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City council took its first sensible step towards overhauling its regulations on taxis this past Monday, when they voted to allow the market to determine the number of taxis that work city streets.

Regulating the number of taxis on the streets makes little sense. Even though taxis provide an important public service, it should not be up to the city to run the industry. The city's responsibility is public transit - a bus system that has so far proved to be woefully inadequate to serving the transport needs of Yellowknifers. The city must focus on improving this rather than having to deal with the shenanigans of cab companies and drivers who keep coming back to city council with complaints about how their industry should or should not function.

Recent meetings between city officials, cab drivers and taxi company representatives show that discord exists between the drivers - who claim that earning a living driving cab is becoming too much of a struggle - and taxi companies who appear to want to increase profits for themselves at the expense of drivers. Indeed, deregulating the population of taxis in town would appear to be to the taxi companies' advantage. But if the city transforms the bus system into one more suited to the city and climate, as it should, any negative effects that opening the taxi market could have on quality of service to the public would not be an issue. The public would have the choice between taking a cab across town, or a bus for one-tenth the price.

Granted, taxi service is an indispensable service in a city where cold winters show no mercy to petrol-fuelled vehicles. Residents need a prompt, reliable transportation service.

Focused rules must be established - ones that ensure the public can expect decent service from the two cab companies, and that cab-driving will be maintained as a viable profession run by drivers who measure up to high standards.

The city's proposals for its new bylaw on taxis appear to be in keeping with these goals. These include criminal checks restricting drivers with criminal convictions, having taxis use uniform colours, and importantly, restricting the number of licences an individual can possess.

A next important move, one which city council has yet to consider, will be to deregulate taxi fares. If the market can decide how many taxis can operate on our roads, it can also decide fares - which have been another source of discord among cabbies. It should be up to cab companies to set rates that Yellowknifers are ready to pay, and up to cabbies to decide how much their companies must charge to keep their profession viable.

For part of an afternoon students in Kakisa were hockey stars.

On Jan. 12 all six students at the Kakisa Lake school bundled up against the cold and went outside to play a game of street hockey. Staff from the Aboriginal Sports Circle of the Northwest Territories organized the game as part of their Fun on Ice program.

The program is delivered around the territory in communities that don't have indoor ice rinks. Usually the afternoon hockey game is played on an outdoor rink but in Kakisa, where mechanical difficulties have delayed flooding of the rink, they had to resort to using a snow-covered street.

Despite the lack of ice the students were, by all accounts, delighted to be outside playing hockey. From the oldest to the youngest, all of the students picked up a hockey stick and focused on the game.

The students' enthusiasm is a great reminder that a lack of infrastructure doesn't mean that residents of smaller communities can't enjoy the same sports that are available in larger centres. In the Deh Cho all it takes is a bit of determination and the will to make it happen.

Streets and outdoor rinks are places where youth and adults alike have a chance to get excited about a game of hockey, a sport that so many people enjoy.

It doesn't mean, however, that it will be easy.

Shovelling snow off of an outdoor rink is hard work and temperatures are always colder outdoors than in an enclosed arena.

The effort, however, is worth it.

The Fun on Ice program has also demonstrated that sports are a great way to get families involved in an activity together. The evening hockey games that are held as part of the program are a big hit in communities.

Seeing parents out playing with their children is really neat, according to Greg Hopf, the assistant director of the Sports Circle.

The program has shown that if adults make the effort to set up sports facilities, like outdoor rinks, the youth will come. The chance to play with family and community members adds even more of a draw.

Although all adults would likely prefer to play hockey in an indoor rink, the basic tenants of the sport are what have to be kept in mind.

Hockey doesn't have to be about fancy gear, professional teams, year-round ice or even about winning, although the occasional victory can be nice. At its basic level hockey is just an excuse to have fun, wear off some energy and engage in some friendly competition.

Only three communities in the Deh Cho have indoor ice rinks but every community has the chance to engage in winter sports like hockey - to the benefit of all residents.

Years ago, Inuvik used to have two airports. The in-town airport would service the smaller planes that fly to the outlying communities.

That space, located near the East Channel of the Mackenzie River was also a good spot to hold a fireworks display.

For years, the people of Inuvik would gather at the site, huddled around bonfires, waiting for the sky to light up with red, blue, green and other bright colours.

Since then, the location for the fireworks display has changed. I've been to a demonstration on Twin Lakes, the river and the old airport.

Most recently, the town moved the show to its current venue at the golf course.

While I can see the merit of moving the event to a location that is easier to access by vehicle and is a great open space, it makes it hard for those families on the west end of town who don't have a vehicle.

These cold days can wreak havoc on someone who is outside without proper winter gear on.

I saw a lot of well-dressed people while I was out snapping photos of the fireworks.

It was hard to tell who I was talking to because of the heavy bundles of scarves, hats and hoods.

I felt unprepared, because it seemed like it was only a few minutes before I was cowering back into the warmth of a running vehicle.

