The collapse of Caribou Carnival, while disappointing, certainly comes as no surprise. The warning signs have been evident for some time.

In 2001, the carnival made national headlines with the prospect of having two queens -- Christine Boyd and Gisele Forget -- after a raffle ticket selling bonanza turned into a dogfight between the two finalists, with Boyd out-selling Forget by a handful of tickets.

Bad press aside, Boyd and Forget both sold about 9,000 tickets each -- a record $55,000 in tickets were sold that year -- leaving the carnival, which had a $120,000 budget, with a $40,000 surplus.

That surplus turned out to be a lucky break as the 2002 carnival was plagued by low attendance and racked up a $5,000 to $10,000 debt.

It was a big come-down for Caribou Carnival, which had garnered mentions from as far away as the Melbourne, Australia-based Lonely Planet travel guide.

But that's part of the problem.

Caribou Carnival is in some ways the victim of competing visions, or no vision some have said.

There are those who want to see it as a tourism draw and those who want to preserve its traditional roots as an end-of-winter celebration for Yellowknifers.

"What the hell is it about?" Marty Brown, a long-time city resident asked in Yellowknifer last December. Brown, who volunteered her time in the past, remembers when the idea of carnival as a tourist attraction came to the table. "I was not prepared to volunteer my time for tourism."

For the other side, listen to David Grindlay, executive director of the NWT Tourism Association, on the cancellation of this year's carnival: "That's very distressing news. It's very clearly one of the things we try to push as far as our winter product is concerned."

Or for a third perspective, how about Mike Vaydik, Yellowknife born and bred and executive director of the NWT/Nunavut Chamber of Mines, who says "there's no continuity, no leadership, no vision," adding the carnival is always in start-up mode playing catch-up.

Caribou Carnival started out in 1955 when the NWT Fish and Game Association decided it would be fun to put on an annual "sleigh dog race in Yellowknife." The original first-place prize was $50.

Perhaps Caribou Carnival has outlived its usefulness and should be allowed to die a natural death.

But if Caribou Carnival is to be resurrected in 2004, enthusiasts would be wise to anchor whatever vision emerges -- local celebration or major tourism event -- to the 150-mile Canadian Championship Dog Derby, which we note is still on for March 28-30.

Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News

An enthusiastic thumbs up to Sport Nunavut for its decision to shop locally for a new director.

While we hear through the grapevine that Frank Tootoo, more or less, fell into Sport Nunavut's lap, we'll still give the organization credit for recognizing a plum and not heading South for yet another lemon.

Tootoo's many years of experience in the North, both as a private enterprise manager and on the sporting front, bodes well for his new position.

The fact the man is a sports fanatic also doesn't hurt.

We're still not clear on the training details of Tootoo's appointment as Sport Nunavut's director.

The original plan was for a local personality to be "mentored" into the position.

Until assistant deputy minister Shawn Maley returns from his travels to tell us otherwise, we'll have to assume the mentoring duties will fall to sports manager Kyle Seeley -- who did an admirable job during his stint as acting director -- and longtime Sport Nunavut personality Marilyn Neily.

The next step for Sport Nunavut is to get its head office in Baker Lake up to full staff.

It's time to take the pressure off of the dedicated individuals who have been performing above and beyond the call of duty for the past year to keep things running as smoothly as possible.

Nunavut's various territorial sporting and minor hockey organizations should be excited about a new director in place who realizes the value in having a solid grassroots development program in place.

Tootoo has already indicated, on the record, he sees increased coaching and officiating clinics as a means of attracting more local volunteers to the sporting scene.

In short, he realizes people need the proper tools to do an effective job, no matter what the undertaking.

However, that being said, it will be interesting to see if Minister Manitok Thompson can find the necessary funding to allow Tootoo to deliver the initiatives he sees as instrumental in developing Nunavut's sporting programs.

As the new director points out, effective budgeting to cover the immense cost of developing and delivering sporting programs in the North in Sport Nunavut's biggest challenge.

The fact of the matter remains, however, without the proper budget to work with, the best of directors can only accomplish so much.

Now that Sport Nunavut has a full time Northern director in place, here's hoping he's not asked to do his job with one hand tied behind his back and the other furtively clutching a rather small change purse.

Editorial Comment
Terry Halifax
Inuvik Drum

Denny Rodgers didn't wear work boots, running shoes or even moccasins to unveil the Town of Inuvik's 2003 budget.

Instead, he wore a pair of Hush Puppies, to quell the voices of residents for and against the town's proposed new dog pound. Mincing few words, he explained this initiative was not going to be the SPCA's, but the town's, and the figure of $200,000 was not cast in stone.

While tempers flared and people voiced their opinions, the public was, overall, respectful. The situation the town is faced with cannot be solved with a proposal from any one interest group, however well-meaning and passionate about their cause.

