Wednesday, February 19, 2003

Native-American Self-Determination & Asian-American Self-Annihilation

More regarding gambling: it's clear that Asian-Americans are the main constituency for Indian casino gambling in California. Why, I don't know - there must be historical or cultural reasons. In any event, gambling seems to occupy a more-esteemed place in Asian imaginations than it does it Western imaginations. I remember many, hazy, casino evenings, segueing imperceptibly into the morning afterwards, sitting with Thai and Filipino housewives at crowded blackjack tables (frequently they'd win), which would have been unthinkable if gambling had had a really bad reputation among them.

There may be links between gambling and suicide: Nevada, for example, has a really high suicide rate. The possible link led me to coin a harsh phrase of the whole Indian casino political scene:

Why does Native-American self-determination have to rest so squarely upon Asian-American self-annihilation?



Not quite a slogan, but getting close!

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