One argument I heard over the last week was the current location isn't level with the rest of the town, making it harder for people to see the show from their homes.

In previous locations, the show could be seen from anywhere in town.

Now the show can be seen from parts of the community, but the visibility can be blocked by tall buildings.

After leaving this year's event, I could still hear the cracking and screaming of the fireworks as they exploded in the night sky.

For safety reasons, I see why the new location works so well, because it gives the technicians enough space between them and the audience, in case something goes wrong.

It's better to be safe than sorry in that type of situation. It also works out because the types of fireworks being used are best seen from a distance.

It looks like over the years, the people that organize the event saw the need for a larger area, like the golf course.

It may be a hassle for those people who walked out to see the show, but at least the bonfires were huge.

The Inuvik volunteer fire department needs to be thanked for another successful Sunrise Festival.

Without their support and hard work, none of it would be possible.

Looking around the fire that night, I was envious of the firefighters, because they had the best gear for the cold.

In the end, it was a good gathering with many smiling faces. It didn't seem to matter that this year's event was back to the regular budget; it was enjoyed by all.

If the city wanted to stir up crap and generate a debate on honey bags, they have accomplished their goal.

Last month, the city erected signs at several honey bag drop-off sites throughout Old Town, headlined: "These bags contain human feces - do not touch."

The signs go on to tsk-tsk honey bag users about their poop-in-a-bucket ways, informing them they and the environment would be better off if they switched to compost toilets - a considerable expense, some shack dwellers and houseboaters argue.

The signs sparked outrage among honey bag users who felt the city was picking on them. Indeed, city officials likely are.

Dennis Althouse, superintendent of operations at Public Works, insists the city felt it necessary to notify the "public" of the potential danger spread by honey bags, typhoid and cholera among them, and hence the urgent need for signs.

Going by that logic, we would be led to believe the city is afraid some tourist will wander by and be tempted to rummage through the dropped off honey bags. If that's the case, then why has the city waited until now to erect these signs?

The honey bag has been with us since the earliest days of the city. They remain in use in only a few isolated pockets - some shacks in the Woodyard and Peace River Flats, a few houseboats in Yellowknife Bay, the odd scattered shack around Old Town and the Kam Lake industrial park.

For many years - and no one at the city is actually sure how long, - it's been some poor Public Works wretch's job to come by the drop-off sites once a week, remove the filled honey bags, leave behind a few, clean empty ones and then take the full bags to Fiddler's Lagoon where they are dumped into a growing pile of un-degradable plastic and poop.

The city has been doing this all this time free of charge.

If honey bag users are wondering why the city has resorted to offensive signs in front of their shacks and driveways, we would suggest the scenario illustrated above has much to do with it.

No one else in the city gets free sewage treatment so why should honey bag users, some of whom - particularly in the houseboat community - make handsome salaries as lawyers and business owners. Most houseboaters, it's assumed, don't have drop-off spots but take their honey bags to Fiddler's Lagoon themselves. No matter, they're still filling up city land with their offal without having to pay for it.

If compost toilets are too expensive then surely all those living the shack and houseboat life can at least pay the city for taking care of their waste for them.

Houseboats and shacks, like scavenging at the city dump, are part of what makes Yellowknife interesting and unique. People need to live in these old shacks to ensure their continued existence. The flipside is that the people who choose this lifestyle must realize that it's everyone else in the city who pays for their crap. That should change.

Price too high for machismo
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News - Wednesday, January 14, 2009

The recent death of rookie defenceman Don Sanderson, 21, has sparked a fiery debate, once again, over the role of fighting in hockey.

Sanderson played for the senior AAA Whitby Dunlops of the Ontario Hockey Association.

The Port Perry, Ont., man went into a coma when his head hit the ice during a fight, and he died in hospital three weeks later.

Sanderson's helmet came off during the fight.

Let me say it up front: I firmly believe fighting belongs in the game of hockey.

What doesn't belong in the game is stupidity, and I fear the real issue will be lost amongst all the talking heads - many of whom haven't played competitive hockey in their lives - rambling on about completely removing fighting from the game.

The height of their hypocrisy was evident this past week when Bob McCown had the president of the Canadian Hockey League on his Prime Time Sports talk show, broadcast on radio and TV.

McCown seized the opportunity to bash fighting in hockey, and belittled players who take part in such barbarism.

When the segment concluded and the show cut to commercial, the very first image to pop on the screen was the bloodied and battered face of a martial arts fighter as the network plugged its upcoming TV card. But I digress.

The issues needing to be addressed are improperly fitted helmets that come off too easily and players - doing what they perceive to be the macho thing - removing their head-and-face protection before engaging in a fight.

As many regular readers of Kivalliq News know, I am the only Level 4 hockey official currently active in Nunavut and, as such, I officiate a lot of games.

While Ontario may seem like a long way from the Kivalliq, we had two incidents already this month which could have, but for the grace of God, led to a similar tragedy right here in Rankin Inlet.

