Given that confidentiality is taken lightly in Indian Country, and that sadly includes Grand Ronde, I very hesitantly disclose all financial information on the second form. I mean no offense to the Gaming Commission, but listing out my savings account and personal property to anybody but myself, immediate family, or IRS makes me nervous.
Sitting here now, I sound irritated probably. That is due, I suspect, that it took me nearly three hours to fill this application. But being fair, I am relieved that we are a self-regulating tribe, and that we are this thorough.

Pictures from Warm Springs

Obviously, I like toting my camera around. As you can see, there is a beauty to Warm Springs that is hard to describe. I am not sure I could live here, but don't mind visiting. And I have not idea whose horses these are. Probably nobody's.

On The Road

Maybe I’m a little eccentric. But for some reason, being given the chance to visit another Indian reservation always excites me. I am not entirely sure why. Perhaps because often it tends to be somewhat of a cultural experience, maybe even political, as tribes all have their own unique politics, their own form of government that appears on many levels like our own.
Right now I am in Warm Springs, as in the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs community of Oregon. My main reason for being here is our Annual Government-to-Government Tribal and State Consultation. This happens once a year, and the real purpose is to give the State of Oregon and its nine federally recognized tribes the chance to rub elbows, network, and remind one another that there are many things we can work on together. It is the one time per year that our Governor gets together with all the Tribes for good honest discussion. Some years all the chairs get a private dinner, including tonight. Not being chair I am no longer afforded that opportunity. But last year I remember easily, as in an effort to improve relations he was seated next to me during our supper at Seven Feathers, the casino of the Cow Creek Band of Indians. Kulongoski and I did not talk too much about tribal issues last year. Instead we discussed global warming and alternative fuel sources, both agreeing that tribes could play a major role as leaders in those arenas.
The drive to Warm Springs is long, more than three hours from McMinnville, where I live. There are probably back roads to get here, but 99.9% of the people must go through either Portland or Madras, making a trip to this area always long, which is funny because in terms of pure distance it is not that far. But there are curves, hills, small towns, and snow areas, making the reservation not nearly as accessible as Grand Ronde, probably more so in winter.
As I turn off of Hwy. 26 towards Kah-Nee-Ta, the resort, the roads immediately become rough and rustic. Signs warning drivers of feral horses and free-roaming cattle are posted along the road. That doesn’t stop the first glimpse of a huge bull from being a shock, especially at night. In Grand Ronde and the surrounding area I am usually on guard for deer or even coyotes, which can cross your path out of nowhere. Hitting a half-ton bull or horse with my pick-up would be much worse.
Warm Springs is, at least at first glance, quite barren, though I have been informed they have more forest than Grand Ronde. But where Kah-Nee-Tah is, the heart of the reservation, there is mostly dry brush, some low-lying trees, and rocks, bushes, rocks, and dried grass, set amidst a maze of hills. There is, admittedly, a beauty to it all, made more so by the genuine natural quiet that occurs in places like this.
I don’t really have much experience with what one would call true reservation communities, so coming to Warm Springs is very interesting. This place is visibly poor, more than Grand Ronde. It is not in the same league as some places I’ve seen in my travels, but nobody would call this place prosperous. The first building I cruise by is a mini-mart, making sure to advertise beer. Black steel bars cover the windows and doors. Many of the other buildings look dilapidated and very rustic.
The same type of rustic quality is part of the charm of Kah-Nee-Tah. The plain brown paint is fading, and on the railings toward my room has long since peeled away. The stairs nearby have plastered holes which have not been painted over.
I am not writing this to provide an unflattering picture of Warm Springs. But I am telling people what I see, because complaints about a number of things in Grand Ronde seem less compelling compared to what I’ve seen over the past two days here. This tribe really would benefit immensely from a better source of revenue than Indian Head Casino, getting to which is hardly convenient. But their problems would still be a long ways from solved, as evidenced by the man and woman who stumbled out of the hotel bar as I sat trying to catch the nighttime sports updates. A local at the same bar explains to me how a local market has Oregon’s highest beer sales. I don’t know if that is really true, but part of me really hopes not.
This morning on my way to the Oregon Tribal Gaming Alliance meeting I run into, almost literally, a Warm Springs Tribal member who knew me from somewhere. I really don’t remember where I met him. He asks me why Grand Ronde can’t just back off on this whole Cascade Locks affair. I explain to him that it’s really not that simple, that some members of our Council really feel like a Cascade Locks casino would hurt Spirit Mountain. He thanks me for voting against Grand Ronde’s actions a few times. How on earth he would know something like that I can’t imagine. But then again, I’ve heard said that nothing’s confidential in Indian Country.
I am enjoying my time here right now. Tomorrow I will hopefully get to speak with the governor. At the least I will get to meet with other Tribal leaders, and they will congratulate me on surviving the election. One tribal leader has told me their General membership will be voting on the Council pay raise. Another tells me they will be having their own Council elections next month. It still impresses me the parallels between Grand Ronde and other tribes. Our issues are not as unique as we think.
It almost seems like tribes all go through the same pattern, the same history. Warm Springs is right now perhaps what Grand Ronde was 20 years ago, the poor tribe still hoping for that big break. Whether that break ever happens hinges largely on the leadership, I suppose. It is our job to recognize when opportunities present themselves, or when a certain path will lead us nowhere.
Warm Springs elected half a new Council last spring. I look forward to watching them, having been through something similar myself.

