In reading various newspaper accounts of the latest Indian casino proposals - especially the ones about building a casino in Cayuga County or maybe even in the city of Auburn - it appears that there are many, many issues to be resolved before we place our bets.

We don't believe that anyone has asked these questions, which seem to us, to be some of the prime issues surrounding these controversial proposals:

€ Do you, the taxpayers of Cayuga County, want a casino to be built and located in Cayuga County?

And that, ladies and gentlemen, appears be the first priority and issue that needs to be addressed and resolved before anything gets underway anywhere.

€ The second question should be: If a casino is approved to be built in the county, do you approve of it being built in Auburn?

In fact, these questions should be put on a countywide ballot this November before any agreements are made with the Indians, the state, the federal government or some favorite lobbyists.

We, the county residents, are the ones who will have to put up with all the “stuff” - both positive and negative - that a casino brings.

We, therefore, should be the ones who decide on this political football first - and not our county Legislature or the city of Auburn or the various towns or the state or the feds.

And we don't believe that's too much to ask, do you?

It's your money.

Bill Balyszak

Auburn