I guess it would be ok if the Somali's in Lewiston wanted this Casino then!
Governor Baldacci DemocRAT 
Held press conference inSIDE his office. Didn't have the nerve to go outside and face the people. What does THIS tell us?!
Posted on 11/04/2003 4:58:06 AM PST by SheLion
BANGOR - A planned rally in opposition to a proposed Indian-backed $650 million resort casino in Maine was silenced by the shouts and protests of casino supporters Saturday in front of City Hall.What was supposed to be a public rally on the steps of City Hall featuring Maine Gov. John Baldacci (D) turned into a small press conference held inside a nearby office. As pro-casino representatives shouted "no more lies" and "yes for jobs," representatives from Casinos No! packed up their signs and left, to the delight of the pro-casino crowd.
"We're not into shouting matches," Janet Mills, a spokeswoman for Casinos No!, said during the press conference. "What we see outside is an example of desperate politics. They know the people of Maine have seen the light."
The latest polls suggest that opposition to Question 3 has reached nearly 60 percent heading into election day, when voters will decide whether to allow the Penobscot Nation and the Passamaquoddy Tribe to open a casino in Maine. The projected location for the resort casino is Sanford, in southern Maine.
Dennis Bailey, a spokesman for Casinos No!, said the decision to pull the plug on the rally stemmed from a fear that the safety of anti-casino representatives was at risk.
Despite Bailey's concerns, Sgt. James Owens from the Bangor Police Department said nobody from Casinos No! reported any threats of violence to the officers present at the rally. He also said both groups had permits to hold a rally at that time. No arrests were made.
"We respect their right to say what they have to say, but clearly they didn't respect ours. They were picking a fight," Bailey said. (ahhhhhhhh)
But casino supporters claimed victory after the anti-casino rally was canceled, and the cheers and shouts could be heard from protesters standing outside during the press conference. At a pro-casino rally held earlier in the day, Erin Lehane, spokeswoman for the political action committee Think About It, said casino supporters would continue their efforts until voters go to the polls tomorrow.
"The people are going to win this election. This is about putting people first. Nobody is standing up for the people of Maine. Nobody. We are not going to let the politicians and the millionaires take this opportunity away from the people in Maine," she said.
Supporters of the casino claim it will boost Maine's economy by providing good-paying jobs and $100 million in annual tax revenue to the state.
"Right now our families are working two part-time jobs, so the wage needs to go up," Vi Raymond, spokeswoman for the Maine American Federation of Labor, said during the pro-casino rally. "Labor unions make wages go up, and they bring in benefits and health care."
Debbie Kondilis, spokeswoman for the Penobscot Nation, said the casino would be good for everyone in Maine, not just the tribes.
"We need to put Maine back on the map," she said.
But opponents of the casino say it is not a quick fix to Maine's dwindling economy.
Maine humorist Tim Sample, who was part of the anti-casino press conference, said the proposed casino would ruin Maine's quality of life. (WHAT quality of life?!)
"A lot of people have been misled and have bought the line about jobs," he said. "Whatever the answers are [to Maine's economic problems], they're not simple answers."
Bailey, who calls the proposed casino a "bad deal for Maine," said he is not sure if Casinos No! will try to hold another rally in Bangor before Election Day.
He also said he was reluctant to bring Gov. Baldacci to a public rally because of safety concerns. (He's only 5'4". Wouldn't take much to take him down. heh)
"[The casino supporters] follow us everywhere we go," he said.
Also part of the press conference was former Passamaquoddy tribal Gov. Allen Sockabasin, who said he is opposed to a resort casino in Maine for cultural reasons. ??!!
"It goes against our grain. One of our values is not to take advantage of people," said Sockabasin, who presided over the Passamaquoddy Tribe from 1972 until 1976.
Those at the anti-casino press conference said they were not running away from a debate.
"We've always invited dialogue," Mills said. "This [Saturday's opposing rallies] is a shouting match - that's not what we're about."
I guess it would be ok if the Somali's in Lewiston wanted this Casino then!
Governor Baldacci DemocRAT Held press conference inSIDE his office. Didn't have the nerve to go outside and face the people. What does THIS tell us?!
Am I understanding you correctly - you're voting for the casino? Sorry, but I think its one of the most misguided, one-sided pieces of legislative crap I've seen in a long time.
From the Advertiser Democrat and ChristianPatriot.com:
Then we have the gambling issues. For Bible believing and reading Christians this is a simple and effective no all the way through. No to the casino and no to the other pro family destroying pro-gambling issues as well. Why you ask? In Acts chapter one we see Peter and the other ten apostles casting lots, throwing dice so to speak, to pick a replacement for Judas Iscariot the traitor. They had two names, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. Now when they had tossed their dice, and the lot fell upon Matthias. So the Apostles rubbed their hands together and said, "there we are now twelve again." After all, for years that is the way things were done, the high priest cast lots and God controlled the dice and that is how things of the Lord were often choosen. But, in 33AD that changed, for God rejected Matthias and as we read in Acts Chapter nine, choose Saul who was to be renamed Paul, the second greatest evangelist to ever walk the face of the earth, the Lord Jesus being first.
Bear in mind, Bob was stationed in the south, NC, SC, Alabama and Florida between 62 and 68, ask him to compare the poverty of the southern black with that of the Isletta trib memebers. And then ask him to tell you how the chiefs life.
The Lord be with you,
Maine may have plenty of problems, but Casinos would only make it worse, not better.
Hehehe...
You got that right. I hope voting stupid isn't one of them either.
This Maine casino measure is very similar to the CA one which has proven to be such a bust. The moment you set up the conditions whereby the state has no right of audit (unless permission granted by the tribes), you KNOW the tribes will never allow an audit, and so the tribes can declare: "hey we never made any money" -- not fork over a dime in taxes, and never be challenged with an audit. What a scam!
Maine's DemocRAT Govenor Baldacci is AGAINST this Casino. Anything he is against I am FOR! Sorry to disappoint some of you, but there are many in this state that ARE voting for the Casino.
There are a lot of people in this state that do NOT want to see Maine move ahead. I, for one, am sick and tired of the DemocRATS in Augusta pulling the shots and telling me how to live my life.
I, for one, will probably never get to southern Maine to visit the Casino. I do not gamble. But it will be a boom to the state's economy no matter what propaganda that has been out there to the contrary. I'm TIRED of our Mainers going to NH Casino to spend their money there. We should keep it in the state of Maine.
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