Too Much Information

Because we didn’t have quorum on Tuesday, there were no meetings scheduled. Oddly enough, days like these tend to be some of my most productive, more so recently with the nature of many of our meetings. They are productive in that I am given the opportunity to assault the mountain of emails, phone calls, and more importantly, paperwork which piles up when we don’t attend them. My office right now would rival a CPA’s or tax attorney’s.
I’ve tried to develop a system to keep everything from piling up. Phone calls are the easiest to deal with, provided whoever has put in the call isn’t making some unreasonable request, which happens a lot. Most of the time though whatever it is can be referred to the appropriate employee or manager.
Emails tend to be different. Being on Council seems to automatically place your email address on a number of lists, even more so as you become involved with committees and outside boards. A number of managers and employees, especially our lawyers, in order to be effective and also cover their behinds, communicate with Council by email, often even seeking direction by asking for responses. It doesn’t always work, but at least it creates a written record documenting that they tried.
Most important of all, we get numerous emails from Tribal members, some asking basic information questions, others grilling us on stuff that gets a little more complex. I try to flag those emails that require a lengthy response. In total, I personally receive between 30-60 emails in a day. If I go for a few weeks without cleaning out my inbox, I can amass more than a 1000 emails, many of which I like to keep. So I’ve got like 30 different email folders where I relegate old emails, to be dusted off for some obscure future use. I must spend at least an hour a month organizing my emails.
The emails and phone calls though hardly compare with the paperwork. The amount of government, tribal, and personal entities with which the Tribe has contact is staggering, and we are cc’d on a lot of the correspondence that goes to Legal, Natural Resources, Culture, and the various branches of CTGR. Some days we get more than 100 pages of faxes, letters, memorandums, and notifications.
Realistically, to actually read each and every piece of paper that arrives in our mailbox is probably impossible. So you learn to mine, to sort through the numerous reports, memos, etc. to make a personal choice as to what is worth keeping or what goes to the shredder, to keep tabs on some letters because depending on the issue, it is just a chapter in some ongoing saga.
I keep most of my paperwork, for a few months, maybe even a year at least. Others think I’m crazy, but I still like having documentation and records. A county official informed me last week that 80% of papers that get filed away are never fully used again. I don’t know about the accuracy of that, but in my case it doesn’t seem out of the question. That still won’t stop me from keeping paperwork. I like having a clear written record of events, regardless of how much time and space it takes to store them. As a wannabe historian, I like having those records. My own personal hunch is that history, not just in Grand Ronde, but in many other places, has often suffered from faulty record-keeping, if not loss of records altogether.
That didn’t stop me from making heavy use of the shredder on Tuesday. I made such heavy use that the shredder blocked up and even started to emit a burning smell. Dakota Whitecloud and I had to jam our fingers up underneath the blades to scrape out the shredded pulp. All in all I filled two medium-sized garbage bags with what I’d shredded on Tuesday, and that is not counting the non-sensitive material that was just tossed into the recycling bags. If I were to measure the amount of paperwork in my office by stacked inches, I would have at least ten feet. I can’t imagine the trees that die to produce our paperwork.
My filing cabinets are still heavy with paper. Maybe some of it will be useful down the road, while a lot it will be that 80%. My mailbox will still be full tomorrow, no doubt, with some reports, packets and who knows what else.
I’ll continue to keep a lot of it, occasionally feeding the shredder. That’s just me.

Autumn in Oregon

The weather around here has been almost scarily good. From what I read that will end soon, probably tomorrow. I like to take photos of the trees before the leaves fall. While the colors likely don't rival New England, they are pretty nice still. Fall is definitely one of my favorite times of the year.

Unity Through Elimination

Earlier this week, a decision was being made that went against just about everything I believe in regarding democracy. It hasn’t really been finalized yet, but unless there is a serious surprise or unspoken divergence in philosophy, I expect the discussions from our Council retreat on Monday to basically be ratified come next week. I can’t really claim to disagree with a couple of our decisions, but one in particular, if formally made, will just be wrong on numerous levels.
Okay, now I know that this will seem like teasing. I prefer to call it drama. But before I get into detail, I would like to say that I’ve always considered myself a fairly open-minded person. That is what spurred me to travel, to visit foreign countries, eat their food, read up on their religions, marvel at their cultural differences, and see that despite everything, people generally tend to be very similar across national boundaries. What is odd for us is everyday for others. Common sense to us might be considered madness elsewhere, and vice versa.
What I am saying is that elections are done and more than anything it would go against my nature to not give the new leadership a chance, to cautiously accept their plans and hope that maybe, just maybe, what they’ve in store might be better for the Tribe. Better than anything I’d have thought of. Even under the circumstances, aside from this singular issue, I intend to try and approach whatever new ideas they generate with hope, and once again, an open mind.
Here’s my beef. Earlier this week I wrote about my skepticism regarding potential proposed changes to the “Tilixam Wawa”. I was unaware that any Council members had serious issues with the publication. But they did. So in order to promote unity, to show that Council members are working together, and to uphold the Tribal Constitution—keep in mind this isn’t me talking, these comments are from my notes—the “Tilixam Wawa” will now reflect “one Council voice”.
That probably sounds vague, unrefined, and problematic to anybody reading. It certainly was to me, thus my half-dozen follow-up questions for clarification. According to one or two Council members, and for the record there were only five of us at the retreat, Tribal members have become disenchanted and turned off by the Wawa. Far too often, I was told, “most members” don’t even read the publication because it is nothing but a bunch of opinion pieces by individual Council members (Members think it is a waste of money, I was told, they are tired of the “us vs. them” mentality). The antidote to this previously unknown feeling of the Tribal membership is to have stories that reflect the belief of the Tribal Council as a group, team, single voice, whatever you want to call it. Those particular words were defined, upon further discussion, to mean at least five Council members.
Provided returning Council members agree to the decision, Wawa will also start to run a “RumorBusters” column, in addition to different reports on areas the Tribal Council is working on. I am sure other changes are also looming. One Council member wanted the publication to go to six issues per year, I wanted it twice monthly. Our compromise was to keep it at the present rate of one issue per month. We also discussed the possibility of guest writers.
I admit fully that my assumptions here are more toward the worst-case scenario end of the spectrum, but with something like this it’s hard to assume good intentions. Why on Earth would anybody want to suppress information? Telling somebody that to promote unity they will not be allowed to express their opinion is somewhat self-contradicting. Limiting any right, particularly freedom of expression, is also one of the roots of oppression.
There is the possibility that this new policy, if approved, will pertain solely to opinion pieces. But that opens the door to interpreting whether an opinion is expressed in a piece, in which case Council will become an editorial board, voting. And the decision, ultimately, to let a piece make the cut will hinge on interpretation of the word “opinion”, which I’ve always thought was clear but might become suddenly ambiguous.
Lastly though, this new approach, if used ruthlessly enough, could deal a serious blow to the Constitutional enrollment amendment, as nobody on Council would really be allowed to express support or opposition to it. Personally, I would guess that some members are very curious to know how Council members feel about this issue.
In hindsight, I guess we should have developed more formal policies and expectations of the Wawa when we first started. Mentally, I toyed with the idea of a “Publications Ordinance” just to keep such changes from being instituted on a whim. But I guess I never expected anything this blatant.
Who knows, maybe I am assuming the worst. Maybe I do need to give my fellow Council members the benefit of the doubt. When we meet again to review our retreat, perhaps others will have different conclusions about what we discussed. So until the decision is finalized, in writing, I shouldn’t really worry. But for many reasons, I am skeptical. The tone of discussion Monday was not very encouraging. We will know soon.

