The shambles in South Dakota (MICHELLE MALKIN)

"You've got an economy that is in shambles," complains Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, a South Dakota Democrat, whose party is now hounding President Bush for neglecting America's poor, the disenfranchised, the elderly and the unemployed.

Well, Tom Daschle certainly knows about economic shambles and neglect. Look at his home state.

Take the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, which, along with several other reservations, is now being investigated by state and federal authorities because of criminal allegations of massive voter fraud tied to local Democrat Party operatives.

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation sits in Shannon County, located in the southwest corner of Tom Daschle's South Dakota. It is the second-poorest U.S. county in the nation, according to the Census Bureau. The unemployment rate hovers around 75 to 85 percent. More than 60 percent of the population lives below the federal poverty level; per capita income is just under $6,300. The reservation is a magnet for mooches because federal time limits on welfare benefits don't apply at Pine Ridge.

Here where cradle-to-grave socialism, the Democrats' fantasy state, is realized, more than half the reservation's adults battle addiction and disease. Alcoholism, diabetes and malnutrition are rampant. Life expectancy on the reservation is 48 years old for men and 52 for women. That's the shortest life expectancy for a community anywhere in the Western Hemisphere outside Haiti, according to The Wall Street Journal. The infant mortality rate is the nation's highest, at about three times the national average.

Former President Clinton waltzed through Pine Ridge on a lip-biting tour with Tom Daschle and then-Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Andrew Cuomo in 1999. "You have suffered from neglect, and you know that doesn't work. You have also suffered from the tyranny of patronizing, inadequately funded government programs, and you know that doesn't work," Clinton thundered in a speech promising to create "new markets" for the poor and clean up the squalor in Tom Daschle's South Dakota.

But the Democrats' grand housing construction and revitalization scheme for Pine Ridge, which made for nice glossy brochures and promotional videos, fell short. Tribal leaders grumbled about being exploited for Democratic political gain. Three years later, Tom Daschle is Senate majority leader -- and the 5,000-square mile reservation, second-largest in the nation, still has no banks, motels or movie theaters.

Thirty-nine percent of the homes on the Pine Ridge reservation have no electricity. Many lack basic plumbing. Public housing units are so overcrowded and scarce that many homeless families often take to tents or cars for shelter. In fact, the plight of the Pine Ridge reservation is so infamous that churches in other states solicit donations of used wood-burning stoves to bring to the residents during harsh winters. Without basic insulation or central heating in their homes, many Indians on Pine Ridge use their ovens to heat their homes.

Tom Daschle has been in public office in South Dakota since 1978, when he won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He served there until 1986, and then moved on to the U.S. Senate, where he has wielded power for three terms. By all accounts, Daschle owes his Senate seat to Native American voters who helped provide him with a razor-thin edge in his initial Senate bid. Now, he is leaning on those perpetually impoverished Native Americans across the state (dead or alive) to keep him in power and protect his protege, junior Sen. Tim Johnson, who is locked in a tight battle with GOP Rep. John Thune.

While his destitute constituents on Pine Ridge huddle around their ovens for heat and drink in despair, Tom Daschle says he can do better for America's economy. Have you seen what he has done for South Dakota lately?

If you compare that reservation to the ones here in the Palm Springs Ca. area where the members are probably millionaires, the biggest difference is tourism.

The tourists bring the money in to hotels, shops, and casinos, etc. These places sit on Indian land, the members get a rental payment several times a year. They have re invested in their assets, the major tribes have good managers.

They have sent their kids to college. they sit on city councils, they are lawyers, politicians etc. In other words they are assimilating, slowly.

Are they genetically superior the the S Dakota tribe. I doubt it, they are just fortunate enough to have had some good managers over the years that weren't in it for themselves. (white managers)

They have sent their kids to college. they sit on city councils, they are lawyers, politicians etc. In other words they are assimilating, slowly.

