It appalls us that authorities did not do enough to protect a Fort Good Hope woman from repeated abuse by her husband.

Despite the fact that he broke an emergency court order which barred him from seeing her, and three arrests for terrorizing her and violating court orders, the 39-year-old was repeatedly released from custody.

The woman took advantage of the new Protection Against Family Violence Act introduced last year, but it failed to protect her from her attacker.

We agree with territorial court judge Brian Bruser, who scolded police for not doing more. This man should have been brought before a justice of the peace and ordered to remain in custody, but that didn't happen.

Until the authorities across the Territories start recognizing the fact that abused women must be shielded from their attackers in every way possible, incidents like this one will continue to occur.

When the law first came into effect in April 2005, RCMP Supt. Pat McCloskey said police would make arrangements to ensure emergency protection orders are obeyed. What happened in this case?

Police and the courts must do everything in their power to ensure these laws are applied. If not, the rate of family violence in the NWT will remain well above the national average.

Hat's off to Aurora College's Inuvik graduates for their hard work and determination. Studying requires so much from a person -- time, discipline, commitment.

But the desire to succeed and enhance one's quality of life is worth the sacrifice.

Several mature students were among this year's graduates. Lillian Wright and Larry Greenland are two fine examples for anyone contemplating a return to school and with a hope for a better life.

Universities and colleges throughout Canada welcome mature students into campus life.

They value the life experience of someone who knows what it's like to work and raise a family.

While the decision to return to school often isn't easy, one's age shouldn't be a determining factor.

Learning should be a lifelong occupation. It's not so important what level you're at, simply important that you're doing it.

An RCMP officer pleaded guilty to assault earlier this month.

The offence was a violent act against a woman, an all too familiar crime in Nunavut. The court stayed two other counts of assault and a firearm charge that were originally filed against the officer in the same case.

The officer received a conditional sentence, which means if he does as ordered, he won't have a record. That means he could remain with the RCMP.

He's been on unpaid leave since February, and the RCMP is investigating the matter. The question is, do we want him back protecting the peace? Being from the North, he understands the North, a valuable quality for an officer.

But obviously, a major attitude and lifestyle change is required.

The RCMP should go very slowly on rehiring. Time usually brings out the truth of a person's character.

It's only a week long, but the Drop the Pop campaign can have a long-lasting effect.

By educating youth about the ill effects of pop and other junk foods, the health department is on the right track in creating better lifestyles, an idea that has spread to the Northwest Territories and the Yukon.

And introducing a new "get active" component to the campaign - "Move to the beat" - organizers hope youth will continue making healthy choices once the week is over.

Schools play a big role, with 37 of them getting more than 2,000 students involved.

It's easy to get the message across that pop and powdered drinks aren't good for you when that's all you drink, but in a territory where those beverages are much cheaper than milk and real fruit juices, it's difficult to break the habit.

By holding this campaign on a yearly basis, the idea is to teach youth to think about their choices the next time they reach for a pop.

Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News

It's starting to look like there was a silver lining to Nunavut MP Nancy Karetak-Lindell's Liberal Party being ousted in the last election.

Who knows if complacency had set in during life at the top, but Lindell has been more outspoken during the past few months than she has been for quite some time.

Eventually this will pay dividends for Nunavut, even though she's up against a stacked deck and dealing with a political joker in Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Jim Prentice.

Prentice's decision to not inform members of the Aboriginal Affairs Committee that he would not be attending a scheduled appearance is the latest in a growing snub of all things pertaining to the North.

Now, to be fair, it's been a busy month on Parliament Hill and we're sure Prentice was tied up with important issues at the time.

Still, the four seconds it would have taken him to ask an assistant to make a phone call would have bought him some goodwill among committee members and it's starting to look like he's going to need all the goodwill he can get his hands on.

What's impressed us the most about (in our books) the new-and-improved Lindell, is not just that she's become more vocal, but also her change in political style.

Lindell hasn't been speaking just to hear herself talk.

She's launched a perpetual stream of well-researched, insightful and articulate dialogue towards the minister's office. And, she is finally showing the willingness to roll up her sleeves and get a little on the down-and-dirty side when the need arises.

Lindell's comments towards Prentice this past week, while polite and professional, literally dripped with Northern sarcasm.

And, the grave misgivings she expressed towards future dealings between the minister and the Aboriginal Affairs Committee is the type of stuff that gets your attention.

It's early in the game for Prentice to be suffering from a bout of arrogance, but that almost seems the case.

Most alarming is that this government, at times, seems to equate concessions given to First Nations as payment to all aboriginals.

In short, it sometimes appears that all aboriginal claims and rights look the same to Prentice, but he's yet to come up with anything even remotely resembling a Nunavut equivalent to the money-making factories (casinos) we see dotting aboriginal land across the rest of the country.

Premier Paul Okalik, Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Paul Kaludjak and outgoing Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Jose Kusugak maintain Prentice is a minister who can be worked with and the Tory government still holds promise for Nunavut.