No Material Available

On Monday, October 15, we will be meeting in Salem for our Annual Council Retreat. There are a number of agenda items, from Health Care, to endowments, to the role of committees and boards. What catches my eye of course is one of the first items: Tillicum Wawa, which should read Tilixam Wawa, but maybe I’m being picky.
Council has always held retreats right around this time of year. Usually, our goal(s) are just that, setting goals. I remember the 2004 retreat being semi-productive. The 2005 version was very productive, although maybe I think that because we decided then to revamp the Tribal website, near and dear to my heart. The 2006 retreat was…I’m not sure. It just was.
However Council members rate them, our retreats are an annual event. They are one of the few occasions that we can isolate ourselves, merge brainpower, and make a concerted effort at being productive. I actually kind of look forward to the 2007 retreat on Monday, except for one thing.
That one thing really is that until Tuesday of last week I didn’t realize we even had a retreat scheduled. Personal obligations made me miss the scheduling meeting last Monday when it was unveiled that we would be having this retreat. My own understanding was that this Monday we would be reviewing the Strategic Planning Conference which took place last week. But I guess my understanding was off.
People reading this will probably think I am confused. I am. You see, over the past two years there was generally some notice given to Council members of the retreat, in fact we would try to arrive at some consensus over dates and topics. Two Council members are on travel Monday. They won’t even be there. I didn’t even see the agenda until Friday. If there are any staff reports or such to go with the agenda I am not clear. The only paperwork I have is the agenda, which indicates I am to show up at Roth’s IGA on Monday morning at 8:30 a.m. At 9:00 we will talk about the Wawa, the content of that publication, frequency, who should contribute, and a few other issues. Of course, until now, I didn’t know there were any issues, period.
I am sure this post appears increasingly unusual, like I am nitpicking over details. But let me explain a few things. Roughly two years ago we hired a company called ECONorthwest to analyze how we ran things. Their scope of work was more than that, obviously, but we really hired them to give us a professional opinion of how we, and by saying we I mean the organization and the Council, were running business. As you probably heard, not all Council members were big fans of theirs. I can speculate at the reason for that, but not right now. The point is our method of conducting business was very flawed, in their opinion, and to be completely honest I tended to agree.
According to them, we reacted to stuff, to events. Not only that, we had a bad habit of scheduling and conducting meetings without any real purpose. We would all meetings on short notice, drag staff from their work to address our issues, and provide unclear, and more importantly, unwritten direction that we may or may not remember a few weeks down the road. We weren’t incompetent, but were not models of efficiency either. Thus the Operating Procedures, limiting of meetings to just Tuesdays and Thursdays, and other minor details.
We were encouraged to develop formal grounds in which to call meetings, as opposed to just scheduling meetings at the request of individual Council members. Also, we were encouraged to have agendas for most meetings, and staff reports or some form of documentation, not only for before the meetings, but after. That way, when staff left they would have a clear idea of what they had been directed to do, as opposed to doing something, generating some sort of report so that a month later they wouldn’t be meeting with Council, only to have us say “No, that’s not what we meant! We meant do this!”
Part of this new way of conducting business involved the creation of our “packets”. The packets are literally packets, a stapled series of reports and updates that are to arrive in our mailboxes the day before meetings so that we might read them and be informed prior to going into meetings. Over the past year, I’ve learned to recognize when meetings are requested by individual Council members. As a new rule of thumb, we won’t hold a meeting requested by staff unless there is a report, background information, and written expectations that are clear and to the point. No report or documentation, then no meeting. When a Council member requests a meeting, those requirements don’t generally apply. Usually a “report” will be nothing more than a single sheet of paper, upon which is printed “Per Capita Discussion” or “Housing Discussion” or something like that, usually followed by lower-case letters reading “No Material Available”. The time slot might be one hour, it might be 15 minutes. More often than not, such meetings tend to be disorganized, unfocused, and occasionally the Council member who requested it is absent, in which case we usually cancel it and re-schedule. Such meetings, to be honest, can be a waste of staff time.
These types of meetings are becoming more frequent, and so I get to my original point of the upcoming Council retreat. All I have is an agenda, and nothing else. I know what time to show up, and what will be discussed, but little else. No material has been provided. Look at the list of 10 or so agenda items, I am not exactly sure what we are hoping to accomplish.
It’s hard not to be cynical. Not because I am an expert in efficiency, or because I myself haven’t wasted time with some odd meeting request. But after three years, I know what doesn’t work, and impromptu, poorly planned meetings, unclear direction, and decisions based on the opinions and desires of single, individual Council members, purely anecdotal, are in that category. Not always, but often.
Maybe I am wrong in my hunch. I’ll show up and find out.

