Friday, December 17, 2004
People gradually came to be disgusted with that kind of drunken image after too many news stories about murders, family violence, drownings, car, snowmobile and boat crashes and other stupid behaviour. "Alcohol was a contributing factor" often ends police reports.
For a while, to combat the evils of too much drink, total bans on drinking or quantity restrictions were often the methods of choice.
Times have changed again. Letting bars open six Sundays a year is the thin edge of the wedge to keeping tavern doors open all year -- despite what liquor board chair Don Kindt says -- and we welcome that.
Most provinces in Canada already allow full-week availability.
There's also talk of longer hours of service. And we would welcome that, too.
Bar owners say Sunday openings and longer hours would help take the sting out of lost revenue when smokers stayed home to drink.
That might be, but we like this reasoning: Sunday openings and longer hours makes us that little bit more civilized.
Businesses used to be closed Sunday because it was the Lord's Day. But many of us don't go to church anymore. We would rather spend our day off checking bargains in stores, goofing off in the outdoors or enjoying a casual beer at the local pub.
Longer hours of service means our late-night activities can be paced out, especially if longer hours means more time between last call and getting ejected to the street.
The soundness of that approach is it doesn't force patrons to pound back their beverages then stagger around in groups inclined to act like a pack of mad dogs.
Again, many provinces already allow later hours. Saskatchewan, Newfoundland/Labrador and Quebec allow 3 a.m. limits, and B.C.'s drinking holes are open to 4 a.m.
As for revenues lost because of the smoking ban, there are many studies showing that, with a little patience, the bottom line rebounds.
Smokers now represent a definite minority of the population. The health benefits for everyone far outweigh the consequences of allowing smoking just to keep a balance sheet happy.
Taken together, Sunday openings and longer hours of service are the way to go. Cheers!
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
There are times even the most optimistic among us wonder if society is going in the right direction.
We often hear organizations complain about the fact nobody wants to lend a hand anymore, unless they're being paid for their time.
Sporting and youth-oriented groups are constantly beating the tundra for more people to get involved with their programs.
Family violence is on the rise across the territory and the Qulliq Energy Corp. still can't figure out how to properly add up its numbers.
Yet, every time the darkness tries to black out the light of human kindness, a story reaches your ears that rekindles your faith in the human spirit.
The tale begins
Earlier this year, a man by the name of Marcus Randolph decided to combine a bit of vacation time with a few weeks work in the North.
During the work portion of his Northern experience, the Australian visited an exploration camp near Repulse Bay.
Randolph wanted to take in as much of the local culture as he could and experience the Northern fishing he had heard so much about.
So, he took the opportunity to visit the hamlet and even paid a goodwill visit to Tusarvik school.
As luck would have it, a fishing derby was taking place at the time of Randolph's visit.
What better time for him to try his luck in the pristine Arctic waters?
Randolph turned out to be quite the fisherman, landing a catch good enough to win him $2,200 in the fishing derby.
He was soon on his way home with a good chunk of his expenses covered by his derby win.
A while later, Leonie Aissaoui was sorting through the day's mail for Tusarvik when she noticed an envelope bearing an Australian postmark.
Aissaoui opened up the envelop to find a cheque for $2,200 donated to the school and a warm letter from one Mr. Marcus Randolph.
He explained in his letter that he never felt right about the money, as he hadn't done anything to earn it.
In fact, he had been spending the past while trying to figure out what cause or charity he should give it to.
Then the idea struck him, why not send it home to Repulse?
Filling empty bellies
You see, during his visit to Tusarvik, Randolph was touched deeply by the effort he saw being put into the school's breakfast program.
And, he couldn't stand having all that money from an area where he knew some kids were having a hard time finding enough to eat.
So, Randolph returned the money to the school with one request -- that it be used to put food into the bellies of any hungry children at the school.
To top it all off, he ended the letter by thanking the school's staff for all the good work they are doing.
Our heartfelt thanks to Mr. Randolph on behalf of the kids in Repulse Bay.
And, my personal gratitude to the man for making this Christmas a whole lot brighter!
Editorial Comment
Jason Unrau
Inuvik Drum
In its lofty mission statement, The Canada Unity Council - re: another big fat sponge for your tax dollars - claims that by giving Canadians a better understanding of "Canadian institutions," it increases citizens' attachment to the nation.
Personally, I've found that the more Canadians understand their institutions, the more disillusioned, helpless and fed up they tend to feel.
But getting back to lambasting yet another government-funded let's-feel-good-about-ourselves organization, an easy place to begin is with its recent "Portraits of Canada" survey, which presumably was intended to get the pulse of what people on the street actually think.
