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The trouble with Alfred Baillargeon's recent complaint against the RCMP is that he was too drunk to remember exactly what happened after they had arrested him.

Baillargeon alleges that the RCMP roughed him up and injured his arm following a night of drinking with a friend on Jan. 22.

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Police arrested him outside a downtown restaurant that evening after receiving a report about an intoxicated man - a common scenario in this city.

Take a look at the Crime Watch report on page 11 of today's Yellowknifer.

Of the 359 calls for service the RCMP received from Jan. 19 to Feb. 2, no fewer than 46 of them were Liquor Act complaints, which generally means public intoxication. Another 121 calls were for mischief and disturbing the peace, which are often associated with drunkenness.

The public have reason to be wary of how police conduct themselves when dealing with people in such a state. Police officers, after all, are human and can be expected to get annoyed from time to time when confronted with an intoxicated person. It's not unheard of for an officer, out of inexperience or poor judgment, to react with violence.

In Inuvik, a 15-year-old girl already in handcuffs and subdued on her stomach was Tasered by an RCMP officer in March 2006. Although details remain scant, the officer involved in that case has been cleared in an investigation. Many questions are still unanswered.

There was also a case here in Yellowknife where an RCMP officer, Const. Scot Newberry, was found by a judge to have used excessive force during an arrest in 2004. Newberry punched a man in the temple, knocking him unconscious. The man broke his leg while falling.

The RCMP have promised to investigate Baillargeon's complaint. That investigation should be thorough and, ideally, objective. If the police are open in the results of their assessment, it increases the confidence the public will have in the outcome.

Unfortunately, Baillargeon himself cannot shed much light on this case. All he remembers is being in a police vehicle and then waking up in a cell the next morning in his T-shirt, shorts and socks. His right arm was swollen and bruised.

His family have played an instigative role in getting this complaint launched. They should also have a heart-to-heart talk with Baillargeon, making it clear to him that when he drinks he is a danger, at least too himself.

Whether the police are responsible for his injured arm or not, there are street toughs out there who are likely to do much worse to a drunken victim.

The reaction to Premier Eva Aariak taking the Justice portfolio away from now-Education Minister Louis Tapardjuk for his comments in an e-mail to staff members has been surprisingly divided.

There are many who share the premier's view of Tapardjuk's comments being inappropriate, while others maintain he was simply speaking the truth.

In their view, all too often a female starts an argument with her spouse, calls the authorities when the situation escalates and her poor male partner is charged.

To these people we would ask: when is physical violence an acceptable action in a relationship?

The answer, whether they accept it or not, is never!

There's always a choice.

If a relationship is that bad where one partner is always verbally antagonizing the other to the point of violence, they have the choice of ending the relationship.

If one partner has verbally abused the other to the point where he or she is thinking about using violence as a remedy, they can also think about walking out the door instead.

Yes. It's that black and white.

Unless you're in a situation where you have to defend your life, violence is never an option as the means to ending an argument.

Most people realize we almost all go through some very tough periods in our lives.

Some things hurt so deeply, and the pain so intense, it feels like it will never pass.

This brings us to the second part of Tapardjuk's controversial e-mail, in which he maintained the Canadian judicial system has killed more of our youth, through suicide, than were ever murdered in any given period.

You have to admit, it would be hard for the premier to leave a Justice minister in place who truly felt that way.

To those who support that particular Tapardjuk viewpoint, we ask the question: when is suicide an acceptable solution to a problem?

The answer is never!

Looking at both contentions, the one thing they share (other than extreme lack of judgment and poor taste) is the door to a dark room where the blame game is played - a staple of today's society where nobody is really responsible for their own actions.

If there's one thing the Canadian judicial system is truly guilty of, it's allowing that line of thought to become so prevalent in this country.

It may seem like he mugged you to steal your money, but really he was lashing out at his parents for the problems of his youth.

Yeah he may have blackened both her eyes, but she brought it upon herself.

Or the harshest, coldest and meanest of all: blaming a person for someone taking their own life because they ended a relationship with them.

That's not meant to trivialize the loss of life because that's always a tragic thing, but so is the burden carried by someone blamed for another's actions.

Aariak's decision to remove the Justice portfolio from Tapardjuk was the right one.

We can only hope Tapardjuk's retraction of his comments was sincere, and that his statements do not reflect the mindset he plans to introduce to our educational system!

Dennis Bevington's recent attack on the Conservative government's plan to offer funds to kick-start development of the Mackenzie Valley pipeline shows that the project is not a priority for him.

Bevington's relationship with the pipeline dates back to 2001 when he was appointed to the GNWT's energy secretariat. Although Bevington has never come out and said he is against pipeline development, his position is clear: he sees the development as secondary to many other Northern infrastructure and energy projects.

Bevington has been vocal in his desire to develop alternative energy in the NWT. He has also been adamant that any pipeline development come only after all environmental considerations have been explored, federal devolution agreements are signed and a host of programs are in place to reduce social impacts on regions along the development route.

While we agree with reducing the NWT's and the world's reliance on fossil fuels and protecting the people and environment in the North, our MP's political positioning will surely drown the pipeline in even more paperwork.