A Rough Chapter

I’m not exactly sure how to express my feelings. This isn’t one of those touchy-feely kind of situations. It’s just that I honestly am not sure what sort of word or phrase would accurately describe the feeling in my chest. Whatever the feeling, it quickly spread to my mouth, which was grinning broadly.
I received a phone call Tuesday morning. This was an Elder I’ve gotten to know over the last few years, usually up in Portland at the satellite office. I’d also gotten to chat with her at the Chinook’s plankhouse in January. She had the same camera I like to carry around at events, the Canon IS S2, which is special because there are lenses, zoom and wide-angle, that one can affix to the front. Her reasons for calling me were very simple: Whether she had read it in the official minutes or had heard through the grapevine I don’t know, but she was letting me know that it was she who had spoken with a certain individual back in August regarding one of my campaign letters. She had signed my letter in support, and was never coerced, forced, pressured or anything like that. This Elder has always liked me and taken in interest in my young Council career. She wouldn’t need to be forced to sign for me. And, she added, she would be very sure to call this individual who had raised the issue a little more than a month ago at a Wednesday night Council meeting. In fact, this Elder informed me, she would be making that call as soon as our own phone conversation here ended. That is what brought a smile to my face.
For those not familiar with the issue, it does go back to early September, the Council meeting on the 5th to be exact. There have been a number of people during my three years on Council who seem to have a hobby of trying to make me and others miserable. This individual in particular ran for the Council the same year I was elected, and lost. Whether she took the defeat personally or is just an unhappy person I don’t really know, but in my observations whenever she shows up for a meeting a lot of the time it is to take potshots or raise some sort of issue that makes me or somebody else look bad.
Overall I am lucky enough to be one of those people who isn’t offended very easily. I’d like to chalk it up to mental toughness or something like that, but the reality is I think differently from most people and thus insults and personal attacks don’t always register the way they should.
What happened September 5th caught me off-guard, and I even admitted to those present that this upset me quite a bit. Basically, the individual in question brought one of my campaign letters, and during the Other Business portion of the Council meeting let me know that she had spoken with a Tribal Elder whose signature appeared on a list of supporters. Supposedly this Elder had been coerced into endorsing me, at some sort of cultural class, in theory under an obligation to support the Tribal Chair.
Now after a term on Council you get used to attacks. And the nature of Tribal politics means that there will always be people who question your honor. But for some reason this particular attack bothered me, not only because it was just so clearly false, but served no other purpose than to try and make me look bad. Plus, an Elder who I really like and joke around with a lot was dragged into it, unnecessarily.
I questioned the claim that night, and was met with the typical “Are you calling me a liar?”. I also asked for the Elder’s name, but was told she preferred not disclose it. So basically I was being accused of having coerced an Elder into signing one of my campaign letters, would not be told who the Elder was, and was being made out to be some sort of scoundrel in public. I think a lot of people would have probably been upset by it.
It’s all moot now. If the whole ploy was some last ditch effort to ruin my re-election bid it obviously didn’t work. And the phone call Tuesday closed the door on my wondering which Tribal Elder had been spoken to. I make jokes about it now with staff and other Council members. If we ever need some sort of signature just have Chris send his signature-gathering goons out. We also joke about the event in question, with images of me grabbing somebody by the back of their neck and gritting my teeth and saying “Sign it! Or else!”, and then I shake my fist in their face.
So what was a very upsetting one month ago has become something I and others can joke about. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t a low blow, one of the lowest I’ve seen to be honest. That’s part of the job I suppose. That’s why I was smiling Tuesday. Truth really is stranger than fiction.

In My Spare Time, Part III

“Capote” (2005)

Since I’ve always wanted to write for a living, this movie attracted me. The book “In Cold Blood” had to be a pretty gutsy thing to write in the late 50’s and early 60’s, in fact the whole subject of the brutal and unnecessary slaughter of a family in small-town Kansas had to be shocking. As a wannabe writer I’d have been just as grimly intrigued by the story as Capote was. What I find startling about this film is that it is not really a flattering portrait of Truman Capote, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman (who won the Best Actor Oscar). He was incredibly smart, a gifted writer, and very self-absorbed and egotistical. If this film is factually accurate, then Capote basically just used the killers to grind out non-fictional material for a book that would probably influence many future writers. He lies to them, especially the half-Indian, to gain their trust and extract the details of the killings which would earn them the death penalty. That Capote was unable to match the success of “In Cold Blood”, come to think of it I don’t believe he ever tried much after, is telling. It seems he pours his soul into this one work, even growing to care for the killers in a strange way. He also, if I am not mistaken, succumbed to alcohol. I probably sound like a dork in writing this review. But the minds and personalities of writers, especially great ones, fascinate me to no end.