One player removed his full-facial cage before a fight, while another removed his helmet before engaging in a tough scrap with another capable fighter.

In both cases, the same sad ending could have happened that prematurely ended the life of Sanderson.

Fighting does not need to be taken from the game, but stiffer penalties need to be assessed to players who purposely remove protective equipment to scrap.

The penalties need to be increased because players have demonstrated time and time again they are willing to put their machismo ahead of common sense.

And, unfortunately, it's not just the players.

Coaches in Nunavut are also supposed to wear their helmets while conducting on-ice practices, yet one constantly sees them out on the ice wearing ball hats or toques.

That's not exactly the message we want them to be sending our young players.

Hockey is a rough game, but it's time for players to realize they don't have to act stupid in order to be seen as tough people upholding some unwritten code.

Damaged eyes, scrambled brains and lost lives are the possible results of such machismo, and that's far too high a price to pay.

The territorial government needs to put priority on common sense. Instead of think tanks, it should set up common-sense tanks to help it start implementing reasonable policies.

Before Christmas the health department -- in yet another example of government idiocy -- decided to make income earning NWT seniors pay for health benefits such as prescription drug costs and eye care.

Granted the change will ensure low-income earners in the territory have access to health benefits, but there are many other areas the GNWT could have cut to find the necessary funds.

Now, if you make $50,000 or more, the free benefits seniors earned for working and paying into the health system over the past 60-some odd years, will have to be paid for.

Is our territory's need so immense that it is going to steal money out of the pockets of the people who helped build the NWT into what it is today?

Instead of cutting ridiculous government bonuses such as the exorbitant sums paid to Power Corporation executives, the GNWT woke up before the holidays and found a way to save itself money. It was simple: just stop helping those pesky seniors who have an income.

Shame on the aging population for thinking that they could save a few extra dollars before leaving the workforce and shame on them for having the foresight to provide for themselves in the future. Well, the GNWT nipped that in the bud and has decided to milk them for as much as they can before it is too late.

The best thing for seniors to do now is dump all their RRSPs, quit their jobs and go on welfare. Or, better yet, pack up and leave the territory following the train of residents who are escaping the high cost of living in the North.

We would like to see the health minister and her department executives try to live on $50,000 annually while incurring the rising health care costs that come with age. According to Statistics Canada's report Spending Patterns in Canada, seniors were spending between four and five per cent of their annual income on health care, with the largest portion of those costs being prescription drugs. To put that in perspective: in 2002 a Senate report recommended that the provinces and territories implement programs to ensure seniors are not spending more than three per cent of their annual incomes on prescription drugs. We wonder if Health Minister Sandy Lee read that report.

At a time when the country is worrying about the economy and job security, seniors shouldn't have to worry about choosing between prescriptions and their rent or mortgage.

The GNWT prescription of a new supplementary drug plan for low-income residents comes at the expense of another segment of our senior population.

Side effects may include decreased population, reduced federal transfer payments and failure to be re-elected.

Few things seem as out-of-place as hip hop on the Arctic tundra.

On the surface, the music and dance phenomenon that grew from the streets and clubs of large American cities has little in common with small, remote Inuit communities.

But hip hop is popular among the young, and one thing Nunavut has is a lot of young people.

Youth listen to the music and wear the clothes they see promoted in global media. Picking up the dance moves, however, is harder to do when the nearest clubs are thousands of kilometres away.

That's where organized workshops teaching the athletic dance style come in.

Clyde River has been Nunavut's ground zero when it comes to hip hop programs. The Ilisaqsivik Society has been holding occasional workshops there since 2006; kids now meet three times a week to practise at the community hall. Last year a group of Clyde River's hip-hop dancers journeyed to Ottawa to perform for the Governor General.

Ilisaqsivik's co-ordinator has reported positive results: the goal of becoming proficient at hip hop serves as an incentive to get regular exercise, quit smoking and quit doing drugs.

Other individuals and organizations such as Blue Print for Life and the Canadian Floor Masters have conducted workshops in communities including Arctic Bay, Cambridge Bay, Rankin Inlet, Pangnirtung, Cape Dorset, Pond Inlet and Iqaluit, using the opportunity to engage youth about issues such as drugs and alcohol, bullying and suicide.

Last month the federal and Nunavut governments pledged $400,000 for more hip-hop workshops and healthy living kits for schools. Investing in the health and welfare of youth is always money well spent.

Active kids are healthy kids, both physically and mentally. Hip hop provides them with a youth-specific outlet for their energy and gives them goals to strive for in the form of new moves, performances and in-house competitions.

And far from edging out traditional culture, many youth use the freeform nature of hip hop to express their unique circumstances in the North. Some perform in traditional clothes. Some incorporate imitations of polar bears, dog teams and Inuit square dances.

So despite its initial incongruity, hip hop is taking the North by storm. And anything that keeps kids happy and healthy is something everyone can get behind.