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Hickey Proposes SD TRADE Workforce Plan for Indians; Redemption for EB-5?

Ignored along with low wages in Governor Dennis Daugaard's Workforce Summits: Indians. With thousands of Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota people on South Dakota's reservations shut out of South Dakota's workforce, the Governor held none of his six Workforce Summits in reservation towns, and the Workforce Summit report does not mention American Indians or reservations.

Enter Rep. Rev. Steve Hickey (R-9/Sioux Falls). The Republican legislator got brief mention at the bottom of one article about the Workforce Summit report, saying he thinks the Governor could do more to address workforce issues in the state's poorest areas. But the state's poorest areas don't vote or donate Republican, so don't expect much if any of the Governor's latest one million dollars of corporate welfare to go toward the reservations.

Into this glaring policy gap, Rep. Hickey throws the first draft of his SD TRADE plan, a proposal to include our Indian neighbors in the Governor's South Dakota WINS economic development program:

SD T.R.A.D.E.
South Dakota Tribal Resource and Development Exchange
Rep. Steve Hickey, SD-District 9.

SD TRADE is a proposed sub-initiative within the SD WINS workforce initiative.

As SD WINS seeks state “cross-collaboration” with communities and businesses, SD TRADE seeks state cross-collaboration with tribes and industry.

SD TRADE looks at the sober unemployment realities on our reservations not as a problem but as an opportunity.

SD TRADE seeks to create a perpetual jobs pipeline across South Dakota bring economic opportunity, development and prosperity to desperately impoverished areas in our state.

DEFINITIONS

Trade:

  1. The exchange of jobs and services
  2. A skilled job

SD TRADE employs both aspects of this definition exchanging land for skilled jobs.

Trade Center:

  1. A central location for commerce and industry
  2. A hub for job opportunity

REALITIES

South Dakota industries need workers to move into the state. South Dakota Indians need employment opportunities in the state.

South Dakota celebrates a low unemployment rate only because tribal unemployment statistics are excluded. The real unemployment rate in South Dakota which include tribal unemployment are much more dire.

How many potentially employable natives are on reservations without access to job opportunities? 10,000? Most certainly more.

Industries are not tapping into this available labor force on reservations for a variety of reasons, first and foremost of which are things like sovereignty issues and complication legal and tax uncertainties.

If our best minds can navigate through the complexities, obstacles and challenges to build a hundred clinics overseas, and if our industries can capitalize on exporting jobs overseas, and if our industries can get creative to import foreign labor into our state then surely our best minds can navigate the challenges of tapping into a challenging and remote labor force within our state.

WHAT IS SD TRADE?

SD TRADE encourages strategic land swaps between the state and the tribes. Tribes indefinitely release and legally assign (one hundred) acres to the state for the establishment of TRADE CENTERS (commercial and industrial) in exchange for (one thousand acres) of land the state deeds back to the tribes.

Imagine several TRADE CENTERS, one on Rosebud and others on Pine Ridge and Lower Brule. These are commercial and industrial work centers with various industries in one location, given tax and other incentives.

Industries at each TRADE CENTER contribute toward shift shuttles commuting workers back and forth to their communities each work day.

Pharmacies, clinics and support agencies can be encouraged to offer services adjacent to or within a TRADE CENTER complex.

South Dakota Tech Schools can be encouraged to develop onsite training for new recruits. State funds can be allocated to tech-ed schools for use in developing on-site skill training. Perhaps Federal funds are available and can be acquired for a TRADE CENTER pilot project.

South Dakota can ensure good roads from the Interstate to the various TRADE CENTER complex [Rep. Steve Hickey, draft proposal, 2014.09.04].

Land swaps to create economic development zones where we could plunk factories, offices, and training centers—fascinating! Our industry leaders find ways to make profits on production done thousands of miles away in Malaysia; what stands in the way of their using Hickey's SD TRADE plan to make Jeeps, jackets, and jerky just hundreds of miles away in Manderson and Mission?

Economic development on the reservations may be complicated, but Rep. Hickey reminds me that our "best minds" have plumbed all sorts of complexities for past economic development plans. Recall the wildly complicated financing of Northern Beef Packers.

And while we're recalling Northern Beef Packers, let us ask why NBP and other EB-5-backed projects weren't directed toward employing South Dakota's Indian workforce. EB-5 investors get their green cards for half price when they invest in "Targeted Employment Areas"—i.e., rural areas or areas with high unemployment. Every project funded by EB-5 dollars in South Dakota was in a rural area, but none targeted an area of high unemployment.

If EB-5 is wonderful (and Mike Rounds desperately needs us to believe to the exclusion of everything else), imagine how much more wonderful it would be if we combined it with Rep. Hickey's thinking and used it to join workers and jobs on South Dakota's reservations. Traditional markets don't gamble on reservation projects. Directing EB-5 investments toward SD TRADE work centers would fill exactly the capital gap that government intrusion in the economy like EB-5 ought to fill.

We may do better implementing Hickey's SD TRADE plan on its own, without entangling it in the questionable morality and economics of EB-5. But couple SD TRADE with EB-5 financing, and we may have a recipe for tackling the Indian workforce problem that the state and the free market are ignoring.

129 Comments

  1. larry kurtz 2014.09.05

    Hickey is paranoid that tribes holding off-reservation ground who support reproductive rights and want them abandon their holdings to reduce the chances of women's clinics.

    Get it through your heads, people: tribal nations want zero help from the State of South Dakota.

  2. Nick Nemec 2014.09.05

    Kudos to Rep. Hickey for having the courage to state the obvious, the king has no clothes. Sadly a long line of governors have been unwilling to lift a finger to help our Native brothers and sisters address the very serious problems of poverty on the reservations.

    I don't know if this is a possible solution, but it's a suggestion, which is more than you hear from Governor Daugaard. We need a Governor who is willing to meet with tribal leaders on a co-equal basis to tackle problems that effect all South Dakotans. At least Rep Hickey is in the room.

  3. Bill Fleming 2014.09.05

    Larry, on what authority do you presume to speak for the tribal nations?

  4. larry kurtz 2014.09.05

    Fair question, Bill.

    Maybe the 200+ American Indians following me on twitter retweeting my stuff, some of whom agree completely with my manifesto.

  5. bearcreekbat 2014.09.05

    I like Rep. Hickey's proposal. Imagine if we still had someone like George S. Mickelson in the governor's seat. Rep. Hickey's proposal could become a reality.