In a recent news release following the survey, the council felt it necessary to hit media outlets with the "news" that Canadians don't believe improving the quality of life for aboriginal people to be very important. It ranked 10th out of 11 items those surveyed thought should be "top priority" for the federal government.
The reaction, of course, was the usual platitudes from some aboriginal leadership about how non-aboriginals don't care about aboriginals. Not much unity being created here.
Wasn't satisfied?
Perhaps the "unity council" wasn't satisfied with the coverage of its previous news releases about the same survey, which revealed that priority number one for respondents was to protect the environment, followed by a desire for the feds to spend more on health care.
As these issues affect everyone, I find it very difficult to understand how some can interpret aboriginal quality of life ranking lower than the environment or health care as an indication that people don't care about aboriginal people.
It would be nice for once if we could talk about improving anything without tacking on a race qualifier.
In the end, most of us want to improve our quality of life and of our communities.
Those who don't are either living in a zen state of satiated existential bliss, or are just feeling so darn hunky-dory already that things couldn't get any better. As for myself, improving the quality of my life is a constant "top priority."
If it is actually happening or not is another thing, but here's to wishful thinking.
Not surprisingly, strengthening the position of religion in our national conscience was absent from the survey. The unity guys had a separate survey for that one -- and probably a good thing, too. Imagine the ruckus if results showed that more people thought believing in God was of higher priority than improving the life of aboriginals. It begs the question, what would Jesus do?
Thinking a little closer to Inuvik, the homelessness situation comes to mind.
While it's commendable that the prevailing interests in town can all come together to talk about the issue, it's too bad that a lot of talk has happened, but not much has been accomplished.
Whether or not the pulse of the nation beats in favour of improving the quality of life for aboriginal people is not going to provide food and shelter for the guy shivering on the street tonight. That much is obvious.
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
The worst-case scenario in the Fort Providence hamlet election has come to pass.
Michael Vandell, who decided he wanted no part of the mayor's office, was elected. Vandell wasted little time in resigning from the position. Unless there is acclamation the next time around, residents must return to the polls for a by-election (at least the community members who decide it's worth their time to cast a ballot).
Why? Because restrictive territorial legislation wouldn't permit Vandell to bow out of contention. He tried, but it was after the withdrawal period elapsed.
There are a couple of lessons to take from this fiasco: the election legislation needs to be modified and candidates must search their souls before agreeing to vie for elected office.
One problem is that nominees are currently given only 48 hours to withdraw. That's just not enough time, especially for those who travel often or encounter extenuating circumstances such as a family crisis.
Municipal elections have extremely lengthy campaign periods -- even though little campaigning is usually done in smaller communities. In the Fort Providence and Fort Liard hamlet elections, for example, nominations closed on Nov. 8. Election day didn't come until Dec. 13. That's a long stretch.
Why is it that nominees couldn't be given a full week to decline having their name on a ballot if they decide they cannot shoulder the load?
Whatever extra time may be allotted, it still might not be enough for some. If the legislation was amended to give a week, someday a candidate will undoubtedly try to back out on the eighth or ninth day. The line must be drawn somewhere. Therefore it's equally imperative that those who run in municipal elections -- or any election, for that matter -- should not do so whimsically.
Sometimes nominees mean well; they sincerely would like to help their community. They just don't have the time. It's best to be honest with oneself and others early rather than impulsively agreeing to jump in when approached by supporters at the eleventh hour, as so often happens.
When only one person decides to step up to the plate, it becomes a simple matter of acclamation. In a democracy, acclamation isn't ideal but sometimes it's a reality.
Also an unfortunate reality is how little interest the hamlet and district education authority elections generated in Fort Providence. A mere 155 of 506 eligible voters thought it was worthwhile to exercise their civic duty.
Wouldn't it be good to see a tremendous turnout at the polls? It would make a huge difference if people took a genuine interest in municipal politics, which truly does affect their day-to-day lives. It would also be fantastic if several candidates planned well in advance of an election and built a campaign with a ground swell of grassroots support.
More often than not, however, that's a little utopian.
In the real world, municipalities frequently point to empty coffers, turning to the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs for more money. It's really too bad that the Hamlet of Fort Providence will have to bear the costs of a second election. That money could surely be used for a better purpose.
From the Dec. 9 edition of the Inuvik Drum, the band scheduled to play the New Year's Eve party at the Zoo is Crush from Edmonton, not Newfoundland. The Drum regrets any confusion this may have caused.