[Sabertooth]

My sentiments are with McClintock, but this is off the mark. Schwarzenegger is making a legitimate point that Indian gambling has become too powerful in state politics. Their campaign cash is buying them far too much influence, and I'm disappointed that McClintock took it. I'd much rather that he had pledged to rein them in than accept their money.

What's that comment that Rush used to make...?

"If you want to get the money out of politics, get the politicians out of our money."

So long as politicians look at every dollar in the private sector as a piggy bank waiting to be broken, folks are going to want to influence elections in self defense. So it goes with the Indian casinos.

Schwarzenegger has taken in a lot of money from developers, and has a plan to sell off California's landed assets. Is that not a conflict?

I'm actually in favor of getting land out of government hands, but I'd like an open debate about how to best go about it. Should it all go to developers? Should California citizens with some minimum residence requirement get a crack at purchasing designated parcels?

I'm rambling. I'm just suspicious of the premise that the influence of Indian casinos, since their operations are legal, is any different ethically than any other interest group.

[John Jorsett]

I'm rambling. I'm just suspicious of the premise that the influence of Indian casinos, since their operations are legal, is any different ethically than any other interest group.

Being legal doesn't mean it's a good idea to let them run amok in the legislature. That bill to give them virtual veto rights over all development in the state is an example of the dangers of permitting unbridled power to a single group like this. We barely dodged that bullet this time, but it'll be back, probably in an even more malignant form the way the driver's license bill was.

I think what ought to happen is California legalizing gambling for non-Indian groups as well, only make the non-Indian ones regulated and taxed. Even with a disadvantage like being taxed and regulated, I think more people would go to a regulated establishment rather than take chances on an unregulated one. I've never gone to an Indian casino because nobody is watching them to make sure they're on the up and up. I wouldn't have the same concerns for a regulated establishment. I suspect a lot of people are like me, and non-Indian casinos would flourish, cutting down on the income, power, and influence of the Indians.