Assemblyman Fred Thiele is conducting a survey regarding the Shinnecock Indian Nation and its ongoing struggle to meet the vast needs of our Nation through Indian gaming. Mr. Thiele asks residents to review his survey and respond. Well, we could have saved Mr. Thiele a great deal of time, effort and money, because thousands of those individuals already favor our plans. They have signed a petition supporting our cause and urging Mr. Thiele to stop fighting his Indian neighbor.

Simply put, Mr. Thiele has crafted a misleading survey to elicit or underscore his own narrow and largely uninformed views on the matter of Indian gaming. And, interestingly, it mirrors questions already asked in a similar survey issued by the Group for the South Fork. Let's take a closer look.

First, Mr. Thiele paints a misleading picture by referring to our proposed facility as a "gambling casino." We have never planned a "gambling casino" like those built in Las Vegas or Atlantic City. Our plans call for a tastefully designed Indian gaming facility that fits our natural surroundings. In face, some homes on the East End are likely bigger than our proposed facility.

Second, Mr. Thiele asks about our federal recognition process. Let's be clear: The fact that the political system deems it appropriate to refer to us as "federally recognized," non-federally recognized" or "state-recognized" does not change the fact that we are Indians. The Shinnecock were one of the first to sign a treaty with the colonial government in 1640 when the Town of Southampton was settled. Our history with the settlers dates back to the newly arrived from Lynn, Massachusetts, more than 350 years ago. Historical documents point out that the very survival of that fragile settlement from Lynn can be credited to the Shinnecock Indians.

Finally, the alternatives Mr. Thiele offers are vague, lack any real substance and in some cases are illegal. Mr. Thiele has refused to meet with us to discuss Indian gaming. So, it's not surprising that he doesn't know the many economic alternatives we've explored. The oyster hatchery was probably our most successful venture until the brown tide closed it down. Other ventures have been explored, such as windmill electricity generation, cell tower, waste management and more.

There is one question that Mr. Thiele conveniently ignores. So we'll ask it: "Should the Town of Southampton spend millions of taxpayer money to fight its Indian neighbor of nearly 400 years instead of using that money for schools, roads and other public services?" Already, Mr. Thiele and the town politicians have spent at least a half million dollars (in less than eight months) on litigation, out-of-state travel, a "librarian" and much more. Ironically, they used taxpayer money to visit so-called "experts" in Connecticut but won't spend gas money to drive down the street to talk to us.

As we see it, you can add the cost of Mr. Thiele's ill-advised mailer to that growing taxpayer bill! Visit us at Shinnecocknation.com to learn more and see how you can help.

FRED BESS
Chairman

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