“Pan’s Labryinth” (2006)

My Netflix queue has not missed many Spanish movies, usually Pedro Almoldovar. The Spaniards produce a different breed of cinema, I’ll give them that. Personally I think some of the most distinct films imported from Europe have come from Spain, more so than France or Germany or Britain, and they have definitely been some of the most imaginative. This film directed by Guillermo Del Toro is outstanding. It doesn’t move much beyond a fascist compound in Civil War Spain high up in the Pyrenees. The rest of the setting is a little girl’s imagination. Her mother has married an evil fascist captain, and is also pregnant with his son. The captain wants to kill rebels lurking in the surrounding forest. The little girl sees fairies and all sorts of creatures-- the theory is that she is the immortal soul of a magical princess coming home. While the rebels and fascists duke it out, brutally, she sets on a number of tasks that will help her return, one of which involves entering what looks like some magical realm. Throughout the film, we never really know how much of what she sees is real, as the adults never catch on. There aren’t many movies like this one, and it might seem kind of weird to some people. But it sucks you in, somehow.

Reading Minds

We met on Friday regarding the Special Constitutional Election. There wasn’t a whole lot to talk about, other than that we need to make clear to members what exactly is going on. For the second time in three weeks, I was told that we were off the ball somewhat in terms of educating members on this whole thing. I could help but roll my eyes at that comment, because up until now, just doing anything on this topic, whether a letter, article, or announcement even, has been a chore, a painstaking task of building consensus on an issue in which there would never be any consensus. We’ve never had the full support of Council on this, and about the only way we would ever arrive at consensus would be to bring in new Council members. It has been that difficult.
I’ve been trying to get a grip on what exactly has happened in the last week, especially regarding enrollment. Most of Council seems pretty calm and okay with what is taking place. All we are doing now is waiting, waiting for the BIA to give us the green light and clarify a few major points, one being whether the registration process would need to commence anew, the other a simple date for the election. Whether there is some sort of plan ready to take off once we get those answers I can’t exactly say. I was never privy to the apparent discussions that took place prior to the hasty decision last week. Had not somebody else pointed out that we still had Q & A sessions scheduled next week, I can’t help but wonder if those would have ever been caught at all.
Although I am only a fraction of the way through Barack Obama’s book “The Audacity of Hope”, there is already one passage that sticks out. He points out that those in positions of power rarely feel the real consequences of their decisions. I can’t think of a truer notion right now. In communicating with a number of people who’ve waited since 1999 on this issue, the sudden change in plans is apparently sickening. One person I spoke with said she felt like throwing up when word got to her about the change in plans last week. It has been gut-wrenching and stressful, and could grow to be more so later on.
All of that of course makes me wonder how this might have been handled had some of us on Council been directly affected by the whole enrollment mess. What if our kids had gotten the letters notifying of pending dis-enrollment? What if we were the ones whose membership hinged on the election that likely takes place in a few months? I can think of a few more what-ifs.
I’ve been trying to gauge how some of my co-workers feel about all this, to be specific what spurred the decision to change things up. While two Council members have been, to their credit, fairly clear on how they feel, some of the others just seem to be going with the flow, following the lead of those who feel more strongly about the issue, especially the definition of Grand Ronde blood. It seems, quite honestly, that the decision to separate that portion of the amendment was made specifically so that section would fail. Why that would be I can once again only speculate, but my hunches are pretty strong right now. I could always ask, really, but something tells me getting a truthful response is highly unlikely.
It’s times like these that I wish I could read minds. So we wait. Business continues for us. For some Tribal members and families, things might never again be the same.

Just Like Starting Over

An employee joked to me recently that instead of calling our Oath of Office ceremony “Swearing In”, we should really call it a “Swearing At”. That was probably in light of some of our most recent Council meetings. I doubt that employee really expected anything too ugly to occur on Wednesday, September 12 at 11 a.m. in Council Chambers, but then again, who ever does? It’s a time for celebration, in theory.
I had only been sworn in once before, three years prior obviously. Even then there was a degree of tension. What I remember is one person being ready to go after Angie, Buddy, and myself already, reading off an email from one of our supporters that was none too popular amongst the locals. As if trying to read it off during our swearing in wasn’t enough, the issue had to be revisited at length during our first Council meeting later on that night. Not surprisingly, one of the same people who chose to raise the issue was present two weeks ago, alleging that I or somebody on my behalf had coerced a Tribal elder into endorsing me during the election this year. Ridiculous. Even after three years, the cast of characters remains the same.
It certainly hadn’t changed Wednesday. After being sworn in and taking our Oath of Office a number of people, Tribal and non-Tribal alike, lined up to shake our hands and offer congratulations. Not once but twice I was drawn close to two different individuals who would whisper in a low voice so nobody else could hear, one making an accusation towards me and indicating that if I did it again they would “drop” me, the other taking exception with what I had written in the August issue of “Tilixam Wawa” and more or less saying that if I continued that they would no longer be my friend.
Not the best way to start off my second term.
But realistically, I shouldn't claim to be shocked. As the politics of Grand Ronde have grown more partisan, a point I need to keep repeating, they have also grown nastier. It just seems like the side I am on doesn’t tend to do things like this. Or this:
Just before lunch I was handed a Meeting Request Form signed by four Council members and the subject of which was written rather cryptically. It simply read “Enrollment Issue”, and the meeting request time was for 1:30 that same day, a little more than one hours notice. I asked the Council member who had handed me the request, and he indicated that they wanted to stop the present Constitutional Election and re-submit the language. The language would be the same, but split up into three parts. Specifically, the definition of Grand Ronde blood would be a separate amendment. Also, this was considered an emergency.
After a little research of our Operating Procedures, I informed the rest of Council that even in emergencies, at least 12 hours notice is required for any meeting, unless all nine Council members waive that notice in writing. Typically, 24 hours notice is necessary unless the situation is an emergency. I was later that afternoon handed another Meeting Request Form, this one reading “Operational Procedures”. This too, was an emergency, evidently.
I emailed out a request to schedule the meeting on Enrollment the next day at 1:30, followed by the Operating Procedures. Little did I know that neither of those would occur at those times, but more on that later. I would also get wind later on in the day that there would be a Special Tribal Council Meeting Friday morning to handle the enrollment stuff.
As everybody has heard, the Council meeting that afternoon featured a new election of Chair and Vice-Chair. Cheryle Kennedy replaced me six votes to three. Reyn Leno was awarded the Vice-Chair position over Kathleen Tom by the same margin. Everybody was very gracious and professional about the whole thing, which is how it should be.
In all honesty too, I am not angry or sad about no longer being the Chair. I knew my fate in that regard once the election results were in. Cheryle had to deal with being replaced by me last year, and now the opposite occurred. It would be hypocritical of me to be bitter. These are our Tribal laws.
But I must admit to being bothered by a couple of things. One is that the meeting on Enrollment, to stop the election and re-submit language, was held the following morning while I was speaking at the Tribal meth conference. I walked in at 9:20 or thereabouts and the conversation was being wrapped up. Our Tribal Council Relations Coordinator’s update, which usually occupies that time slot, had been canceled and the agenda amended to incorporate the Enrollment Discussion, and that of the Operating Procedures (although they just added Wednesdays as possible Work Session days, nothing I didn’t expect). A major decision, as we don’t really know how many if any Tribes have ever called off a Constitutional Election, had been discussed and decided in less than 30 minutes, with no Staff Reports and not even a Record of Instruction. And neither Wink, Kathleen, or myself were told it would happen that morning. The following morning, the resolutions to stop the election and re-submit language would pass at a Special Tribal Council Meeting.
Why am I bringing all this up? Why the long, tedious narrative? Well, frankly you almost had to be there to believe how it all went down. It was brazen, efficient, and legal, but also a far cry from how we had been conducting business the last two years. Furthermore, as I have not listened to the recording from that morning, I can’t vouch for how the conversation went, or what led up to it. It was either pre-planned and/or pre-discussed, and I was not a part of those, or the new faction in charge is incredibly efficient. So efficient that what took me, Angie, Buddy, Wink, and Kathleen months to decide was reviewed and re-adjusted in 20 minutes. Clear answers did not come forth during the Special Tribal Council meeting either. It just happened.
So is this just a freak occurrence or a new, in saying new I mean a return to the old, way of doing business? I’d like to give the new-look Council a chance, but stuff like last week makes me apprehensive already.
All I can do really, is just tell people how it appears through my own eyes, and let them draw their own conclusions.