    It really is time to try to work together and address the poverty and unemployment that the nation knows we have here in SD even if our current SD leaders try to ignore the stark facts. According to Wikipedia, SD has the two poorest counties in the nation, and three more counties falling within the top ten poorest counties in the nation. That is a horrible record. A good faith implementation of Rep. Hickey's idea could change this unfortunate state of affairs.

  6. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.05

    Somewhere way back in the first EB-5 reporting, I wondered why tribes were not made aware or participated in the program, it had all the appearances of an exclusive club for the crony capitalist.
    Rev. Hickey is on the right course with his proposal, it will need to be fine tuned, especially any discussion of any land swaps which tribes will always question or doubt.
    Many tribes already have trained workforces, in the 1950's the BIA started a program called Relocation, tribal members were offered an opportunity to go to major cities for job training and placement. Thousands of tribal members took advantage of this program nation wide.
    Many stayed and carved out careers for themselves, many more returned longing for families and tribal life, what they brought back with them were skills in a variety of areas. The program continued for sometime only under a different name.
    Even today, many young people leave the reservation and gain job skills on their own, and than return.
    Like Rev. Hickey says, reservations are a gold mine in trained and skilled workers that have no place to ply their trade.
    I disagree with Larry that tribes want nothing to do with the state, if the state were to collaborate with tribes in an honest approach, take jurisdiction off the table, and request tribal input on such a proposal, we all might have something to work with.
    Rep. Kevin Killer (D) of Pine Ridge would be able offer valuable advice and direction to this proposal.
    I commend Rev. Hickey for his bold effort, just don't forget to include Indians in the process.

  7. Steve Sibson 2014.09.05

    "I commend Rev. Hickey for his bold effort, just don't forget to include Indians in the process."

    The ones I talk to are offended about being deemed "poor". Their worldview rejects materialism and instead believe life is enriched with time together building relationships. They do not trust those with forked tongues.

  8. Noah Perry 2014.09.05

    Does anyone know what the unemployment rate would be in SD if the reservations were included?

    Is separating the reservations from these statistics standard in other states?

  9. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.05

    Steve,
    Good observation on being poor. My mother was born and raised in the very isolated Badlands and here family struggled to make a living along with her non-Indian neighbors. She often said "we were poor and didn't know it until the government told us we were".
    Such is the case with many families that live on the reservations, many are not materialistic or seeking power, they choose to have a simple life not encumbered with societal needs and wants.
    It has been my contention that the federal government, intentionally or unintentionally created reservations poverty, with the development of cluster housing and the problems that come with living in low-income housing.

  10. JeniW 2014.09.05

    When I came to SD in 1978, I was frequently told that there were "no poor people" in SD. There were of coarse "poor people," they just did not recognize it, or did not want to acknowledge it.

    I was told that more by people who lived in the rural areas than those living in a community. People living in the rural areas were more isolated, and had no way to compare.

    I grew up in a poor family and poor neighborhood, but did not know we were poor until I got away from that environment. No one told me/us that we were poor, I figured it out when knowledge of the world became broader.

    One time my mother told me that she wished that she had known about the different services because maybe, our lives would not have been so difficult, and less struggling to survive.

  11. Steve Sibson 2014.09.05

    Revelation 3:17

    You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

  12. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.05

    I like the sound of this, though I'll leave the details to Roger, Hickey and others. I believe it is crucial that this worthy project be carried out "with" the Indians, not "for" them.

    While I recognize that all involved must have 'skin in the game' to create a long term successful business model, why 100 acres for 1000? What is the particular thinking that causes you to arrive at that figure, Rep. Hickey?

  13. lesliengland 2014.09.05

    why would indians consider swapping even a square inch more of their homelands?

    as mentioned before, noem crows about turning more of their land (everything between the cheyenne and belle fourche rivers) over to non-indians for cemeteries. i would be curious to hear whether the indians were consulted before her landmark piece of legislation was enacted. i doubt it, but i would not be surprised that if the indians had been consulted their reaction would have been deeply respectful to those interred.

    if any swap might serve the indians it would be acre for acre return to the tribe for that taken up by the nps plan for another national buffalo park in shannon county.

    imo

  14. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.05

    I see what you're saying Leslie. I can see the land swap as a sticking point. Land is sacred on the res. It's like the special relationship to the land was condensed down to a small fraction of what they used to belong to.

    On the other hand though Leslie, a 10-1 ratio is a pretty good deal.

    Hickey, where would the land involved in the swap be? Negotiated between the tribes and state? Fairly? Of course the tribes aren't going to trust the whites. Why would they?

    Ironclad guarantees will be required. More ironclad than previous 'treaties.' Maybe something like white officials promise their 1st born? Or perhaps a rather gigantic bond, sort of like what a decent minerals extraction deal with a state requires. Well-earned distrust will likely play an outsized role.

    Lest anyone thinks I'm trying to throw cold water on this idea, I support it. I also want it to work.

  15. grudznick 2014.09.05

    The funny thing about land is that back in the day, back when $24 of beads got traded for what is now the most expensive joint in the world, the American Indians had no concept of land ownership. As I have been told anyway. They just kinda thought, "hey, it's land, who can own it, there it be so sure, give me those beads." That's what the history teacher at Yankton college basically taught, anyway.

    So. Here we are. Arguing over land. I am slightly at a loss to explain why today people argue over who gets to buy "Pay Slaw" (Lar, that's how it is pronounced) instead of why Pay Slaw isn't being properly attended to by them who claim it is sacred in the first place.

    There's a lot of gnawing going on up that way, at Pay Slaw, you know.

  16. grudznick 2014.09.05

    Ms. LeslieEngland, what Indians is it you would have consulted? I suggest you get a tribe, any tribe, to get their shit together and then start talking about land swaps. Otherwise you are just blathering after watching Kevin Costner roll himself up in some beef jerky wrapper. You know not what you blather.

  17. grudznick 2014.09.05

    here comes the Mr. H enragement....

  18. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.05

    Grudz, it's an interesting point.

    I'd say everyone has the same right to dump millions of barrels of oil into the ocean, leave uranium mines spewing radiation for centuries, destroy the atmosphere to such an extent that the entire planet becomes uninhabitable, or throw dirty diapers on the ground.

  19. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.05

    That was fun Grudz.

    Ask me another!
    Ask me another!