What exactly is Bevington's economic development plan for the NWT.

During his campaign, Bevington was asked if he would vote against his party on policies that would hurt the North. Although not definitive in his answer, Bevington did say "MPs must never vote against their party lightly. Nevertheless a case may arise when doing so would be necessary and proper. If I thought it necessary I would act."

The pipeline is a case where Bevington's resolve on that statement was put to the test. Many Northerners want the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline and they want it built and operated in an environmentally responsible manner. NWT residents stand to prosper from the associated jobs and the economic spin-offs. But in a time Ottawa comes forward with a plan to help spur that development while the economy is in a downward spiral, Bevington and the NDP have gone on the attack.

Our representative in Parliament spoiled an opportunity to support what Northerners want and ensure responsible development. He was presented with a win-win opportunity and squandered it by toeing the extreme partisan line.

Bevington should have applauded the Conservatives' decision to assist in bringing jobs and money to the North, while promising to work with the government to ensure the money is spent responsibly and the environmental and social impacts are taken into consideration. He failed. Instead he dutifully followed his party's single-minded goal of toppling Stephen Harper's minority government and ignored the will of many of those who voted him to office.

Did the opposition catch the Conservatives in a "flip-flop" on their previous pledge not to subsidize the pipeline? Sure. But, we're in the midst of an economic downturn. Shouldn't our leaders adapt and evolve their positions based on the needs of the country at the time?

It's time for Bevington to adapt too.

Change has come to the Government of Nunavut.

Former Justice Minister Louis Tapardjuk sent a controversial e-mail to his staff outlining his views on various aspects of the justice system on Jan. 21.

In it, he wrote that though men are often charged for spousal assaults, women often initiate them. That comment in correspondence written by a minister of justice dropped jaws and elicited gasps of disbelief from women and men who thought such a "blame the victim" attitude, akin to the medieval-era idea that "she was asking for it," was dead and buried.

Tapardjuk is a respected elder and an authority on Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ). That cannot be denied.

In that same e-mail he offers some stimulating viewpoints on the role of IQ in modern society and makes a case for involving elders in social activities to counter "the effects of rapid social change and disruption by providing cultural and social cohesiveness." As well, he condemns the current justice system for taking far too long to resolve conflicts in the courts. He argues that this puts a great deal of stress on the accused and it can lead to suicide. The Inuit way is to encourage reconciliation, according to Tapardjuk. These are points that should be examined closely.

Regardless, some attitudes are unacceptable regardless of their longevity. The idea that a victim of violence shares blame for the violence committed upon them is absurd. And someone who believes such a concept should not be in charge of the Department of Justice.

Premier Eva Aariak wasted no time, quickly bringing the issue out for discussion among all members of cabinet, including Tapardjuk.

It was agreed Tapardjuk should lose the justice portfolio but his colleagues still showed confidence in him by leaving him with the Culture, Language, Elders and Youth portfolio. This was an even-handed decision.

In last week's cabinet shuffle, Tapardjuk was also assigned the Department of Education. As well, he holds the Aboriginal Affairs post and is government house leader.

The fact that former premier Paul Okalik disagrees with Tapardjuk's removal as justice minister is not surprising. It is Okalik's duty as a regular MLA to question the decisions of the premier and cabinet.

In addition, some members of Okalik's past administration, of whom Tapardjuk is the only remaining member still in cabinet, were criticized for their lack of respect toward women and questionable logic about what constitutes ethical behaviour.

The removal of Tapardjuk's justice portfolio sends a clear message that such attitudes have no place in a government led by Eva Aariak. For that we, and, we're sure, the women of Nunavut as well as many men, applaud her.

Another NWT-based diamond processing plant is waving goodbye to dozens of Yellowknife-based employees. The Laurelton Diamonds plant, owned by Tiffany and Co. and located near the Yellowknife airport, laid off 25 polishers last week, promising to re-assign 13 of them to other jobs as the plant where they currently work closes on Feb. 19.

Layoffs in the diamond processing industry are nothing new to the area. In fact, it's a challenge to keep a polishing plant up and running here for longer than a few years. Laurelton will be the fourth plant in a decade on "diamond row" to close.

In October 2003, there were close to 200 people working at four plants in Yellowknife. But after years of plants opening and closing their doors, including Laurelton's shutdown, there will now be only about half that many Yellowknife-based employees working for three plants.

Laurelton's reasoning for closing its plant is the high operations cost, coupled with "the lack of opportunity for rough diamond supply." But according to Linda Buckley, spokesperson for Tiffany and Co., the company will keep working with the Diavik and Ekati mines, processing the diamonds at its other plants.

Stephen Ben-Oliel, who formerly owned the Sirius Diamonds diamond processing plant in Yellowknife and whose career has been based on diamond polishing, said the GNWT is losing out by letting multi-national diamond companies take away business in the industry.

But what can the government do to encourage Northern plants to thrive?

Back in 1998, then-finance minister for the GNWT John Todd proposed an idea that had him labelled a champion. He said the government should get involved by purchasing diamonds directly from the mines - at market prices so no loss would be incurred by the mines - and selling them to ensure job stability for workers at Northern plants.

