New changes by Tribal Council are encouraging
Editor,
I am writing to give credit to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Council for recent decisions and actions regarding the Tribal government. It took teamwork, tenacity and courage of convictions to implement their first set of changes.
Some of the membership considered the recent actions harsh, others feel it is not enough. What I have seen is progress. I am seeing Tribal Council members starting to fulfill some of their past campaign promises. Tribal Council candidates have promised accountability, a more member-friendly government, a budget that has a transparency the membership can understand, and a council that will tackle some of the tough issues and not table them indefinitely. We are starting to see some of this change come about.
There has been a PAC, Political Action Committee, that is serving up sensationalism and misinformation via telephone calls. Attend a forum, ask for yourself. Don't let others' convoluted thinking get in the way of our Council delivering on their promises.
When Tribal members vote in December, we will elect those who will continue this transition, or those who will bring us back to the more authoritarian government many of us have complained about for the last 20 years.
C. Douglas Morigeau
St. Ignatius
No sale prices on new DVDs
Editor,
It's started.
So, you think Polson Wal-Mart wants to help our community with low prices? Guess again. Wal-Mart is not offering sale prices on DVDs when they first come out anymore.
I guess here's no competition in town to force them to. I suspect the new Super Wal-Mart won't be any better. No more low prices for Polson Wal-Mart without local competition.
Welome to the new corporate Wal-Mart machine.
Larry Robertson
Polson
Are they asleep at the helm?
Editor,
Let me tell the tribal membership of some incidents about a tribal leader who was a man of action from the past. I remember when my son found a bleached out bighorn ram skull 11 years ago and he wanted to keep it.
At the time there were no Tribal laws saying he could not keep it. Tribal Fish and Game took it anyway. I went to the Tribal Executive Secretary and I was told by him that the skull was tribal property. Just then, Tribal Chairman Mickey Pablo walked into the room and told me he was glad I was there. Mickey then pointed at the Tribal Executive Secretary and told him to call Fish and Game right now.
The Tribal Executive Secretary dialed and he said there was no answer. Mickey then dialed himself and said they must have left for the day and hung up the phone. Mickey left the room briefly, then returned and gave me a copy of a memo that instructed Tribal Fish & Game to call him the next working day. Mickey told me if that was him, he wouldn't have given Tribal Fish & Game the skull as there was nothing that allowed them to take it. The next working day, a Tribal Fish & Game officer came and dropped off the skull without a word and left.
Another time I went to a Tribal Council meeting and chairman Mickey Pablo asked if I wanted to talk to the council. I asked him why the Tribes (tribal personnel) were fighting me over my unemployment benefits. Mickey seemed surprised and summoned the Tribal Executive Secretary and spoke briefly with him. The next day or so I received a letter from Helena informing me that the Tribes withdrew their appeal of my unemployment benefits and I received my benefits without any more hassles, thanks to Mickey.
In the past couple of years, I have gone to Tribal Council a few times. Three times I haven't heard anything. The first time was to request reimbursement of $500 from Tribal Health for me and my 12-year-old son's medical bill that I paid because of their so-called balanced billing program that was put in place by the Tribal Health system, which later was done away with by the Feds (Indian Health Service) as illegal; next time was to question mysterious deductions of my HUD housing accounts that did not have any comment; and the third time, a possible Tribal Fish & Game violation.
The usual response was similar to "We will call the manager and someone will get a hold of you." As of this date, I have not had a response from any managers or council members regarding these issues.
It is insulting to be brushed out the door and promptly forgotten. One visit was about two years ago the others were about a month ago.
Makes me wonder if the ones in power now are asleep at the helm? For the powerless Indians like me, I sure hope not.
Cathy Finley Dupuis
Arlee
Citizens need to be involved
Editor,
When I decided to not run for office again, after serving 12 years, I was hoping the Pablo citizens would be well served. I highly recommend that the members of the Pablo Water & Sewer District become active and come to the district board meetings.
Don't let a few dictate to the many without some voice from the community. "If you are willing to stand for nothing, you will fall for anything."
Mike Lee
Past Board President
Pablo
Pumpkin Bash was alternative to Halloween event
Editor,
I have read, with interest, both sides of the story regarding what happened at the Pumpkin Patch Bash. But it should be made clear that this event was an alternative to Halloween, put on by local churches.
Church events always include prayer and some degree of evangelizing. It was totally free of charge and provided free dinner, candy, snow cones, cotton candy, games, and prizes to anyone and everyone who came. There was even a chance to win a free bike.
Most importantly, it was designed to spread the message of salvation. It is unfortunate that the message of God's love for us and salvation through Christ Jesus was perhaps either presented in an offensive way by one individual or misunderstood by some attendees. That being said, the actions of one individual do not necessarily constitute the feelings, methods or actions of every church member in attendance.
Anyone who was looking for a regular Halloween party came to the wrong place. It would serve everyone well if they looked into an event before they dropped off their school-aged children and left them there unsupervised.
Caroline Hanke
Polson