The shock over Northwest Territories Power Corporation's plan to increase rates nearly 20 per cent has still not worn off.

Even though it is an interim rate and NWTPC customers in the city may in the end get a rebate, we've got to agree with the Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce that the hike is unfair. If Yellowknifers are going to be refunded most of this extra charge, then why charge it in the first place?

After this latest increase, the GNWT should look long and hard at moving toward a switch to hydro power, as Finance Minister Joe Handley has suggested.

In the meantime, conservation is a key to avoiding the increased cost as well as lessening the impact on natural resources.

And much like the chamber, we'll be keeping a close eye on the Public Utilities Board's review of the proposed increase this fall.

Anyone who has lived where mosquitoes are an integral part of summer sub-culture knows nothing kills the little buggers like DEET.

But the federal government has decided products with DEET concentrations above 30 per cent will be phased out starting this August. According to the feds, products with lower DEET concentrations are as effective as high concentrations, but for less time.

So those who were using repellent with more than 30 per cent concentration of DEET have to buy more bottles of the lesser concentration and apply it more often.

It's no wonder businesses haven't really balked at the new DEET guidelines -- it's more money for them.

Those living in mosquito country can either look forward to a bigger bite out of their pocket or their flesh. What a choice!

A pair of interesting money bylaws went through council last Monday night.

One bylaw will allow the city to borrow $3.3 million to develop the next two phases of the Niven Lake subdivision.

Council didn't want to ask ratepayers for permission in a plebiscite so they went to the territorial government for permission to borrow the money.

Permission granted.

Mayor Gord van Tighem is confident the $3.3 million won't be needed, that the hot housing market will ensure any development pays for itself.

We hope he's right.

The second bylaw was to refinance the $2.5 million the city had to pay to developers when the first phases of Niven Lake flopped with Yellowknife home buyers.

Will history repeat itself?

They can't play instruments or sing, but that didn't stop the Sahtu Women Warrior dolls from making their Yellowknife debut at last weekend's Folk on the Rocks.

The dolls are the brainchild of the Sahtu Women Warriors, a determined group of women whose goal is to build a highway from Wrigley to the Sahtu.

Tired of waiting for the government to fork out the money to build the highway, the all-female troop is selling the warrior babes for $25. Before last weekend's sales, the women warriors had already raised $4,000.

The spokesperson for the group, Cece McCauley-Hodgson, said in a News/North column earlier this spring that women the world over are fed up with the status quo -- men in charge.

While such a statement might not be fair, it's a chance for men the world over to prove Cece wrong. How? Order your doll today.

Editorial Comment
Nathan VanderKlippe
Kivalliq News

Rage, grief, despair and horrible, throat-constricting sadness are necessary successors to life unnaturally ended. These are the most human of responses to tragedy, the sorrowed cries of hearts rent apart. And the deaths in the Avataq, awful and unexpected, were tragedy writ large.

But for those who grieve, somehow sorrow slowly begins to erode into sad acceptance. And when it does, a nagging desire begins to burn: can this death mean something? Can some sweetness be salvaged from the pervading bitterness of life passing?

The question cannot be answered easily, and the response cannot begin to measure any of death's offspring as compensation for it.

Yet the question persists. Can the deaths of four men in the waters of Hudson Bay somehow spur the living into greater action?

Soon after the Avataq sank, governments and departments across the country shifted gears on safety. Transport Canada hired more staff and moved its northern office to Winnipeg. The federal and territorial governments co-ordinated efforts to produce more marine safety publications in Inuktitut. Efforts are now being made to present more weather information in Inuktitut.

All of these are important and necessary steps. But they are not enough. Transport Canada still only comes to Nunavut when called on.

This sort of policy would seem silly in other areas. Who would place much faith in a health inspector who scrutinized restaurant kitchens only when requested?

The answer is clear, and Transport Canada needs to make random inspections part of its mandate in inspecting marine vessels in the Nunavut.

Yet reliance on government can only extend so far. The eye of the state is blinkered by distance and cost.

In matters of safety, personal responsibility can never be overlooked. The Avataq drew attention to marine safety in the Kivalliq, but dedication to safety of all sorts is crucial in a region where the natural elements are unpredictable and deadly. That means responsibility for safety lies directly on the shoulders of individuals, not simply the government.

Changes in policies, emergency measures and inspections can never begin to make a death worthwhile. But perhaps they can give those deaths some meaning. And perhaps, in the cruel sort of ways, they can give to the dead some purpose fulfilled in their dying.