Bylaws and town initiatives cannot be written or planned on the sometimes fleeting or transient wishes of one group, one person.

Linda Eccles has done so much for the animal population of Inuvik and it is appreciated, but the town cannot simply hand over a cheque or the keys to new building on that basis. Procedures have to be followed in spending tax dollars. A request for proposals regarding a contract is issued and anyone can bid on that contract. Likely Eccles is the best person to run the shelter, but what happens if she moves?

Last year, the town had to buy a street sweeper, because the previous contractor decided he didn't want to sweep streets anymore.

Street sweeping is one thing, but protective services is quite another and the town has to look out for the interests of the public for the long haul.

Pipeline HQ in Yellowknife

It was three years ago that DIAND Minister Robert Nault promised to bring DIAND jobs North from Ottawa-Hull.

That's yet to happen, but perhaps putting the new pipeline office in Yellowknife might be a bit of a payback for the folks in the capital city. Certainly the experiments of decentralization have failed miserably in the North, but that's not what this is about.

Putting a pipeline office in Yellowknife is tantamount to putting a wheat pool in Inuvik, but try and convince DIAND of that. They've been running the North (or is that ruining?) from Ottawa-Hull for years and that's not about to change.

This new office for Canada's pipeline will run from capital to capital; siphoning off the revenue of the Delta to a few bureaucrats in Yellowknife on the way to Ottawa or Hull.

Cloudy cafes

The smoking petition seemed to draw a pretty favourable response from council. It all but looks like a done deal and I think that's a good thing. While on vacation, I was on a plane that had still had ashtrays on the arm rests. The guy next to me and I got to talking about how attitudes have changed over smoking.

I remember standing over fresh produce in the grocery store with a stinky smoke hanging from my mouth and we both recalled when the whole plane was a smoking section.

It's a metamorphosis that's long overdue in public places, but I think council should leave the licensed establishments alone.

Going to a bar is a choice made by adults. They know that drinking and smoking are not healthy lifestyle choices, but it is their choice. If I were a bar owner, I would certainly take offence to government telling me how to run my business.

Prohibiting smoking in bars will only drive drunks onto the streets and I think we get quite enough of that here already.

Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum

The Mackenzie Regional Youth Conference was a lot of fun.

Many students, not surprisingly, were preoccupied with catching the eye of members of the opposite sex. There was plenty of posturing and giggling.

Yes, there were a few students who wandered off when they should have been in a session. There were a few others who didn't pay much attention to the presenter(s). But there were also many youth who gained new knowledge, skills and self-confidence.

In particular, the girls who took part in the modern dance workshop with Jennifer McLeod seemed absolutely enthralled as they learned a choreographed routine. The whole scene resembled a pop band video or one of those "we're going to make you a star" television shows.

The majority of the sessions wisely had the students involved as active participants rather than just sitting and listening. They built cardboard sleds (or chariots), skied, played soccer and made masks and necklaces.

The conference didn't go without a hitch, but it was surmounted. Friday's keynote speaker, author Myron Wolf Child, cancelled at the last minute due to illness. Principal Jane Arychuk asked Grand Chief Michael Nadli to stretch his opening remarks into a keynote address. Nadli acquiesced and the beat went on.

Timely reminder

Dennis Nelner's tour of Deh Cho communities to discuss an impending Mackenzie Valley pipeline should turn community leaders' thoughts into actions. Although still years away, the project may seem distant but it will be upon us in a relatively short time.

Political and business battles remain to be fought. The formation of a Deh Cho Economic Corporation has been a logical step, but so much more remains to be done.

Smoke no more

One aspect that never arose in the Drum's three-part series on smoking and butting out was weight gain.

Many people who throw away the cigarettes wind up packing on the pounds. Dr. Peter Selby pointed out that nicotine is indeed an appetite suppressant. In addition, many ex-smokers feel strong impulses to reach for a sugary substitute to cigarettes. Dr. Selby advised that low-calorie, low-fat snacks such celery sticks are the best alternative. Starting or continuing an exercise program is also important, he said.

He added those who use nicotine-replacement methods, such as nicotine gum or the patch, generally experience less weight gain than those who do not use those products.

So the argument that excessive weight gain, at some point, becomes a greater health hazard than smoking need not exist. If enough willpower and discipline can be summoned, both battles can be fought at once.

Before closing on the smoking issue, my thanks to all who took part in the series.

In the special report on seniors housing called "Aching for assisted living" (Yellowknifer, Feb. 19) the funding the GNWT has committed to the Yellowknife Seniors Association of Concerned Citizens for Seniors dementia facility is $50,000 not $500,000. We apologize for any confusion the error may have caused.