  20. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.05

    grudz,
    Your call for tribes "to get their shit together" is uncalled for and unproductive. Everyday I follow my news cycle that includes reading the daily paper along with their comments, read the blogs, Cory's is always first, and listen to cable news. And everyday I hear the same thing, our state and national governments are corrupt and dysfunctional, why should tribal governments that have only been in existence since 1934 be any different? Tribes have their problems, so does your government.
    After giving Rev. Hickey's proposal more detailed thought today, I don't see the necessity of any land swaps, it is risky and probably wouldn't be accepted. What would work are long term business leases that would achieve the same purpose. Tribes have used the long term business lease format before with success.
    Reservation economic development does not always have to be major manufacturing plants or ill-fated NBP white elephants.
    With all due respect to Mr. Hickey and his efforts, is it realistic for this state, noted for its racism, really going to the effort and money into "Indian programs"? I can already hear the Republican outcry.
    Like Deb, I'm not trying to throw water on Rev. Hickey's concept for employment and development, but there are some realities to face.

  21. Steve Hickey 2014.09.05

    My thought was each tribe could decide what they would like to trade. Surely there are key pieces of land each of the various tribes would like back. Bear Butte, wounded knee etc. or maybe less significant pieces that have cultural value. But the trades don't have to be just land, they could offer to trade anything. Industries need certainty. Tribes can offer that for a trade

    A trade center on the reservation can restore hope. We can't continue to celebrate our states economy while a significant sector of our state is excluded from that. It would be a win for everyone. Fewer kids killing themselves. Fewer people going to jail and doing drugs. My good friend's brother died alone drinking Lysol. Either we care or we don't. If we do, then let's figure it out together. Forgive my grammar and typos I'm talking into a phone to transcribe this.

    Leaders don't give all the reasons something can't happen. They figure out how to make it happen.

  22. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.05

    Agreed with your sentiment Hickey.

    I hope 'leaders' can find ways to address the valid issues Roger and I have raised. That's a center piece of what any leader needs to 'make happen.'

  23. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.05

    The U.S. Departments of Commerce and Labor would serve as a tremendous resource to advance this concept.
    Back in the day when I was directly involved on a local and national scale with economic development on reservations, we used them for information and often times got referrals from them for specific projects.
    In one instance we were able to gain access to a group of third world economic development consultants that helped with an agricultural program that was highly successful in the southwest.
    The federal government shouldn't always be viewed as a cash machine for every idea someone has, they can be a great resources in a variety of areas.

  24. jerry 2014.09.05

    A free trade zone may be the ticket. The land swap deal is not gonna work for either parties.

  25. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.05

    In a related note, Roger, is the Pine Ridge involved in micro loans? Even though the res suffers from severe economic hardship, are micro loans as effective here as in countries like Uganda, Bangladesh, or Bolivia?

  26. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.05

    Deb,
    I believe that the Lakota Fund provides micro-loans for smaller businesses as well as for large projects.
    Jerry,
    When Bill Clinton visited the Pine Ridge Reservation years ago, he helped the tribe establish empowerment zones that would have qualified the tribe to trade with foreign and domestic markets. I don't think the tribe ever really figured out how to use them and had very little to offer in trade, this is where Rev. Hickey's employment trade idea could factor in.
    Empowerment Zones are just that, they empower tribes to trade without the usual restrictions that apply to import and export duties.
    From what I remember, Canada was one of the first countries to establish empowerment zones for their country and the reserves. The Oneida Nation of New York that has lands in both countries, exercised their sovereignty in using the empower zones. For years they were able to legally import and sell Cuban cigars without government interference.
    Rev. Hickey, short of the state supporting your efforts, which I'm skeptical of, what is your opinion of a non-profit organization picking up and running with your idea?

  27. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Tribal nations should secede from the states in which they are trapped and become tiospayes, counties, or parishes in a noncontiguous 51st State.

  28. jerry 2014.09.06

    Yes, the free trade zone would not only allow for the trading of commodities, but also provide tax incentives for business to build there. The free trade zone would not necessarily be done on tribal land either, just tribal controlled land to qualify. Of course Rev. Hickey's plan does not take into consideration the past land swap kind of deals that would put tribal gambling interests close to the interstate. This is capitalism for crying out loud, who can survive with competition? In the big scheme of things, what is really not tribal land? Whole other book of chapters on that one.

    Land swaps to me seem like a program that could be detrimental to the tribes. All one has to do is look at what the proposal is for Keystone XL to realize that having land in America does not mean you control it. It only means you are renting it from the powers to be which is cool as long as they agree to what you are doing with it or if it contains minerals. If you don't believe me, try putting a 5,000 pig confinement on your property or over 1,000 head of cattle in a feedlot.

  29. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Larry - suppose this 51st state is the best idea. What would that do for a 90% unemployment rate? The problem remains... the industries don't come to the rez because they have no certainty. We can figure out how to put American factories in China but I weary of hearing over and over again--- sovereignty issues prevent commerce on the Rez. People are dying, without hope. Unemployment on the Rez ought to be in the top three list of urgent SD issues. There is absolutely a way to navigate the historical, cultural, geographical, and legal issues.

    I will say on my list of things to suggest is the tribes in SD merge into one. In dividing them they remain conquered. They need a MLK Jr in the spirit of Gandhi (nonviolent unlike AIM) to rise up and bring a brand new day to our reservations. Natives initially were hospitable to whites and trade was at the center of it. We have things to offer each other.

  30. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    The feds owe the tribes billions, HickMan: giving them management of the BHNF and other federal lands in South Dakota would provide an additional revenue stream. The Custer NF is managed out of Montana: how stupid is that?

  31. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Events like this one generate steady incomes for tribal members, too:

    http://www.swaia.org/

  32. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    I don't know a land swap is the best idea. My suggestion is based on the fact that industries need some real estate in a good location to a work force to make it work. To date, the issue has been they can't acquire free and clear land and without that certainty they set up shop elsewhere, and the unemployed on the rez continue to suffer.

    It doesn't matter what it's called, trade centers, free enterprise zones, etc. What matters is we solve the problem of unemployment. It's ludicrous to me that we are trying to solve a worker shortage problem in our state and not connecting the dots that we have a serious unemployment problem in our backyard. Are these people invisible? When a 15 year old girl hangs herself in her own house because she sees no future and they don't find her for two weeks - cuz her mom went off with some guy and started drinking and her dad was never around - don't we care? It's supposed to be a cold winter--- a trade center filled with people who can and want to work puts propane in grandmas tank. I want to see that become a reality. Keep talking everyone, somebody somewhere is listening, besides me.