Editorial Comment
Terry Halifax
Inuvik Drum

I had a great time getting to know some of the artists who gathered here for the Great Northern Arts Festival and it was well-organized but I felt the entertainment arts were not well-represented.

There are a handful of local musicians who represented the town well with sitting in, but the evenings were sorely lacking in things to do for the visitors.

I really have to hand it to the tolerant Inuvik audience who politely sat through Tom Jackson's performance, applauding and even laughing at the painful prop gags he started his show with.

Myself and a colleague from the National Post were not quite so tolerant and made a hasty exit after I snapped a few photos.

There needs to be a separate focus on evening entertainment for the festival that should include a variety of musical and performing arts of the same calibre found in the gallery.

No peace in the valley

Monday's public meeting over the proposed elders housing at Happy Valley Campground certainly had council rethinking the site selection of this sixplex.

This issue grabbed my attention when I first came to town and I knew it was going to be a contentious issue. That's why I made sure to be at the meeting with cabinet ministers Jim Antoine, Roger Allen and town council on April 8 at 10:30 a.m.

I was there on time and so were a few business people, but the mayor and the ministers were long gone. Apparently, the meeting was pushed forward, but no one thought to notify the press or the public. It stank of a backroom deal to me at the time and it still stinks today. Said and done, the construction and servicing of this building will cost about $2 million in tax dollars and another $2 million more to replace the campground. Add on the $800,000 that RWED spent on developing the campground and you get a cost to the people of nearly $5 million to house six people. This public meeting should have been held. With the elected officials there to answer why it makes sense that six people will get publicly funded houses at the sake of losing a public resource forever.

Granted, this campground doesn't make a lot of money, in fact none of RWED's campgrounds are intended to. They are operated to break even and to encourage travellers to bring their dollars into our businesses. Tourism is not a big part of the economy, but it won't get any bigger either if we tear down rather than build up.

Some business people here are taking a lot of heat because they are taking a stand on this issue. There is talk of greed and disrespect and that has no place in this argument.

Respect begets respect and people should have a right to stand up to defend their businesses and their children's futures without being insulted. Julie Morrison spoke of traditional decision-making and how decisions should be based on the outcome seven generations in the future.

Anyone saying 'no' to this project is not saying 'no' to the elders, they are saying 'yes' for the next seven generations.

There are six elders who would like to spend their golden years on the same piece of land they tramped out of the Delta mud to call home 40 years ago. That's a very nice sentiment, but what will that piece of land mean to the next seven generations of elders?

Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum

By this weekend, they'll be off ... planes carrying athletes heading for the North American Indigenous Games in Winnipeg.

Twenty-five teams are scheduled to participate in the event -- more than 6,000 athletes and close to 1,200 coaches. Participants will not only come from most Canadian provinces and three territories, but also from several American states including Florida, New Mexico and New York.

For those of us who have gone on such road trips, think back to how exciting they were. There may be a little apprehension thrown into the mix, but most of the athletes will be readily immersed in their surroundings and actively engaged in socializing.

Competitively, the North is at a disadvantage. This is nothing unusual. With a small pool of athletes spread out over such vast tracts of land, there's little or no opportunity for the teams to practice together.

There are those who believe the territorial government should make funding available to ensure NWT teams can workout as a collective prior to the games. The GNWT has coughed up $270,000 this year to help cover expenses for the close to 200 NWT participants in the games. If team fundraising doesn't generate enough to allow for full practices before the games, then that's the way it goes.

The NWT has acquitted itself well in many national sporting events over the years. The right attitude heading into the North American Indigenous Games is that of midget girls soccer coach Val Gendron -- demand 100 per cent effort and "whatever happens, happens."

There are valuable cultural and social aspects to these games, which occur every four years. If the NWT's athletes bring home medals, it is really just a bonus.

Blacktop headaches

Fort Liard is getting it's main street chipsealed. That's great news for residents who are tired of bouncing around in their vehicles, particularly after a solid rain creates potholes and pitted roads.

The down side to chipseal, and more recently to pavement, as Fort Simpson has found out, is that some drivers have a penchant for squealing their tires at late hours. There are those who, although few in number, insist on waking up the neighbourhood with their irresponsible antics.

The advent of chipseal may also been seen by some motorists as a green light for drag races, putting the pedal to the metal.

Fortunately, as the blacktop is being laid a new protective services officer will be on duty in Fort Liard. It is a position that hadn't been filled over the past year. So if any leadfooted driver decides to make a nuisance of himself, the protective services officer can deal with him. If the leadfoot reaches the point of reckless driving, there are RCMP members who can lay charges as well.

For everyone else, enjoy the smooth ride.