Melissa Ridgen at APTN National News:
An Aboriginal-owned investment group that was supposed to help end poverty on Manitoba First Nations instead blew its money on strippers, booze, fancy food and exotic trips, APTN Investigates has learned. Corporate credit card statements from Tribal Councils Investment Group show $13,000 spent over two days in 2012 at Sapphire, a high-end Vegas strip club.
Another American Express statement shows $5,300 spent one day at "L.R. Inc Etobicoke." A profile of strip clubs aimed at businessmen visiting Toronto on the website nowtoronto.com says "The Landing Strip ... (is a) high-end club in west Etobicoke... for business discretion, strip chips charged to a client's credit card appear as D.E. Limited or L.R. Inc."
As for ending Manitoba First Nations poverty,
Alan Isfeld of First Nations Voice newspaper pointed out (that) in 2013 the dividends being paid to the tribal councils worked out to at most "$8.37 per year" for every man, woman and child.
Long overdue for a heelin' circle.
Got to blame the white man somehow. Maybe the peelers were white.
Seriously, investment groups of all racial backgrounds can be as good or as useless as each other. Bad business decisions are bad decisions. The Manitoba FN just put their money in a bunch of Bernie Madoffs who happen to be of aboriginal persuasion.
I'm surprised that APTN broke the story ........
Money spent OGELING, IN STRIP Clubs, WHAT IS NEW OR ASTONISHING ABOUT THAT ?
THE HUMAN RACE, are by their very nature sexual beings, ERGO.....crotch matters very often take precedence in the short term, above ALL ELSE!
Groceries are secondary.
I left a thoughtful little reply in their comment section regarding how lucrative the victims industry had become. Guess it wasn't politically correct as they are still awaiting the first comment. Mine wasn't it.
Don't these First Nations outfits have to go through an audit every year,or are they exempt?
It seems every time an FN person or agency is found out, they discover it's been going on for years.
No way a strip club in Etobicoke can be considered: hi-end"
Maybe they were searching for some of their missing women...
The problem is accountability.
Aboriginal co-operatives proven to be successful in the Western Provinces during the 1930's (outlined in a few history research projects-if important I will try to research even though not near my personal library).
The co-operatvives were "discouraged" due to compensation received from Treaties. The driving force behind the discouragement were non-aboriginal famers concerned about the subsidized competition.
This situation also seems to be tied to the First Nation citizens receiving voting rights.
However the situation outlined in the article and comments is a result of both the lack of accountability and the powerful people buying off the new uneducated voters. A quick look at the Political Parties in charge at the initiation and control of the Aboriginal Peoples may help. The road to correction cannot be for a purpose of blame making but the unravelling of the tragic series of events is as important to the future of Canada as has the been truth reconciliation process from time immerial.
Awareness of how the Canadian Aboriginal Peoples (First Nations; if preferred) lost all sense of family; pride in accomplishment to become just another victimized North American people is important to all Canadians. The leadership of the Aboriginal Peoples are far from being the least of the protagonists.
The false narrative of the noble savage hiding the the intercine warfare and slavery practiced by the Aboriginals for centuries prior to the arrival of European cultures cannot continue and must be faced before understanding and correction is possible. The benefits of European Social Contract for the ordinary person must be explained to both Aboriginal or early immigrant to be truthful and to the later immigrant people.
The similarities in Canada's Aboriginals and the results of the malformed Affirmative Action for Blacks in the U.S.A. are astounding. Both cultures are are selfabsorbed in personal pity and victimhood. A practice of self-deceiving, as if this is a new situation in the evolution of Humankind and of civiization. The ancestry of every Canadian includes members who have faced discrimination, danger and hardship. Some of which also took place in North America.
History reveals false compassion for suffering peoples and using the wealth of skilled and contributing society members leads to power purchasing; and a steady decline of the overall structure in a Nation's Social Contract. Knowledge of the Social Contract as the base for sustenance and shelter for the many ordinary person is very hard to establish. The cradle of Humankind the African Continent is a testament to this difficulty of establishing such understanding.