  33. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    There are compacts being drafted to build wildlife corridors that would rewild portions of the Missouri basin with Yellowstone bison. Management by the tribes would ensure that federal lands would NOT go to individual states: exactly what GOP landowners are trying to prevent.

  34. grudznick 2014.09.06

    The tribes want money from the State of South Dakota. Oh yes indeed.

  35. caheidelberger Post author | 2014.09.06

    Noah, that's a good question about inclusion of reservation workforce in unemployment stats nationwide, a question for which I don't have a solid ready answer. However, this 2011 article suggests that Indians are excluded from state unemployment data nationwide because responsibility for the county lies with the feds, and states thus don't bother.

    What would happen to South Dakota's unemployment rate if we included reservation stats? This 2013 article counts 51,200 unemployed Indians on four reservations.

    Current state figures say that, in July, 2014, South Dakota had 451,840 workers, 435,285 employed, 16,555 unemployed, for an unemployment rate of 3.7%.

    Now let's assume that none of those unemployed reservation workers are included in South Dakota's job count data. When I add all of the available reservation workers into the SD totals, I get 510,577 available workers, 442,738 employed, 67,839 unemployed, for a statewide Indian-inclusive unemployment rate of 13.29%.

    13.29%. Noah, I think you may have just provoked a separate blog post.

    [Update 16:39 CDT: Yup, Noah did. After reviewing and expanding the data, I found the real inclusive unemployment rate for South Dakota may be over 14%.]

  36. lesliengland 2014.09.06

    hickey, your intention seems laudatory unless, like grudz you are a daugaard plant (2 mos. from the election), however your tonedeaf delivery is as bad or worse than grudz' greasy non-message.

  37. jerry 2014.09.06

    Your coming to the table with ideas is what is important Rev. Hickey. A dialogue must begin someplace and what better place than this to start thinking into the future. If a tribe purchased a section of land close to the interstate or a 99 year lease of such land, it could be granted a TIF by the county, state and city for development for road access along with utility installation. The free trade zone would not only involve commodities but it could also involve some light manufacturing that would take care of the business needs, as well as educational for the biggest commodity of all, skilled hard working labor. What an economic boom that would generate, an Andorra of the plains. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andorra

  38. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Except for Roger we are just more white people deciding what's best for American Indians.

  39. JeniW 2014.09.06

    Grudz, tribes want money from the state, sure why not?

    The state saw fit to fund the legislators' membership to ALEC, and perks that goes with it, which no one seems to be held accountable for, or to benefit from.

    I would rather have had that money go toward improving the employment, education, housing and etc. for the tribes.

    It was interesting to read that the gift shop at Mt. Rushmore sells items that were made in China. Imagine what it would be if there was a work center somewhere on the reservation for the North American Indians to make/assemble items to be sold at the park.

  40. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Larry, what do you call an indian pilot?

    You call him a pilot!!! What kind of racist are you?!@/.

    I have a houseful of native friends this weekend and my home hosts friends regularly. What's going on in my home today and what we have going on here on this blog string is people talking about helping people. My trade idea only works if both parties want to trade and realize what they have to offer each other. We need to drop the animosity because it is an obstacle to helping the unemployed.

  41. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Until a serious mass transit system happens on the rez industrializing the land makes little sense. Put the old Milwaukee rail bed back into passenger service between Sioux Falls and Rapid City with stops in Kadoka and Murdo.

  42. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    After upgrades the new RCPE spur from RC to Dakota Junction could handle passenger service, too.

  43. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Friends of mine have raised the objection that these areas are too remote for shipping and trucks. If we can figure out how to get grain from a muddy field in the middle of nowhere, we can figure out shipping challenges for a trade center on the rez. Trucks criss-cross our state everyday. I'd think all kinds of entrepreneurship would arise and bus and shift shuttle routes (native run) could get people from home to work and back again. If there was gold in those remote hills, we'd figure out a way to get a truck in there. The gold in this case is humanity.

  44. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Humans wintering on the Standing Rock didn't happen until people were forced to do it: people migrated into Oklahoma and southwest Colorado before colonialization stripped them of that right.

  45. Bill Dithmer 2014.09.06

    Rev. Hickeys plan will never happen. Right now there are four governments that want a say in what happens on the reservations. You have

    1. The tribes
    2. The state of SD
    3. The federal government of ths US
    4. And now the UN

    you talk about the atars having to aline.

    The Blindman

  46. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    We know this painful history, Larry. And we see the present. What's the future? Those on Standing Rock don't want to migrate every October to a warmer place, do they? They don't want to move to Rapid or Sioux Falls and I wouldn't either. They have something there they want, land and home and culture. And they have something there industry needs, a workforce. And industry has something they need, jobs and money. So, let's make a deal.

  47. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    The Bakken flares off more propane in a day than the tribes can burn to stay warm for the entire winter

  48. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    because of the insurance costs to ship it. Communities on the rez lose power every winter because the co-ops know the feds will bail them out every year. The State doesn't give one shit about what happens out there or the Guard would have been deployed. Oh yeah: they've been fighting an illegal war in Iraq started by WAR CRIMINALS1

  49. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Probably, true. It's so sad that a lady freezes to death in the bitter cold winter for lack of heating fuel while living within a stones throw of enormous oil fields. Maybe the animosity would diminish if someone figured out a way to swap heat in the winter for something the Bakken riggers want. Who are we fooling, the Bakken riggers are there to stay. What are the tradeoffs so natives get something they want and the riggers do as well?

    The tribes here need to come together as one and there is strength in that position. Divided it's a loser for them.

  50. lesliengland 2014.09.06

    steve-its almost funny but it is not. I cant tell you how many times the government has attempted to get 500 independent nation/tribes to speak as one. were you recruited into this job by the governor? if not, get a tribal chair on the phone and get to work. try not to waste the leader's time with your seeming lack of historical understanding of what you are attempting.

  51. JeniW 2014.09.06

    Leslie, and Steve it will never happen that 500 tribes, and for now the tribes in SD, are going to speak as one. Just as there is never going to be 500 businesses (either for-profits or non-profits) that will speak as one.

    The plan that Steve proposed is a great idea. To be realistic, just as it is for any business/organization, it will require one baby step at a time. It will not happen overnight, there will have to be adjustments made along the way, and growth has to be gradual.

    Start with one tribe, get that going, then build from there. If it does not work for one tribe, try another.

    Keep going Steve. I appreciate the fact that you are trying to do something other than just lip-service.

  52. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Recruited by the Governor? I'd think the Governor would wish I'd not point out this missing aspect of his Workforce Initiative Report issued last week. I am in conversation with tribal leaders.

