With that said, time to get down to business. Today the Seneca Nation once again has to explain to a New York court how the state is trying to break treaties because they don't know how to properly run their finances. DISCLAIMER: Yes, I am a smoker however I really honestly would be saying this if I wasn't. I really don't understand why New York thinks this is OK. Could you imagine if New York came up with a contract with someone, and then those people tried to renege on said contract? They would go ballistic!!! This has a name in the court systems - buyers remorse. NY ended up in a contract that benefits the Indians (AS IT SHOULD) and now NY is having money troubles (AGAIN, AND GO FIGURE) so they decide "Hey, let's tell them that we meant they could only benefit from their OWN people, not ALL people." Give me a damned break. It is one of the biggest contradictions I have ever seen - a bunch of white slave owners didn't want to pay their taxes so they travel across an ocean, proceed to slaughter a great number of indigenous people living here, then set up a state that taxes the hell out of the people living in it. Oh wait, not done! Then they f*#@ up the state by their own greed and corruption so they decide that they will plead that they are getting screwed by their own contract.
I have heard the argument that the state is actually trying to lower costs while gaining more revenue from the sales to non-Indians. That by forcing the tax on non-Indians, it will help people quit which will lower the amount spent on medical treatment paid for by the state for people that are sick due to smoking. My honest thoughts? The state shouldn't be paying for those treatments anyway. Yup, I said it. If your sickness is due to not being living a healthy life (smoking, excessive drinking, drug use, etc.) then it shouldn't be covered by state aid. THAT alone might be a good enough deterrent for people to start living better. If people want to smoke, that should be their choice to do so. "But the second hand smoke!?!" It is becoming harder and harder to smoke around people now a days. Even outside people are discouraged from smoking! But I digress (as usual).
The fact of the matter is that Albany needs to find other ways of sorting out their budget problems. The politicians should be taking pay cuts right off the bat. I love how they have the balls to cut state workers and destroy lives yet wouldn't DARE take pay cuts to help. They WILL take all of the perks from lobbyists, they WILL take all of your campaign contributions, they WILL care only about their personal agendas, but that is about it. Unless, of course, it is going to hurt their own pockets. Then they will pay attention for as long as it takes for you to believe them and give them your vote. I guess Buffalo learned a lot from Albany on how to run a corrupt government.
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