Features

If the mining industry wants to know why there are so many hurdles to jump here in the NWT, look no further than Giant Mine.

The usual dig against the territories is that the regulatory regime for things like prospecting permits and water licences is too cumbersome and intrusive.

Such assessments are usually followed by a threat from the mining sector that they will vote with their feet and head to jurisdictions where mining regulators are apparently friendlier, such as in Nunavut or Quebec.

However, as much as mining is the backbone of the NWT economy, residents here, and across Canada for that matter, would be right to be wary of mining development.

Giant Mine offers us the horror story of what can happen when regulators turn a blind eye. Canadian taxpayers are on the hook for $300 million and climbing for the cleanup of Giant Mine because its former owner Royal Oak went bankrupt.

Toxic arsenic trioxide stuffed into underground chambers over decades will have to be monitored, presumably for as long as the planet continues orbiting the sun.

It would unconscionable for the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board or any other regulatory agency here to allow a similar situation to occur today. That's why mining companies must post bonds before starting up to ensure there is money left over to clean it up when the mine closes.

Without mining, the NWT economy would surely fall apart.

Without strict rules, it would be all too easy to allow disastrous fiascoes like Giant Mine to happen again.

These are fearful times we live in. That's why an anonymous threat Oct. 23 that someone was going to bring a gun to Sir John Franklin high school on Oct. 26 was taken so seriously.

Correct that. Neither police nor public school officials took the threat seriously, they took their response to the threat seriously, which is an important point.

Bomb threats directed at schools are nothing new. A message scribbled on a school wall or a bathroom mirror is often no more than a prank. Disruptive yes but a prank nonetheless.

Both police and school officials are duty-bound to err on the side of caution, even against their gut feeling. That's why police were consulted by school officials and officers patrolled school grounds. All proper. What wasn't handled properly was informing parents.

Instead, teachers communicated the situation to students and left it up to them to decide whether they wanted to attend school on Friday. How many parents were surprised when told by their children they didn't have to go to school and why?

In future, parents must be informed by school officials as soon as police identify a threat.

Students should also be expected to do their schoolwork at home and present completed lessons on their return.

The main lesson students are left with should be: Anonymous threats do not equal a day off.

The NWT Housing Corporation should be commended for taking action recently in Fort Liard.

After years of complaints, back and forth bureaucratic wrangling and even a (months-old) official order requiring action, the corporation sent some workers to spend an afternoon patching a leaking sewage tank in one of their residents' basements.

Working with and managing housing in the North is and likely always will be a challenge, and those who take it on should be congratulated for taking on the task as much as they're criticized.

The need is high, building conditions are difficult and materials and manpower are expensive, assuming they're available in the first place.

But it shouldn't take three years, two housing ministers, two newspaper articles and an (admittedly) angry editorial to put a Bondo patch on a fibreglass tank in a basement in Fort Liard.

When soffits bend, spouts fall off and paint peels, it's not the end of the world. It's understandable how these things can drift away in what is likely an ocean of concerns, worries and complaints.

But a sewage leak is one of those "quality of life" concerns that's hard to ignore, particularly when this sewage is rotting floorboards in a basement.

Where is this delay coming from?

There's no doubt that the resident in this case, Jack Yeadon, is what some might call a "squeaky wheel," someone willing to make noise about his problems, who makes phone calls, writes letters and brings the newspaper into the mess when all else fails.

But is this why he has been all but stonewalled in his desire to have his housing problems addressed? Because he bugs the people in power?

It shouldn't take a rental office order to fix a sewage tank that seeps sewage onto the floor. Or to replace torn soffits. Or re-attach drain spouts.

Not everyone is willing to go public with their social housing problems in the North. One has to wonder why that is.

A few calls and local criticisms have taken stabs at Deh Cho Drum's coverage of housing problems in recent weeks, perhaps with good cause.

Often, it is easier to find the "bad news" stories in the North, rather than show the public all the good that goes on every day - the hard-working people who keep houses livable, keep the power on and keep the water running under difficult conditions.

There are always people behind the scenes who keep the cogs turning, and they should be thanked at every opportunity.

But these criticisms also portray a complacency with living conditions in the NWT; the old adage of "that's life in the North."

With unprecedented levels of public interest, outside money and political concern flowing into the NWT, "life in the North" is becoming a tired excuse for the state of things.

Inuvik is in the middle of a perfect storm of development.

Geographically speaking, we are sitting on valuable ground. Our economy is strong. Our aboriginal groups are gaining strength as well through joint partnerships and business mergers.

The Inuvialuit and Gwich'in peoples are becoming involved in the responsibilities of regulating our land and resources such as caribou.