    Again, painful history, painful present, does the future have to be painful too?

  53. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    I'm not saying 500 tribes need to get together. I'm saying the council fires of the Great Sioux Nation in SD can come together. Everything is possible if people in our state are made to see the urgency of the situation. It's not okay adults die at 45. There is significant racism here to overcome, and honestly it's evident on both sides for very different reason. But I've come to discover there are vast numbers of people on both sides who want things to get better. There are vast numbers of white people in SD who would support something to make life better on the Rez. One of my other political doctrines for our state is the matter of neighborliness. That's what we are talking about here.

  54. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.06

    Let's be absolutely realistic on a few things, tribes are not going for Mexican statehood, they will not a form a United Indians of America country, nor will South Dakota tribes merge to form into one big tribe. Part of the definition of tribal sovereignty that under the IRA government tribal divisions have the right to form their own government. That will not change, so take it off the table.
    Grudz, you poor missed guided soul. First you say tribes need to "get their shit together" and now you say tribes just want money from the state. Damn right they do grudz! They want their share of sales and gasoline taxes collected on the reservation, they want their share of various licensing fees, such as new car sales taxes, auto registration fees, etc. paid to them.
    South Dakota does not count Native American under employment and unemployment on our reservation because it will make them look bad and hurt their "good for business" reputation.
    Now let's look at the second face of the state, when the feds fund programs to the state such as education, food stamps, Medicare, etc., that funding is based on the current census, which includes Indians and all the demographics related to them. When tribes want money from the state, it is not the state's money they are seeking, it is the federal money the state collected by including them in all relative numbers except unemployment.
    To the tribes I say, sovereignty is just a word until you start applying it to all aspects of your government. Sovereignty needs to be an action.
    The U.N. has no influence on tribal government and their actions, the U.N. is a tool which some tribes and Native Americans causes have chosen to use.

  55. bearcreekbat 2014.09.06

    Rep. Hickey, I admire your efforts and hope you are able to follow through, even if it takes only baby steps to keep moving forward.

    Roger, your response to grudz is right on. One thing that has bothered me for a long time is the valid concern of the tribes that non-tribal governments, such as SD or the USA, have not lived up to so many promises in the past. When I think of the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 and the broken promises made to the Sioux, coupled with that pesky Supremacy Clause Constitutional provision at Article VI that states in part:

    ". . . all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land. . . ."

    it makes me wonder how any generation of Sioux can trust non-Indians to follow their own laws and keep their own promises.

  56. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.06

    Rather than criticize Rev. Hickey I welcome having a discussion with him and fine tuning his concept and adding elements that he may have missed or misinterpreted. I believe his intentions are honorable. My skepticism lies with the state not Rev. Hickey.
    Shipping products from remote areas of the reservation is not a problem and in some ways is an asset. Tribes may not have rail service but they do have regular truck delivery, UPS, and Fedex. Those groceries in the store got there some way.
    The advantage that South Dakota manufacturers have, ask Raven and others, is that we are centrally located in the country. Manufacturers can ship to any part of the country at a cheaper rate than say New York. A product manufactured in New York and shipped to California adds additional cost to the product. This is a South Dakota advantage.
    Raw materials can easily be shipped by rail to the nearest point of distribution and trucked to manufacturers. Raw material shipping can be costly, often times raw material manufacturers will allow flat rate shipping, that is just the actual cost of shipping with no add ons for shipping and handling, etc.
    Rev. Hickey displays a sense of urgency in his comments and rightly so. Three people under the age of thirty committed suicide in the past two weeks on the Pine Ridge Reservation. It makes me physically sick to think that young people choose a permanent solution to a temporary problem.
    I don't know that Rev. Hickey's idea will get the legs it needs and grow into something useful, but it is a idea worth talking about.

  57. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Urgency is the key to solving this problem, nothing changes without it. But this urgency is more than a haste, it's a heavy heart too. We have to feel it if we ever hope to fix it. It would be national news if my daughter hung herself in my home and no one noticed for two weeks. Yet that happened in our state last year to a 15 year old and it really bothers me. It just can't happen again if we truly believe these are people precious to God just as we are people precious to God.

  58. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.06

    Bear,
    Your comment regarding the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 should serve as the foundation for all discussions about economic development on reservations. The treaty and the Indian Reorganization Act lay out the jurisdiction and sovereignty tribes have.
    When people say that tribal leaders need to come together in a unifying voice, they actually do. In South Dakota we have the Treaty Council which includes tribal elders and traditional leaders. Also, Sioux Tribes have the Tribal Associations that represent all state tribes.
    Serving as a economic and social service tool is United Sioux Tribes of Pierre, again this organization is governed by representatives of all Sioux Tribes.

  59. jerry 2014.09.06

    To reopen the old Milwaukee Road makes sense Larry. I would add Belvidere in the mix as well as there is actually a state highway 63 that goes south there to some of the most impoverished areas of the Rosebud Reservation where it borders the Pine Ridge Reservation. I speak of Norris, Corn Creek, Parmelee and all parts in between. This access could be a huge success for those in the Blackpipe community and its surroundings. Cory had a write up about a start up business in Parmelee and the impact it will have on those that have little if any transportation.

  60. Jenny 2014.09.06

    Pastor Hickey, would openly gay Native Americans be be allowed to trade in your proposed SD tradeforce plan? The first step towards invigorating the SD economy as a whole would be to knock it off with the anti-gay bills that you and your anti-gay republicans come up with each Session.

  61. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.06

    Come on Jenny, let's not go there.
    Sometime back Rev. Hickey got mad a me and blocked me from his Facebook and Twitter accounts and even though I have addressed him directly on this thread and tried to make positive comments and suggestions on his concept, he refuses to address me directly.
    I'm not going to hold that against him, I'm more interested in finding some common ground to solving unemployment problems on the reservation and to set our political and religious issue aside while seeking a greater good.

  62. Jenny 2014.09.06

    I understand, Roger.

  63. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Roger- glad you are talking friendly to me here. My minimum requirement in my personal social media accounts is that my friends be friendly. Cory's a friend, happily I'll befriend a friendly Roger. We can work on these things together. Gays are welcome too.

  64. caheidelberger Post author | 2014.09.06

    If certain tribes want to pursue non-contiguous-51st-statehood, cool. If certain tribal members reject our ministrations as cultural imperialism and prefer the lifestyle that our Western standards deem poverty but that theirs deem liberating non-materialism, cool. I don't think Rep. Hickey proposes any compulsory program.