The idea was instead of shipping the territory's diamonds off to overseas plants, the government could have a hand in keeping them here, to benefit employees who eat, sleep, work, play and pay taxes in Yellowknife. But the mines, looking to preserve their relationship with international companies, refused the proposal and kept doing business as usual.

No talk of reviving such an option has been heard from the GNWT since Todd was in office. There has been no significant effort by government bodies to involve themselves in the secondary diamond industry.

The government has, however, shown tremendous support for Discovery Air in the form of a $34-million bailout loan. That loan will help the company through the economic slowdown, while helping it hang on to employees who would otherwise be laid off.

A condition of this loan - forcing the company to move its headquarters North -- shows the GNWT was thinking of Northern jobs while drafting the terms. While the government should be applauded for its efforts in this case, it should also be used as an example for the diamond industry.

If the government is willing to invest such a large loan in an aviation company, it should consider taking similar steps to secure Northern jobs in diamonds.

There are three things that are certain in the Deh Cho - death, taxes and complaints about loose dogs.

Although it's been a while since the last one, at least one, if not two, articles about dog problems make their way into the Deh Cho Drum every year. With the end of January looming, the first article of 2009 has already appeared.

There is, however, a crucial difference between the story in this week's edition and those that have appeared in the past few years.

Normally stories about dogs revolve around a municipal government deciding there are too many stray dogs roaming in their community, and as a result, they decide to enforce a bylaw. These bylaws generally involve the destruction of dogs that are found loose and not claimed within a specific amount of time. The enactment of this bylaw generally creates a backlash, and another article about people who don't think any dogs should be killed.

The current situation in Fort Providence is quite a bit different. The hamlet council acknowledges the community has an over-population of dogs. The problem is no worse than the situations found in most other Northern communities, but council decided to take a pro-active approach. This week, hamlet council brought in a mobile veterinary clinic and paid to have dogs spayed or neutered. All residents had to do was fill out an application form and show up with their pet for their scheduled appointment.

The hamlet even threw in free vaccinations to help ensure existing dogs don't come down with any diseases such as rabies.

This is, indeed, a proactive way of dealing with problem dogs. Instead of waiting until the dogs are born, grow up, start roaming the streets loose and then get destroyed, the hamlet is preventing their creation in the first place. Thanks to the program, approximately 30 pets were fixed over the course of three days.

Hamlet council members should be applauded for their initiative. The program likely came with a sizable price tag, but the cost is outweighed by the benefit of having taken action against the problem of dog overpopulation. Most, if not all communities in the Deh Cho could benefit from a similar program.

Despite the council's initiative, however, the truth still remains that the solution to dog problems, such as loose dogs, can only be completely solved by dog owners. Fixing dogs will limit their numbers in the community but it won't keep them tied up on leashes.

If all pet owners were responsible, loose dogs would disappear from the streets of communities and so would the articles about loose dogs in the newspaper.

The spaying and neutering program is a significant step forward, but all pet owners need to want to finish the journey.

The events of this week have left me stunned and missing a lot of files on a laptop computer used for work.

On Monday afternoon, a trio of young males entered my office and made off with a laptop and my portable PlayStation.

I approached a group of youth outside a local store, who looked more than suspicious.

Upon asking them what they knew about the theft, one boy quickly blurted out that the RCMP had already picked up the culprits.

When asked which of the youth were picked up, the glazed-over boy just said 'I dunno."

So they're protecting their own and not selling each other down the river. That shows a certain level of dedication to their lifestyle.

A few hours after the theft, the RCMP called and said the young people responsible were locked up, waiting to be released from holding cells.

My laptop was still on them and they apparently tried to run away when the police confronted them.

What a bright future we're looking forward to as a community, where gangs of kids run rampant in the streets.

Two of the boys were first-time offenders and were released the same day, although more than likely it was just their first time getting caught in the act. I hope those two can learn from their stupidity and steer clear of bad influences.

The third boy has to remain nameless, even though we all know how far gone he is. That is a person who will no doubt be passed through the justice system in the North many times over like he has in the past.

Charges are being laid.

This incident seemed isolated, until more people heard of the theft. It seems others in town were also relieved of their property this weekend.

Shane Brewster at Sir Alexander Mackenzie school told me their Proxima projector for videos was taken from the school on Saturday morning.

I was stunned to think someone could willingly enter the school and take something of such value from the community.

In essence, that is what happened. The whole community benefits from the movies being shown at the elementary school.

The money raised is used for sports programs, books, author visits and other cool opportunities for our kids.

Apparently, from the RCMP reports, it looks like the youth responsible are being investigated.

Hopefully those kids can be brought to justice and the school can recover their lost property.

Stealing someone's laptop and personal video game is a total lack of respect. It's basically an attack on the person you're stealing from.

Taking something from the school is a totally different and much more serious offence to the community.

Thankfully, the school administration had a backup and the show went on the second day as planned

So there it is, Inuvik. There are some kids out there who fashion themselves to be sneaky, when really it's just plain pathetic.