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4 Wednesday October 21 2015 The Northern Journal is an independent newspaper covering news and events in the western Arctic and northern Alberta. The Northern Journal is published weekly by Cascade Publishing Ltd. Printed at Star Press Inc. Wainwright AB. Publisher................................................................................. Don Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.21 donnorj.ca Editor..................................................................................... Craig Gilbert 867-872-3000 ext.24 newsnorj.ca Reporter....................................................................... Dali Carmichael 867-872-3000 ext.25 reporternorj.ca Comptroller .......................................................Jessica Dell 867-872-3000 ext.20 webnorj.ca Advertising........................................................................... 867-872-3000 ext.26 adsnorj.ca Administration............................................Jeremy Turcotte 867-872-3000 ext.26 adminnorj.ca Production Manager ......................................Sandra Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.22 sandranorj.ca Graphics........................................................Paul Bannister 867-872-3000 ext.27 graphicsnorj.ca Letters to the Editor Policy The Northern Journal welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and include a phone number so the author can be veried. Names will be withheld on request in special circumstances where the reasons are determined to be valid. The Journal reserves the right to edit letters for length libel clarity and taste. Opinions expressed in letters and columns are not necessarily those of the publisher or editor. EDITORIAL LETTER TO THE EDITOR 2013 CCNA BLUE RIBBON CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2013 C M C A AUDITED Advertising Deadlines Display ad deadline is Thursday at 400 p.m. Classied ad deadline is Thursday at 500 p.m. Email adsnorj.ca Subscription Rates Prices include GST. 47.25 in Fort Smith 52.50 elsewhere in Canada 105 in the USA overseas 164.30. The Northern Journal acknowledges the nancial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund CPF for our publishing activities. Canadians need to build a better tomorrow From chunks of concrete falling from overpasses in Montreal to rottingsewerpipesinsmalltowns everycommunityandeveryurban centre in Canada has serious infrastructure problems. Who would have thought a woman who is a francophone media personality television entertainment reporter yoga instructor and mother of three might become the champion for the causes of indigenous Canadians par- ticularly the grave circumstance of missing and murdered indigenous women but that is likely now that Sophie Grgoire has become the rst lady of Canada. Poised self-possessed and spirited she is a trainedexperiencedjournalistandalsostudied commerce but in her youth was aficted with what she publicly acknowledges was mental illness and addiction. She is now a formidable ghterforavarietyofcausesincludingwomens rights around the world and is a strong pro- ponent of resolving the many issues that face First Nation Inuit and Mtis Canadians. Her husband the new prime minister has prom- ised that the issues of indigenous Canadians will be a priority but he will be a busy man in the coming months xing the economy and reshapingCanadasimageattheupcomingcli- mate change conference in Paris not to men- tion re-conguring the national government. It is usual for rst ladies to take on a cause. Grgoire has the power and desire plus there are a record 10 indigenous MPs eight Liberal two NDP to work with to nally resolve the burden of shame that plagues Canada. Except for the Conservative core of 30 per centofthepopulationmostCanadianswanted achangeofgovernmentinordertoreturnCan- ada to what it was prior to the last decade - a caring positive country that led the world in causes of justice equality and peace. The NDP and Liberals both liberal democratic parties with similar policies and solutions had an equal shot at delivering that solution. Cana- dians were fortunate to have the luxury of two options and a record 78-day long campaign in which to make up their minds. Which one would be the better choice It mainly came down to leadership. Justin Trudeaus charis- matic promise of hope resonated striking an emotional chord across the country. Two issues were critical in Trudeaus win in this watershed election and will also likely be thetoughestchallengesforthenewgovernment. ThesenatewasStephenHarpersAchillesheel. The scandal with Mike Duffy and other ills of theSenateplaguedHarperthroughouttheearly stages of the campaign setting the tone for the rest of it. Harper championed a reformed elected Senate long before he became prime minister but