    But to those folks in Mission, Manderson, and other points red who aren't interested in redrawing state boundaries but are interested in bringing more jobs and dollars to their communities, we South Dakota wasicus clearly need to offer more ideas and conversation.

  65. caheidelberger Post author | 2014.09.06

    Steve Hickey, I hope you shared this blog post with your house guests today! I'd love to know if they think you and I both are just another couple of white imperialists.

  66. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Cory, Frank Waln is destroying colonialism in his music and pointing fingers directly at failed policies from Pierre. Unless young people are behind some form of economic development on the rez it ain't gonna happen.

  67. caheidelberger Post author | 2014.09.06

    Steve, does your plan hinge on cooperation among all nine tribal councils? Or can it work tribe by tribe, individually?

  68. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    We have one tribe, Crow Creek, that is partnering with the state patrol and it seems to work. I'd like to see one tribe like a Rosebud try a pilot project with a full-on trade center. I'd like to see five industries move on site and work out all the kinks - I'm sure there are plenty. No naysayers allowed, one people who think the problem is worth solving as the problem is an opportunity. Id like to see the destiny of ten families that first year changed forever because it worked. And what I mean by changed destiny is young people choose life, a trade, not meth, gangs, jail etc.

    Tonight I'll take my little friend Freddie out behind one of my building and we'll shoot some cans and some old duck eggs. No male in his life. He's twelve. Critical time for him. His mom we consider extended family. These are people who need an opportunity. No one is saying cut your hair, act white or move into town.

  69. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    When we slaughtered the buffalo we stole native livelihood. I'm fishing for good ideas to help restore native livelihood in the land of their ancestors.

  70. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.06

    In addition to managing my own businesses, I worked for numerous tribal chairmen on the Pine Ridge Reservation and elsewhere as an economic development consultants. One of the duties I had was meeting with investors and businesses that were considering operating on the reservation, and there were many, some just plain opportunist looking for a government grant.
    Three stick out in my memory, John Deere, Dallas Cap and Embroidering, a K-Mart division for jean manufacturing. We could easily work out the logistics, shipping, infrastructure and construction, etc. Those are problems with solutions.
    The sticking point with the 3 companies I cited was not the labor force, we all agreed that the labor force was there, we all agreed that the work force was trainable and the tribe was receptive to their ideas. The sticking point? The cost of labor. All 3 of these companies came in with the perception that they would be dealing with a Chinese-like work force. When told they would have to pay minimum wage or better, we never heard from them again.

  71. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    How long ago was that Roger?

    Larry I like the rail link. Always loved railroads. I'm a dreamer and can even see a big buffalo high speed rail charging over the prairie as that roadrunner train does in NM. If one city here can come up with 180 million for yet another damned sports arena we can figure out how to transport people to work.

  72. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    live·li·hood
    ˈlīvlēˌho͝od/
    noun
    a means of securing the necessities of life.
    synonyms: income, source of income, means of support, living, subsistence, keep, maintenance, sustenance, nourishment, daily bread; More

  73. grudznick 2014.09.06

    Heck, those companies should have been paying much more than a minimum wage.

    Here is an idea. We have a lot of teachers in this state who are always disgruntled about their salaries (we have other professions who are disgruntled too but they don't have a union that has hamstrung them like the teachers do.)

    Also, we are paying teachers some average salary like $35,123 or $45,123. In that ball park, which is probably higher than the ball park going on in the rez.

    What if we told those teachers "OK, go to Wyoming or Minnesota" and then we cut the average teacher pay (temporarily) to like $30,123 and hired all these Indians who want jobs. Then, as they grew and got better, the GOOD teachers from that bunch could get bonuses and really big raises from all of the savings, and the other savings we have we use to fix the county roads.

    This is a Win, Win, Win, Win, Win, Win proposal.

    Whining wasicu teachers go elsewhere, and are happy
    South Dakota saves money and redirects it to fix roads
    Indians who want to work get jobs that pay way more than the minimum wage jobs they have waiting today on the rez
    The new teachers who are good get REALLY big raises and bonuses

  74. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Steve, you guys are dealing with it in Soo Foo right now: want to get reelected, Hickey? Be a leader.

  75. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Btw, Steve the bridge over the river at Chamberlain will support light rail but not freight.

  76. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    These issues aren't issues that get me reelected at least to a Rep seat in a Dist 9. My Indian sensitivities are a source of heartburn to some in my party. Perhaps even they sideline me from rising to the top. Maybe that's all just my perception.

  77. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    The South Dakota Democratic Party would love you to defect, Reverend Hickey: tell me what you need to make the jump.

  78. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    Like many natives I think life is sacred in every, every little bird and every developing human. And there are other issues, for sure. I'm not interested in political parties. I'm interested in people and issues.

  79. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Steve: the feds have killed USDA inspection for slaughter houses where horses are turned into a product Europe craves. The state can inspect abattoirs where pet food is processed and you can bear to talk with people in Pierre: a town i drive around by a wide margin.

    It's a fight that needs a promoter, Rep. Hickey.

  80. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    That one is more in the laps of Johnson, Noem and Thune. I think we had a resolution a few years ago that I signed on.

  81. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.06

    Steve,
    My work with the Oglala Sioux Tribe and other tribes around the country was from 1975-1994.

  82. jerry 2014.09.06

    Larry, are you talking about the railroad bridge just south of the interstate? If so, when was it determined to not be able to support freight? I am under the idea that there is now consideration to bring the rail east from Chamberlain to Presho, if so, they will have to rebuild the bridge if it is what you say. Here it is in 2013 being used by the folks that now keep it up. They cut the weeds and do some upkeep on the rail. As far as I know, it is usable to just outside of Kadoka. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNlzMIARVrE

    The coming of the rail helped to mark the end of Native life as it was known. It would be very ironic if the rail breathed the promise of economic expansion back into the plains and its first occupants.

  83. grudznick 2014.09.06

    Mr. Hickey, what do you think of my idea to get Indians rolled into really good paying jobs? If we all had these out-of-work people lined up to be teachers making less than our current teachers that would free up a lot of dollars to pay for other things, right?

  84. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Jerry, that bridge has had ice bonking into it for its entire lifespan: it is key to bringing anything west. The track bed you mention is maintained by a local railroad enthusiast group according to Bill Dithmer.

    The irony is lost on none of us, for sure.

    grud: yer an idiot.

  85. grudznick 2014.09.06

    Lar, I thought your buddy DD just pumped millions into rehabing that bridge and track.

