In the south, federal, municipal and provincial governments subsidize various forms of public transportation, for the wellbeing of the country. It might be in the form of national infrastructure schemes like building bridges or roads, or direct subsidies to public transit.
The federal government for many years, likewise for the good of the country, regulated the movement of people by aircraft by awarding airlines their routes. Then came the era of free trade and deregulation so the market was left to decide which companies would live or die. Northerners have seen direct benefits of this with reasonable fares and seat sales on both southern and northern routes.
Now Canadian Airlines International is in a battle for survival and if it goes under, it will have a major impact on the top third of Canada's land mass.
Is Canadian struggling because of poor management? Or is the domestic market too small to support two national airlines?
In the first case, a bailout based upon a viable recovery plan would be justifiable.
In the second case, a bailout would be throwing good money after bad and Canadian should be allowed to die.
But the North simply cannot be left at the mercy of one major national airline.
As the municipalities and provinces subsidize their various public transportation services, so must the federal government come to the aid of Northerners for the good of the country.
To maintain a viable economy and federal sovereignty in the North, Northerners must have full access to their buses, trains and subways of the sky.
In the absence of competition in the air, there will have to be a return to regulation of fares and essential routes which no one really wants. ( 12/4/96 )
Recently, there have been a number of inquiries about Yellowknifer's court reporting policy, in particular the reporting of names of people charged with crimes.
The decision to publish names is based upon Yellowknifer's definition of a "public person."
For purposes of reporting criminal charges, a public person is anyone who has given up the right to privacy by running for or assuming public office.
In the same category are people who hold positions of trust. This includes police officers, teachers, clergy members, officers of the courts or executives of publicly funded agencies that deal with people and public funds.
We also report the names of people charged with major crimes, such as murder or large drug seizures.
In the event someone named in connection with criminal charges is found not guilty, Yellowknifer has an obligation to report the verdict.
The names of people not considered public figures or not in positions of public trust are only reported upon conviction if Yellowknifer editors decide the case is of public interest.
Of course, Yellowknifer also withholds names as ordered by the courts. ( 12/4/96 )