Our community has always been a hub for territorial government activity in the delta, but we haven't had opportunities like this before.

Our own Floyd Roland is now premier of the Northwest Territories.

When the fat cats on Parliament Hill look North, it will be his face they see, his voice they hear.

We did well by choosing our MLAs, who in turn chose Roland to steer the ship.

On the far side of our legislative assembly is our other voice in the house, Robert McLeod. He's a good speaker and we should support him and Roland.

With such strong representation in our government, we should have the loudest voice.

Our strong voices extend beyond the confines of Inuvik and across Husky Lakes. I'm talking about our Northern neighbour, Tuktoyaktuk.

With their newly-elected MLA Jackie Jacobson already ruffling feathers in Yellowknife, we're sure to see a wealth of development in the future. I know David Krutko has the support of his people in his riding, so why not band together and make something of this next session?

I'm talking about getting an all-season access road built from here to the Beaufort Sea. At least give Tuk the much-needed access to their gravel site. We can work from there.

For whatever reason, back in the 1950s, the federal and territorial governments thought this region would be a good place to set up shop.

We had access to the waterways, we were close enough to the shores of the sea and we could be accessed by road as well.

For the last 30 years, nothing much has changed.

We have our highway that leads to the Yukon. We also have airport services.

But what I want is progression. We shouldn't have to wait another few decades for another route to the south.

Why can't we get a fair share of the transportation pie that Yellowknife is getting so fat from?

I know that our community leaders have been doing a lot and it shows. The community corporations work hard to keep things in control at ground level.

Now, Inuvik and the surrounding communities have a loud, clear voice in the legislative assembly.

There is no excuse for failure or delays.

The media outlets are all booming with talk about consensus government and our political system.

Roland says he supports the current system and wants to work within it for our benefit.

As a community, we need to hold him to his mandate and keep pushing for more.

The front-page news of a Rankin Inlet youth winning a Harry Potter contest was not warmly received by everyone in the Kivalliq region.

Let me say two things right up front.

First, thank you to the handful of people who took the time to let me know they did not appreciate me corrupting the region's youth by glorifying witchcraft and magic in such a manner.

The right to express your opinion is always welcome, no matter how off the wall I, personally, may feel that opinion is.

Second, let me also confess I am one of the biggest adult Harry Potter fans on the planet, having read every book (twice) and viewed every movie (can't put a number on that one) to date except the latest release.

I must also confess to being just a tiny bit jealous of the teenager's good fortune in getting to meet Potter author, J. K. Rowling (there, I said it).

Yes, even soon-to-be 50 (as in years of age) newspaper editors can have heroes and role models.

But I digress.

The only things evil about the Potter books are Lord Voldemort and his not-so-merry band of Death Eaters.

In fact, when all is said and done, the main message derived from the series is that no matter how tough the going may get, if your faith does not waiver and you continue to believe in yourself, good will always triumph over evil.

That's not exactly the type of message the modern Mephistopheles (the name itself derived from folklore) goes around delivering.

One could also point to Rowling's use of temptation in the Potter series and the misfortune that befalls those who succumb to the allure to the dark arts, a time-honoured trait among writers to further amplify the message of good triumphing over evil.

Deeper still are the limitations she placed upon the ability of the magic users.

Despite the grand feasts and wondrous aids they employed while utilizing their culinary skills, they could simply transport food. They could not create it.

For those who want to see the devil at work, real or imagined, the use of magic in itself is reason enough for a kerfuffle.

To them, Rowling's admission that Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore was, in fact, homosexual, is further proof of Satan's influence on the Potter series.

To the vast majority of people, however, Harry Potter is simply an amazing piece of modern fiction writing. No more. No less.

The seven volumes of the Potter series turned literally tens of millions of children into avid book readers.

Potter took them away from the video games, and the modern expectation of instant gratification, and reintroduced them to the power of their imaginations.

They were shown no matter where one may find themselves in the social or cultural order - underneath we're all very much the same, coping with our problems as we search for acceptance and the answers to many of the same questions.

Rowling showed them the strength that can come from love, friendship, loyalty, education and the courage to stand up for one's beliefs.

That, not wands and broomsticks, is the true magic of Harry Potter.

A photo caption accompanying an article in Wednesday's Yellowknifer ("Weledeh takes on Weledeh, Oct. 31) misidentified Jessica Sanders.

Also, the white-tailed deer described in "Dettah man bags a deer" was shot Oct. 17, not Oct. 18 as stated. Yellowknifer apologizes for any embarrassment or confusion caused by these errors.