  86. larry kurtz 2014.09.06

    Grain freight should be running through Pierre and Brookings with coal while passenger service should be reserved for a line that served passengers historically.

  87. grudznick 2014.09.06

    Damn straight, Lar. And maybe we just shouldn't be growing so much grain out there where we want to rewild the plumps and we should just be raising our next steaks, say I. You are shortsighted tonight, my young friend, and your jesus sandals are starting to smell I was told by a little bird who smelt them recently. Just sayin...

  88. jerry 2014.09.06

    The freight and passenger lines could co-exist as they did in the past, with not too much of an issue as there is still siding track in Kadoka, Belvidere, Stamford, Okaton etc. all the way along. I was reading about a walking multi-use trails from Rapid City to Kadoka and in that reading there is an area in the badlands just west of Kadoka that is in bad shape that would take some serious work to repair, but it can be done. The moving of citizens along that scenic route would be a real joy and an economic boom for those areas. So not only could goods and materials get to and from sidings that would serve both the Rosebud and the Pine Ridge reservations, that same right of way could be a way of travel for all parties in that area as well. Your report on the 100 miles of light rail service in New Mexico was killer man. Good stuff.

    There is a way to bring a lot of money to the state to help get all of this off and running, it is called Medicaid Expansion. What say you on pushing through the Medicaid Expansion Rev. Hickey? The young person's death is a direct result of not having the ability to provide mental health providers in the places that they are needed. There may have been signs that were somehow picked up, but then, what do you do? The floor is yours.

  89. Steve Hickey 2014.09.06

    I see no connection between suicide on the Rez and Medicaid expansion.

  90. grudznick 2014.09.06

    Mr. Hickey, there is no connection. But, if we had 45,000 new teaching jobs to offer to all of the able bodied people on the rez looking and willing and able to work, you would see a happiness level skyrocket there on the rez.

  91. jerry 2014.09.06

    So then, that would be a big NO to the Medicaid Expansion. How you gonna convince people you are serious about stepping in to offer solutions when you have the power to change things right now.

    Do you even know that the ACA involves natives? Do you even know that there are navigators gearing up right now on the reservations to enroll those that can qualify for it? The radio stations tell of where they will be along with times so the people can make it there. If you are down around St. Francis, you can listen to 96.1 for that kind of reporting.

    If you have Medicaid Expansion, you can then go to a mental health provider that may or may not be on the reservation. It is called choice. No wonder you guys don't get it about Medicaid Expansion, you are clueless to what it actually brings. There are lives depending on you to do the right thing for working poor both on and off the reservations. These good people who need quality health coverage wherever they may be in this state.

  92. jerry 2014.09.06

    You really are out of your element on this Mr. Grudznick. I think Sibson would like you to contact him.

  93. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.06

    Grudz, you make me laugh.

    Jerry is right. Really Grudz.

  94. Jenny 2014.09.07

    Of course there is a connection between suicide and Medicaid expansion, Hickey and Grudz. The latest stats for suicide are staggering and most people do not get the proper treatment that is needed to treat major depression (a major cause of suicide). The WHO just came out with the latest suicide stats and one person every 40 seconds commits suicide. Jerry knows what he is talking about. More people covered under Medicaid means more people will get the help they desperately need to treat the disease of depression (and it IS a disease). The richest country in the world needs to start taking mental illness seriously. Did you know that more people come to the ER for mental illness/psychiatric issues than any other disease?

  95. mike from iowa 2014.09.07

    The only connection between Medicaid expansion and suicide would be wingnuts throwing themselves out of their office windows in a hissy fit because the ACA is working.

  96. Steve Hickey 2014.09.07

    Sorry to disappoint but my experience with the suicide situation on the Rez leads me to the view that a great systemic hopelessness is pervasive. A second mental health counselor in Mobridge is a good thing but the rates don't go down. Livelihood is essential to healthy living and it is a central part of a plan to restore hope to a generation of youth and young adults.

    When I hear Republicans talk about the Keystone pipeline I sounds to me like they view it as the next best thing to the second coming of Christ. When democrats talk about Medicaid expansion in South Dakota it seems the same. I don't believe either is the case. I've been saying for a few years the govt funds in SD will dry up in a day when this enevitable long economic winter hits. Welfare states like ours go back to the Stone Age. We need neighborliness and industry on our soil.

  97. mike from iowa 2014.09.07

    The choices are 1) healthcare for nearly all 'murricans regardless of pre-existing conditions and ability to pay,or 2) an unnecessary pipeline/environmental disaster just begging to happen which will be paid for by 'murrican taxpayers so korporate kanada et al can keep their profits. I'm going with option 1 for the good of 'murrica and tell korporate kanada to stick it.

  98. JeniW 2014.09.07

    There never has been and never will be a perfect healthcare system. No matter how good of a system is developed, someone, somewhere will fall in between the cracks.

    When I read about the pipeline I think of Lead, SD and the spoils of gold mining in the Black Hills and in California, I know what will happen with the pipeline. Lead, SD is one of the most ugliest places I have ever been to, and I have seen plenty of the ugliness left behind from the gold mining in California.

    That said, IMO Steve Hickey's concept is a good one. As I mentioned before, at least Steve is trying, which is a whole lot more than what many others are able and willing to do.

    Go for it Steve!!

  99. jerry 2014.09.07

    Rev. Hickey, It is I who hate to disappoint. In medical speak "great systemic hopelessness is pervasive" means depression. Depression is really a simple term for this. It can be long term or it can be short term. We have professionals to treat people for this and when we have a system that pays attention to its citizenry, we get results that save lives. When parents, clergy, teachers, and friends of the folks who are suffering, recognize that something is not quite right, they then can call these professionals to intervene. I am sure there are statistics that show that early intervention can save lives. That early intervention costs money to see these professionals on a regular basis. That is why many of us "Democrats that are also Republicans and Independents" speak of the lives lost because of not expanding Medicaid.

    Medicaid Expansion is certainly not the second coming for those of us who happen to believe in a better way of life. It is a chance for those who suffer the most to seek professional help, be it for mental issues or other health issues. The ACA is very specific when the law was passed that mental health would be one of the cornerstones with the other being maternity. Think of that for a minute Rev. Hickey, this is right in your wheelhouse of what you preach. Is it too obvious for a pious man like yourself to not be able to look around at your fellows and see the pain and suffering of those without healthcare or the ability to seek it?