Face Time with OB

I could not pass up the opportunity to meet with Barack Obama. Presently I am reading his book "The Audacity of Hope", and must say it is one of the most engaging books on politics I've ever read. In many ways I like his approach to issues. He is able to be critical without being offensive, and isn't afraid to admit admiration for people and/or ideas from the opposing party and even be frank about flaws of his own. Also, I admire politicians who not only write their own stuff, but do it well.
Although I had only a couple of minutes with him, he did autograph my book. After being told I was up for re-election the following day, he assured me I would win, because a man lucky enough to have a necklace like that must be lucky in other ways. He told me that if I win, he would like to borrow it. I plan on mailing it to him.

Hanging On

I’ve gotten so used to having Angie Blackwell and Buddy West around that in driving up to the Community Center today, a little anxiety crept up on me. Of course I was all too familiar with the election results from the previous evening, since the Tribal Chair is whom our Election Board calls first with the results. Even though I had won, I was also very much alone. And I approached the General Council Meeting today with the same reluctance that as a kid I approached one of my aunts’ dogs who had snapped at me once, so closely in fact that to this day I can recall his hot breath and the sound of snapping teeth.
All afternoon today I waited for that bite.
Buddy had chosen not to come in today, understandable considering the circumstances. I missed him immensely. And Angie left at the onset of Other Business, equally understandable because there were at least one or two people who were likely to be taking parting shots. I missed her as well. Despite the differences I might have had with those two, because honestly we rarely agree all the time with anybody in our lives, having them present conferred a sense of security. Kind of like having two buddies while walking down a dark alley at night. If the bad guys decide to strike, at least you’ve got back-up.
But the bite never came. I felt the breath, but never the fangs. And on a weekend that could ultimately end up being two steps back for the Tribe, for now things feel okay.
Elections and politics in general, have a way of bringing out the dark side in people. In having the good fortune to speak with a well-known regional politician last month, I was told that some leaders motivate (in this conversation he meant campaign) by fear, loathing, and playing upon people’s weaknesses, while others motivate by hope, inspiration, the promise of better days and greener pastures ahead. I’ve come to the conclusion that one is infinitely better than the other, but both are effective. That is what I still have a hard time getting used to.
Wednesday night’s Council meeting was atrocious. I’ve never felt like such a target. Somebody showed up only to try and get a rise out of me and make me look bad. It all felt so coordinated too, and set up. Watching opposing Council members joke and chuckle at me while leaving, clearly enjoying the hatchet job, once again had me questioning my desire to do this another three years. Not only did they want to get rid of me, and really us, but they wanted to give a kick in the rear on the way out. Winning the election isn’t enough. Humiliating defeat, taunting, and smugness have to be thrown in there too.
I don’t know if Saturday’s results mean a lapse or end to the meanness that has become Grand Ronde politics. In losing two people who for the most part stood for what I did, it’s hard to call it a victory. But staving off the sweep for a second straight year has to mean something. As one out-of-towner told me today, the votes I got reflect that Tribal members away from Grand Ronde do care, that the seemingly huge gang of locals and large families who follow the WIF (Wisdom, Integrity, Family) party aren’t going to monopolize every election.
What will be really interesting now is what happens next. Does the movement that has won two straight elections have a purpose or is it strictly about control? More importantly, do they intend to undo what we’ve built? Based upon the reaction that Monty Parazoo’s question about enrollment seemed to draw from at least three opposing Council members, I can’t help but wonder if there will be more passive-aggressive sabotage efforts mounted to derail the amendment. I almost wonder if the two Special Enrollment issues of “Tilixam Wawa” are going to happen now.
Following the meeting, my opponents converged to talk, lowering their voices to hushes as I walked by, clearly not wanting me to hear them. But I heard them still, and not even trying to eavesdrop. They had a large space rented in Sheridan, from what I heard.
“What are we doing?”
“We’re celebrating. And we’re gonna start talking about next year!”