Are they genetically superior to the S Dakota tribe. I doubt it, they are just fortunate enough to have had some good managers over the years that weren't in it for themselves. (white managers)

Don't Miss the Patriots Rallies - October 25 and 26, 2002 Chicago, IL --- Washington, DC --- San Francisco,CA Cheer on Bill Simon in Long Beach, CA October 24th! Help TakeBack America - FReePWatch 2002
...DATE../..TIME...	...CITY../..SITE...	...ADDRESS..INFO...	...MORE INFORMATION...
Thursday 10/24/2002 11 - 11:30 am	Long Beach, CA	Hyatt Regency - Support Bill Simon 200 S. Pine St. - At Shoreline Drive Long Beach, CA 710 Fwy S., Follow the signs	California Republican Gubernatorial Candidate Bill Simon speaks to the Long Beach community about California's future. Click HERE for more info about the LONG BEACH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE "California Visionaries Luncheon". Meet in front of the Hotel at 1130 or earlier. Be Creative with your signs. "FOR SALE" Gray Davis signs are always in, the bigger the better!
FRiday 10/25/2002 445 pm, rain or shine.	Chicago, IL	Pre-Patriots Rally II FReep, Chicagoland For more info, check out the Thread.	FReePers, Gather at Michigan Ave and Jackson, 4:45pm. We will head toward Columbus Drive at about 5pm to find our targets. Bring your flags, signs and patriotism! Keep those sign ideas coming!
Saturday 10/26/2002 530 pm, rain or shine.	Pasadena, CA	JOIN THE CAMPAIGN CHICKEN AND THE CHICKEN TO DEBATE GOVERNOR IN PASADENA Firefighter Rally and BBQ with Gray Davis United Democratic Headquarters 1118 E. Green Street Pasadena, CA	Bring as big a "For Sale" sign as you can muster! Please RSVP to sfrank@simonforgovernor.com
Saturday 10/26/2002 11 am until 3 pm, rain or shine.	Washington, DC	THE PATRIOTS RALLY FOR AMERICA II Original thread Update thread The Washington Monument Corner of 17th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW. C-SPAN will be striving to provide fair and balanced coverage for both the anti-war protests and the Patriots Rally.	Bring your flags, signs and patriotism! As always, the D.C. Chapter's rules for demonstrating will be in effect. Briefly, they are: No violence, no racism, no profanity, no threats, no provocations, obey the law and treat all law enforcement officers with respect.
Saturday 10/26/2002 12 pm	San Francisco, CA	West Coast Patriots Rally "Stop the Warped (Leftists)" Rally City Hall - across from the Civic Center Plaza. Carlton Goodlett Place between McAllister St. and Grove St.	Bring your flags, signs and patriotism! Please be aware, even though there may be police there, we are each responsible for our own safety. Parking available at the Civic Center Parking Garage. BART stops a few blocks away. Cal-train + bus is also available.
Tuesday 10/29/2002 12pm	New York City	Cipriani 42nd Street 110 East 42nd Street New York, NY	New York FReePers Heads UP!!! MICHAEL EISNER, the big cheese of Disney, and his family will be honored for their contributions to Jewish Home and Hospital. Barbara Walters presides, as her friend, Elton John, that man of many events, entertains. Cipriani 42nd Street is located at 110 East 42nd Street. It is situated on the South side of the Street between Lexington Avenue & Park Avenue. A clutch of famous names - Gov. Gray Davis - native son of NY, Sens. Joseph Lieberman and Barbara Boxer, Barry Diller - will send special video tributes.

Updated 10:30 10/23/02

A couple of realities about the Sioux, or the Dakota, as they call themselves. Culturally, they have been totally dependent on handouts since about the time the buffalo were nearly wiped out in the late 1800's, and with the loss of buffalo, they lost their identity. And people without a focus in their lives, tend to turn to alcohol and drugs. So there have been a few Tribes that have been extraordinarily successful in establishing gambling and casinos, with a huge turnover of cash. But successful casinos are not evenly distributed among all Indian Tribes. And the presence of a casino is not an unquestionable good. In fact, another layer of problems is added, with the attraction of easy cash, and a further inducement for addictive personalities to indulge in fantasies. There is also the sullen resentment that boils just below the surface, of the "white man ways", and a general willingness to adopt lifestyles that submerge and further erode the few sources of unique ethnic distinctions. Life on the prairie is a lonesome and tedious thing at best, made worse by apparently institutional poverty. Just giving them money only provides them with the means to buy better quality of alcoholic beverages. Yet, they would not relocate from where they are, because of a belief in spirituality that is tied to the land. And because of this same belief, they resist bringing in the improvements and developments that would make an economically viable community. Thus, the cycle repeats and repeats. One could almost believe that they know very well that the Democrats will never change the status quo very much, and they fear that Republicans will get busy and eventually erase every vestige of whatever culture they still retain, while dragging them, kicking and screaming, into the 21st Century. Serious problem when you have adults who get into charge.

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