However, unless they know something the rest of us aren't privy to, we've yet to see any tangible evidence that this is going to be a Northern- or Inuit-friendly government.

In fact, if we could shovel what we've heard from Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Minister Prentice during the past few months into bags, we could cultivate a few nice lawns in Nunavut.

Hopefully, Lindell will continue to politely remind the Tories that we have no use for fertilizer in the North.

Editorial Comment
Dez Loreen
Inuvik Drum

A spring cleanup at the Inuvik Youth Centre this past weekend proved to be a good time to brainstorm new ideas for the facility.

The centre's chairperson, Martin Landry, wants to develop its backyard.

It seems that the secluded area has become a haven for homeless people and unruly teens looking for a place to hang out and drink.

It is understandable that the homeless don't have a lot of places to go, and people are entitled to do what they want with their lives.

I just don't think the youth of Inuvik need to leave piles of smashed bottles behind a public building.

After the crew of volunteers had sorted through and cleared out the area, the lot didn't look too bad. A bit of landscaping, brush-cutting and maybe some gravel would really change that little area for the better.

Martin had a good point when he said the lot would need to have a fence to keep it clean.

So after a discussion about the feasibility of fencing the backyard, he concluded that the fence would need to be higher than the adjacent utilidor. The high fence would keep people who don't belong in the yard at bay.

While some may not think a tall fence is necessary, keep in mind those people who spent a beautiful Saturday afternoon picking up the shards of discarded Private Stock bottles.

I'm sure they would enjoy the privacy and avoid having to sift through debris and broken glass on a daily basis.

I would like to take this opportunity to send a message to those people who choose to ditch their bottles in the yard behind the youth centre, as well as other locations around town. Dump the left-overs into a recycling bin instead.

Camping season is quickly approaching, and that means people will be piling into the parks that lie just down the highway.

Personally, I can't wait to unfold my tent and try to start a weak fire in one of those fire pits.

I never got the hang of starting those fires, but have not resorted to starting one with gasoline.

But no matter how hard it is to get a campfire going, we all know that cutting down trees is illegal. Just a friendly reminder to bring your own firewood along.

I hope you're all enjoying the barbecue season. I don't have the luxury of firing up the grill myself.

So If you're cooking up a meal and you see me walking by, I wouldn't say no to a burger or two.

Editorial Comment
Roxanna Thompson
Deh Cho Drum

"If you build it they will come."

That is the line that Ray Kinsella, played by Kevin Costner, hears coming out of his cornfield in the movie Field of Dreams.

The message from the voice leads Kinsella to build a baseball diamond in the middle of his cornfield. Other characters in the movie think he is a bit crazy, but he goes ahead and follows his dream.

In the North, a situation with surprisingly similar parallels to the movie is being played out, but instead of the structure in question being a baseball diamond, this time it's a bridge.

The Deh Cho Bridge across the Mackenzie River has become the stuff of dreams in the North, particularly for those living in the Deh Cho. If a Hollywood director was going to make a movie about the project it might be called "Bridge of Dreams."

The idea of a bridge across the Mackenzie River at Fort Providence has captured the imaginations of people for decades. Just looking at the illustration of the possible bridge design is enough to start anyone dreaming of a time when the river break-up and freeze-up wouldn't cut off access to Yellowknife.

But the future of the bridge is being called into question because of rising building costs.

Every estimate seems to be significantly higher than the last.

From those sitting on the Yellowknife side of the conundrum, there might be less of an outcry if the project gets shelved. They are already living in a big city where supplies might run a little low when the ferry is shut down, but products and services are still available. The only major hardship seems to be postponing driving trips to the south for a while.

On the other side of the river, the picture is a bit different.

If the bridge is built, surely people from all of the Deh Cho communities would welcome not being cut off from one of their nearest large centres. It would mean a lot to be able to reach Yellowknife without having to fly.

Of course, most people would still have to find a way out of their own communities that would be cut off by thawing winter roads and ice bridges, but getting onto the main highway system can be small potatoes while on the quest for goods and services when compared to the cost of a full return flight to Yellowknife.

Now, just like many people questioned Kinsella's sanity when he built the baseball diamond in the movie, many people are wondering if maybe the Deh Cho bridge is a bridge too far.

There is no question that the bridge would be nice to have, but how much is it worth?

As the construction price climbs, is there a limit where people would rather deal with break-up and freeze-up instead of seeing money being spent on the bridge?

There is a question that needs to be answered.

Is this a time to follow dreams or to keep heads firmly attached to shoulders and out of the clouds?

In the May 22 edition of News/North, Donna May Pemberton was incorrectly identified in a photo on Page B4.

The free books program reported in News/North May 22, is sponsored by De Beers. The Genesis Group is contracted by De Beers to manage the program. The project has been expanded into the Kitikmeot with help from the Kitikmeot Corporation and Nunasi Corporation.

We apologize for any embarrassment or confusion that may have resulted from these errors.