I have a problem with the proposed Snoqualmie Tribe casino located near Exit 27, and that is the proposed activity in and of itself. It is a bad idea. The reason is quite simply gambling. Gambling is an activity that takes money from the gamblers, on average, and gives it to the casino. Too many participants lose too much: They don’t quit when they should. It is accepted to be an “addictive” process.

That the members of the Snoqualmie Tribe wish to better the lives of their members is admirable. To accomplish this through gambling is not appropriate, and I think there are more appropriate means. To build one’s wealth on another’s poverty is a spiritually bankrupt idea. I hope that after all their loss over the last couple of hundred years the tribal members would understand this because it is the same situation they are trying to remedy. I would hope that a deeply spiritual people would understand this and find a more appropriate means to increase the standard of living of their community.

Part of the problem with the situation is that the Tribe is a federally recognized sovereign nation. Most nations have distinct borders, which limit the effects of their activities on their neighbors. This is not true in this case, as the Tribe is enmeshed within a larger community.

I believe that the casino would have a negative effect on this community. I hope the Snoqualmie Tribe will re-examine the idea of a casino from a spiritual and social perspective and arrive at a different conclusion.

Dave Eiffert

Snoqualmie