    I predict this Rev. Hickey, work on this expansion, get it passed under your name and sponsorship, and you will see the facts of economic expansion for all in this state. You will see South Dakota taxpayer money stay here and not go to Wyoming to support their Medicaid Expansion, for one and for the other, working relationships with Washington for the funding to make the rail dream a reality.

    Of course, there are two other obstacles and that would be Mike Rounds, and his sidekicks Dennis Daugaard along with the dust bunny, Ms. NOem. From your position of power, campaign against them as they will put a dagger in the heart of all things that would be good for South Dakota as they have proven in the past. First things first though, sponsor and pass this Medicaid Expansion.

  100. Bill Dithmer 2014.09.07

    Good post Jerry.

    The Blindman

  101. bearcreekbat 2014.09.07

    Jerry's post is excellent! I too encourage Rep. Hickey to sponsor a bill requiring the Medicaid expansion, if for no other reason please do it to help save lives.

  102. Bill Fleming 2014.09.07

    Above, I referenced what's going on on the Rosebud at St. Francis mission under Father John Hatcher's guidance as a model Hickey et al might want the incorporate into some of the Eco/Devo ideas here. The thing I like about Hatcher's model is how he starts from the ground up, addressing the most basic problems first. There is a pyramid diagram on the website that outlines it pretty well, and of course proper medical attention and counseling are a big part of it, as they should be in all workplaces. I encourage Hickey to have a chat with Fr. John if he's not yet had the pleasure. Pretty sure he'll learn something. I sure did.

  103. Douglas Wiken 2014.09.07

    Cornelius writes:"After giving Rev. Hickey's proposal more detailed thought today, I don't see the necessity of any land swaps, it is risky and probably wouldn't be accepted. What would work are long term business leases that would achieve the same purpose. Tribes have used the long term business lease format before with success.
    Reservation economic development does not always have to be major manufacturing plants or ill-fated NBP white elephants."

    That comes close to good sense. There is no need for trading land, but what is needed on the reservations is acceptance of commerce codes that protect development from tribal corruption so that rational safe development can occur there without unknowable and unacceptable risks.

    Even with that however, I don't quite see how development on the reservations is any more likely than it is here in Winner. Imagination that turns into workable projects and business are woefully lacking in the area. The primary difference is that there is some minimal connection between population growth and economy in the area and the population is declining. That is unlike the reservations where population growth is funded by the federal government and has no necessary connection to the economy. It is much like the tribal areas of the mideast, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, and Iran.

  104. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.07

    And there he goes again, white privileged Wiken displaying his self-proclaimed "Indian Expert" side with this, "but what is needed on reservations is ............".

    As it so happens, the Pine Ridge Reservation does have a Uniform Commercial Code, I helped write it years ago. If their UCC was unacceptable to banks and other lenders, you would not see new cars, some homes, and other items that require financing on the reservation. Financiers do have recourse on the reservation just as they do in other parts of the state.
    Perhaps racist dude would cite some specific details of corruption on the Rosebud reservation, real examples and not the "they are all corrupt".

  105. Roger Cornelius 2014.09.07

    Rev. Hickey,
    As you work toward developing your proposal on the creation of a trade zone that will serve the needs of both the state and tribes, be advised that you will be confronted by Republican legislators with the exact same attitude as Wiken. He has also demonstrated his contempt for Native American on Cory's thread about unemployment rates.
    There are many obstacles to overcome while advancing your concept into reality, it is the Wiken's that have to be overcome first.

  106. Deb Geelsdottir 2014.09.08

    Hickey, I don't think there is a choice of either Medicaid or work. I think both are extremely important.

    Work, meaningful contribution to the community, is a critical aspect of one's well-being. So is mental and physical health. They are not opposed.

  107. Jenny 2014.09.08

    Steve Hickey wrote "a second mental health counselor in Mobridge is a good thing but the rates don't go down". Medicaid expansion is all based on ability to pay relative to the Fed Poverty level. Jerry can explain it to you better than anyone on here.

  108. jerry 2014.09.08

    I fired up the old computer this morning thinking that all of us might have heard something from Rev. Hickey to continue this dialogue. Alas, this is not meant to be. I guess the economic zones will have to be put on the back burner until a democrat gets voted in to the office of governor. As Rev. Hickey stated "A second mental health counselor in Mobridge is a good thing but the rates don't go down." Once again, the absolute clueless degree of legislators regarding Medicaid and how it works. Medicaid means the enrollee pays nothing for those services because they do not have the resources to do so. The shame that all of the citizens of South Dakota must contend with is that a governor and all of his ruling party do not know what the hell they are doing. No wonder corruption is so rampant in Pierre, no one is smart enough to recognize it and they think it is a smart business practice. How can you even speak of economics when you don't have the first clue in the cornerstone of it.

    Each successful business enterprise that exists, has a robust health plan. You are in Sioux Falls, check out POET or check out Raven Industries to see how their plans operate. The same is needed for any kind of economic growth. You claim to be looking out for the natives, hooey, I say you are looking out for yourself.

    I rise to this Rev. Hickey, it is my perception that one of the main reasons we are not seeing Medicaid Expansion here or economic development dealing with natives is the blatant racism of your ruling republican party. Now where in the world did I get that notion you might ask, from your words Rev. Hickey, from your words. "My Indian sensitivities are a source of heartburn to some in my party. Perhaps even they sideline me from rising to the top. Maybe that's all just my perception." As both a state senator and a man of the cloth, act like it, think of that lost child and how this could have not only helped, but may have been the life preserver to have saved that young life, and do the right thing push this Medicaid Expansion so we can all go further in our state.

  109. Douglas Wiken 2014.09.08

    Read Whalen's comments on the "knotheads" on the Tribal Council, money wasted on travel, etc. etc. etc. Contract corruption, wheels and deals, etc. Native News or Indian Today. I don't have the paper with me right now.

    My guess is that Hickey would not be talking about land trades if there were no problems with the commerce code on the reservation or the tribal council and courts influence on them.

  110. lesliengland 2014.09.08

    homeruns jenny, jerry. way to go!!

  111. lesliengland 2014.09.08

    grudz u havent said anything that sticks. testy over christy, huh? my own lil theory is that cemetery land was federal. congress may eventually change horses and return federal land taken from the 1868 tribes. they have an interest but just lost more federal land while they likely had rights to consultation. she represents a lot of those indians in sd but i'll bet she never even thought about taking more of their land.

    since you are in the know, check it out for me, would you?

    oh, congrats on joining wiken here as published racists. thats how its pronounced.

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