he never acted on it. Instead he createdapartisanConservativemajorityinthe upperhouseandrendereditredundant.Thomas Mulcairs solution was to eliminate the Senate completely but although Canadians wanted a wholesale change in the ruling party they are leeryoftheideaofdismantlingpartsofgovern- mentandthequagmireofconstitutionalwran- gling that would certainly result. Further the upper house is there for a reason and Mulcair did not propose an alternative. The only ray of hope in repairing the broken Senate came from Trudeau. He eliminated partisanship on his side by cutting loose Liberal senators from hiscaucus.PartisanpoliticsfracturetheHouse of Commons too. Get rid of the bitter rival- ries by changing the way things are done and all aspects of Canadian government could im- prove. Trudeau was on to a possible solution butitneedsalotofworkonallsidestosucceed. Anotherkeyissuewastheneedforactionon aging infrastructure across the country. That had been at the back of the minds of Canadi- ans for a long time. From chunks of concrete falling from overpasses in Montreal to rotting sewer pipes in small towns every community and every urban centre in Canada has serious infrastructureproblems.Fixingthingslikethat createsjobs.Committingtogoingintodecitto improveinfrastructurewasacourageousgamble but what Canadians like as much as courage is sensible solutions and right now the economy needs stimulus not restraint to get it going. Again Trudeau demonstrated smart politics. To be the best on the world stage which is what Canadians want we also have to be forward looking. Traditionally Liberal gov- ernments in Canada straddle the middle and borrow from the left while governing from theright.Thesuccessofthesocialdemocratic governments of Scandinavia are too obvious to ignore. In spite of expensive programs like free education and extraordinary benets for workers and the accompanying higher taxes the standard of living and the quality of life in those countries is consistently the very best of all nations and their economies are thriving. They consistently come up with intelligent yet common sense solutions. For example imper- atives such as climate change and getting rid of waste are accomplished at once by gener- ating electricity from garbage. Then there is the example of Norways heritage fund with over a trillion dollars stashed away from oil revenues. Copying success is wise. Canada is a great country but it could do a lot better. If we are ever to take our place as a world leader Canada needs to be smart innovative and make better choices. Assembly of First Nations AFN Na- tional Chief Perry Bellegarde congratu- lated newly-elected Prime Minister Jus- tin Trudeau and said Tuesday that he is looking forward to immediate action and working together on a comprehensive stra- tegic plan to close the gap in the quality of life between First Nations people and Canadians. We welcome the new federal government and congratulate Prime Minister Trudeau the Liberal Party and all members of Parlia- ment said AFN National Chief Perry Belle- garde. First Nations are ready to move. The Liberals put out a vision for real change. The prime minister spoke in his victory speech about a renewed nation-to-nation relation- ship that respects rights and honours treaties. We are ready to start working now on those terms to close the gap together and build a stronger country for all of us. Bellegarde said that the Liberal Party plat- form included commitments to work on a new approach to First Nations education a new scal relationship an inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women and girls healthier communities and a new nation- to-nation relationship based on partnership and respect. The National Chief will meet immediately with Prime Minister Trudeau on action for the rst 100 days and a strategic approach based on the AFN plan Closing the Gap 2015 Federal Election Priorities for First Nations and Canada released in early September. I acknowledge and hold up First Nations citizens for participating in this election and congratulate all the indigenous candidates Bellegarde said. I look forward to working with all elected parliamentarians on the ur- gent and important work of reconciliation and closing the gap. There is more information on First Nation priorities and Closing the Gap in quality of life between First Nations people and Cana- dians available online at httpwww.afn.ca uploadslesclosing-the-gap.pdf The Assembly of First Nations is the na- tional organization representing First Na- tion citizens in Canada. National chief wants immediate action on First Nations quality of life Check out next weeks issue for an update on one of Fort Smiths most successful artists Richard Van Camp who still plans to lm movies based on his graphic novels Blanket of Butteries and Three Feathers depicted above.