The Case for Term Limits

While hiking into Willamette National Forest, I was lucky enough to be present while the topic of term limits was brought up. Being so mired in the world of Tribal politics, I've forgotten how what might seem bland and mundane to us is enormously fascinating to outsiders, to whom Tribes can be enigmatic and mysterious. During the hike I was confronted regularly by our guides about the political arena of Grand Ronde.

A question that has been posed to me numerous times is a simple one: Don't you guys have term limits? And if the answer is "no", why not? The second part of the question is invariably easier to answer than the first. Because we must abide by the Tribal Constitution, which has no language for term limits. The first part is not so easy.

What I've noticed about the 2007 Tribal Council elections, and with all due respect to most everyone reading this because you really have to be in or near my position to appreciate this, is that there is in the air, ever so slightly, the scent of revenge. When Angie, Buddy, and I were elected in 2004, and in the subsequent election, we unseated a few longstanding and well-known incumbent Council members. I believe at least one of those Council members has learned to live with the results, such is life, such is democracy. While the others, one in particular, I would say the exact opposite--they haven't learned to live with the results. In fact, for every one of us incumbents who tumbles this year, and there may be different degrees of savoring on this one depending on who falls, there will be much rejoicing and fist-pumping. That we've done a decent job is irrelevant. That we are still looking out for the best interests of the Tribe, in other words their interests, is overlooked. Payback what matters most. Control is a close second.

I'm not going to provide some sort of psychological analysis here. There is little point. But what I can and will say, and few will convince me otherwise, is that term limits might have eliminated a lot of the bitterness and hard feelings that are so prevalent in Grand Ronde politics right now. It would also have eliminated the "whatever it takes" attitude, including upholding and endorsing wrongdoing, that is growing a little too obvious these days.

I expect that "whatever it takes" philosophy to only be cultivated further in the next two elections. Heck it will probably even grow worse. The former powers that be are not only focused on regaining control, something I've become convinced a few of my co-workers almost view as a right, but they've grown used to their positions, including the income and even more crucially the influence. The latter, I really believe, is a much bigger reason for the kicking and screaming over the whole SMGI scenario. The influence there has probably paid off in more ways than one. Furthermore, it's an influence gained with only 20% of the vote in Council elections. Ultimately, I've often wondered if the turmoil and clannishness of our Tribe isn't fueled by the fact that nobody on Council seems to ever be elected with a majority. Election reform might be an alternate answer.

Of course I would never advocate for such a major change like term limits without it going to a vote of the general membership. To ever be trully effective it would have to be in the Constitution anyway. The real question is when will that opportunity for the membership to decide ever come?

Partisan animosity stings unlike anything else. The idea that people hate you just because you were elected over somebody they like or are related to is still hard to take, even after three years. That more than anything I think is what stokes the tension on Council and in public meetings. When you genuinely care about the Tribe, the strife grows old. We see it in national politics as well, which has become a decades long see-saw of power between Republicans and Democrats. Like Bill Clinton, I've noticed George W. Bush is exiting office with a lot whiter hair. But he's exiting whether I voted for him or not. He's done his two terms, like Clinton before him. Somebody else will always get the chance to take the reins.

I think three terms is plenty of time for a Council member to make a difference. This great country of ours can send their most powerful public official packing every eight years, and yet the nation survives. In fact, it thrives. That is more than good enough for me.

Another Trek into Willamette National Forest

Once again, I am not making this kind of post because there is nothing important to report. Like two years ago in our hike to Obsidian Cliffs we once again made a venture into Willamette National Forest as part of our Memorandum of Understanding. This time it was me, Jack Giffen, Jr. and Rob Greene, in addition to three Forest Service workers who helped arrange the trip.

While not as arduous as Obsidian Cliffs, it wasn't easy either, as we hiked a little less than ten miles Thursday and Friday. What was interesting about this trip is we encountered a couple of sites, one was definite, that had been areas for obsidian-working. Two of our Forest Service workers found what looked like a little cache of obsidian flakes, as if somebody had clearly been chipping away.

The lakes you see are Lake Benson, Lake Tenas, and an unnamed lake that we had all to ourselves. I spoke with the representatives about making the Obsidian Cliffs hike an annual event. Per law we can't take parties of more than 12 into the area. But even at that number it would allow a good number of people. Like the meteorite, or the canoe journey, I would hope that we could make this yearly rite of passage for Tribal members who are willing. Though it can be grueling at times, it is well worth the sweat. What I like best is the pristine nature of this area. You have to see it to believe it. We were only a few miles from the Obsidian Cliffs area, in fact from one of the mountain tops you could see exactly where we had been two years previously. I kid you not, this place was absolutely beautiful. Whatever attraction was there for our ancestors is definitely there now.

The other photos are the lava fields around Belknap Crater, also spectacular. My legs are very sore right now.

A New Low

This blog entry is definitely not positive. But right now I am upset enough to not care. For anybody who is interested, last night Angie Blackwell put up two brand new campaign signs along Grand Ronde Rd. While driving to the office this morning, I saw they had both been stolen. Neither had lasted much more than 12 hours.
For those who might remember, Buddy West had a banner disappear completely a few weeks back. My own luck has been good so far, although I did have to retrieve one of my signs from some bushes last week. This sign is encased in a heavy metal frame and drove in deep, so I know that the wind couldn't have moved it so far.
These signs are not cheap. They add up after a while. I just hope that the people who feel the need to do this haven't forgotten that there are better, and more legal ways, of voicing their opposition to us. Voting is one of them.