On the other side of the Knowledge of Social Contract benefits is a proven decline of the strength of the Social Contract takes place in a very few generations of ignorance. The lack of accountability and false compassion has become the focus of our Governance selection process. It steadily permeates our Society and allows the callow and calculating to rise within the decision making organizations of our culture.
My wife and I do not have Grandchildren and we are concerned about the affect on the People of Canada who do have Grandchildren and dependent Children. I apologize for not stepping forward more boldly earlier.
Like giving a drunk the key to the wine cellar
I have many times said some disparaging things about the Indians and the attendant politics played by ALL the players in Ottawa. No party gets a pass on this file. I've lived for 3 decades in the far north, I've tried to be as sympathetic as I can to the cries for this or that social program or help here or there. There is some basis of fact and truth to all of it. There needs to be a way to heal the hurt and disfunction.
I will say with a loud voice, however, the Indian leadership of MOST bands or councils are not helping heal, not helping overcome, not finding ways to open up opportunities for their people. They prefer to play politics. They have the faux political mandate to 'represent' their people, and I laugh out loud at the mere notion that they represent ANYTHING except their own personal interests. They determine their own salaries, they have the band pay for endless travel, high-end hotels and meals, endless meetings and conferences and endlessly trying to get their faces on CBC news so the people back home can see them 'doing something'.
In the end, they posture and preen. They pose and 'Declare' this or that. But what they dare not do... heaven forbid.. is solve anything. Hell no. They would 'solve' themselves out of a job.
NOBODY being paid to represent the down-trodden or poor can ever really succeed by curing the problem without making themselves redundant. This is why the grievance INDUSTRY is alive and thriving in both the Indian and Black demographic. It serves nobody but the taxpayer's interest to actually fix the problems that plague us.
"non-aboriginal famers concerned about the subsidized competition."
As soon as the word "subsidized" is used, you KNOW it is another government scheme stealing tax payers dollar to appease one group or other and get votes, at the expense of the middle class.
Yup, your post applies to more than the blacks and Indians, even white generational welfare surfers, much of my demographic (gypsies), and many 3rd world immigrants that are encouraged to arrive on our shores to strengthen the "welfare industry". You can't be a leader if you don't have followers!
But remember, MacClean's mag determined that Winnipeg is racist.
noble first nations people flushing hard working Canadians money down the toilet.
Send a copy of this to MacLeans magazine. This should make a good follow up story to their last one. Pershaps title it, "Aboriginal Leaders Forced by White Rascists to watch LV Strippers". When asked for a comment one Aboriginal leader said, "we were forced to watch and indulge in behaviour that is against our cultural values. The white man hates us and wants to destroys our most sacred beliefs."
If this story was broken by APTN then perhaps there are Aboriginal leaders who are finally willing to stand up and try to make their leaders be accountable. If so, congrats to them.
Like Paul Harvey always said, "Self government wont work without self discipline."
A friend of mine belongs to this crazy tribe in CA:
--LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A Native American casino in California must remain closed for the foreseeable future because of the threat of violence from a tribal faction that sought to take over the establishment weeks ago, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday.
The state Attorney General's Office sought the closure of the Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino in Coarsegold after guests were sent scurrying on Oct. 9 when an armed tribal faction entered and confronted another group running the business.--
http://news.yahoo.com/american-indian-casino-california-stay-shut-until-dispute-004539559.html
Yup, every day, stories about natives in poverty. Yet the bedraggled taxpayer still shelling out around 7 billion/year. Every band seems to have many living in squalor, but always chiefs driving Cadillacs and watching 60 inch wide screens. Oh well, at least we know it's always the white mans fault. Counting down till this comment is deleted, 3..2...1
My comment at the site. Of course it's still pending. Anyone want to wager whether it will be shown?
H/T to Kate re: 60" wide screens.
Nobody being paid to represent the down-trodden or poor can ever really succeed by curing the problem without making themselves redundant. This is why the grievance industry is alive and thriving. It serves nobody but the taxpayer's interest to actually fix the problems.
"No way a strip club in Etobicoke can be considered: hi-end""
I checked.....they have a dress code.....