Another Stop for the Udall Kids

I must admit to being very envious of this whole project. Had something like this come along during my college days I'd have signed up without hesitation, no questions asked.

http://blogs.udall.gov/2007/08/grand-finale-stop.html

Opening The Door

I’ve gotten a lot of compliments recently regarding my proposal to put the issue of Tribal Council members on the Spirit Mountain Gaming Incorporated Board of Directors into the hands of the General membership via advisory vote. In all honesty, I am still unsure of how to take that. You see, I am unsure if some of the people who have thanked me are grateful because they foresee the practice continuing since we were basically ready to pull the four Council off the board regardless of the lynch mob that was present Thursday night. In other words, they expect the membership to vote in favor of keeping them on. Or are they just happy to have a say in what is really a major decision, one that frankly I think is more important than people really think? I am not sure, honestly.
The Tribal Council had numerous discussions about this over the past few months. What spurred those discussions was the realization that there had been a number of events which had occurred at Spirit Mountain over the past year plus which I believe would have made anybody with common sense or integrity skeptical and alarmed. I am not going to get into those right now (sorry Rosemary), because they will be brought up very soon anyway. Trust me on that one. But what I am ready to get into is my own sense of frustration over the reaction we have received for even proposing this.
For those not in the know, word had gotten out about this Wednesday even though I think there was clear effort to act like nobody knew about it. I know this because two of the Council members who didn’t agree with our impending decision basically indicated they would be rallying support with a few phone calls, and said so deliberately within earshot of me. Wednesday’s Tribal Council meeting didn’t get over until after 9 p.m., and most of it was held in Executive Session, where we were allowed to expound on some of our concerns within legal limits, which unfortunately was just a fraction of our reasons. The crowd that night was definitely a stacked deck, and not in our favor. Nor were they especially nice.
Fast forward now to Thursday night, the Special Tribal Council Meeting in which we were supposed to actually do the deed. It was basically the same crowd, with more support. It was also all the usual suspects amongst my, or should I say our, detractors. We might have had one or two friendly faces, but not many. Two hundred years ago they would have been carrying five sets of rope.
So there we were, poised to engage in a very unpopular, if necessary decision, and in all likelihood the crowd that night was ready to take this to dawn. Thus my proposal: The Council each present their argument in a special publication, no more than 800 words each, with September 15 as a deadline to respond. The deadline for our arguments would be one week. Furthermore, every Council present would give their word that they would honor the decision of the membership. Nearly all of us agreed, though one of our number was a little vague in his assurance. There you have it.
Now in retrospect I’m a little tempted to pat myself on the back because of the overwhelming popularity of this decision. A meeting that seemed destined for a hanging ended with graciousness and applause. But realistically, the proposal I made seemed about the only one likely to be met with compromise by all of the Council. Plus I had all the previous night to think something up, after not being able to sleep. I guess we’ll see how this turns out. Either way, I am very excited.
I must admit though to being a little dismayed though too. The reaction to our potential decision was vicious and mean-spirited. Tribal members who happen to listen to this audios of both meetings will notice that readily. I can’t claim to be a stranger to that after three years on Council. But I can claim to be appalled.
I am appalled because we didn’t just make up our reasons for wanting to do this. What we can cite as reasons are shocking in some respects, and the ones we can’t cite would probably be even more so. But the reaction of some Tribal members in both meetings was directed more at us for pushing the issue and "rocking the boat" so to speak. Or in hindsight, was it because what we were doing we were doing to Council members they supported? I tend to think the latter. That is what disturbs me the most. The politics of Grand Ronde have become so partisan, supporters have become so loyal to their "party", that the real issues in this matter are irrelevant. They hate me, Angie, Buddy, Wink, and Kathy so much that they’ll defend wrongdoing if it means making us look bad. I’ll never get over that.
For all our differences, and some of these have been public, I was very content when Betty Bly took the podium and spoke her mind. Indeed, she and Monty Parazoo seemed to among the minority that night who truly understood why we felt the need to do what we were going to do. Betty in particular understood that it really boiled down to one simple concept: right and wrong. In this case she acknowledged that there had clearly been wrongdoing at Spirit Mountain Casino, and that some Council board members appeared to not care, in fact they even seemed to defend it, all because of who the perpetrator was, (and if I may go so far, their political allegiance to that individual. But that is my comment, not Betty’s).
Betty Bly in fact provided what to me was the perfect illustration of my frustration. Speaking to the issue of trust, she simply inquired, or seemed to be inquiring anyway, as to whether one of the Council board members in question had abused their credit card. A good friend of this Council member yelled at Betty immediately from the back of the room. And if looks could kill, then a very vocal supporter/Tribal Elder/former Council member would have struck her dead. In fact, that is the quickest I’ve ever seen this person jump out of their seat. I told Betty I was reluctant to respond. Angie Blackwell however noted that the credit cards are the people’s money. But despite that the issue Betty raised might be perfectly legitimate, even if correct those people were ready to defend it, and even assail the person who dared bring it up. Politics overrides integrity sometimes I guess.
Because of this reaction, I honestly can’t predict the outcome of this advisory vote, especially if voters are more focused on the "who’s" of it all and not the "why’s". In other words, they don’t like us, and for that reason alone they’ll vote against it, regardless of risks to the Tribe and casino. But if there is any victory in this, it is as Monty Parazoo pointed out: Do this once, and Tribal members will want to do it again. Heck, they will expect it.
For that reason and possibility alone, it was worth one very vicious and degrading meeting, a severe headache, and a night with little sleep.