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4 Wednesday December 16 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 LETTERS 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. Seven words to inspire a nation Racism and sexism in this country kills. Seven words to inspire a nation uttered not seven weeks after Canadian voters gave Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus Liberals the politi- cal capital to change how the country interacts with itself and the rest of the world. The quote the perfect sequel to Trudeaus because its 2015 was voiced by Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Carolyn Bennett at once a conversation-stopper and an action-starter. That statement made as the Liberal gov- ernment gets a national missing and mur- dered indigenous women MMIW inquiry underway juxtaposed against former prime minister Stephen Harpers now-infamous line dismissing the MMIW phenomenon as not registering on the Conservatives radar is surreal. After almost 10 years of a govern- ment with its head in the sand the pace of change seems almost breakneck. Theinquirywillbewelcomednowheremore than in Northern Canada. Statistics Canada recently reported some of the highest rates of violentcrimeinCanadaarefoundintheNorth- west Territories. A cursory review of the NWT territorial criminal docket one day last week revealed 181 charges under Section 266 of the Criminal Code which deals with assault. A MMIW inquiry is one of the ve points in Trudeaus plan to renew relations with First Nation Mtis and Inuit groups which he revealed the same day at a special meet- ing of the regional chiefs of the Assembly of First Nations. Repealing legislation that was unilaterally imposed the inference being by the Conservatives is another. Where measures are found to be in con- ict with your rights where they are inconsis- tent with the principles of good governance or wheretheysimplymakenopublicpolicysense wewillrescindthemTrudeausaidtoapplause. Clapping when there is a blank cheque at the front of the room is easy but the challenge before the Liberals on this front is the same that will dog them as they roll out a social pol- icy agenda nine years or more in the making moneytalks.Theearlyconsultativephaseofthe MMIWinquiryhasalreadybegunwithplansto launchproceedingsinearnestinthespring.In budgeting40millionovertwoyearstheLib- erals have bet on the price tag landing some- where between the Ipperwash inquiry which cost 13.3 million in 2003 and the 1996 Royal CommissiononAboriginalPeopleswhichcost 60million.Bennetthasalludedtotheinquiry possibly lasting longer and costing more. The last three points of Trudeaus plan will not be any easier to pay for. The rst making signicantinvestmentsinFirstNationsedu- cation would cost billions before 2019 if Lib- eral campaign gures hold up. Trudeau said in Saskatoon on Aug. 13 his plan included pour- ing 515 million into base annual funding for First Nations K-12 education plus 50 million more for the Post-Secondary Student Support Program for indigenous college and university students. He pledged another 500 million overthreeyearsforeducationalinfrastructure. The third point in Trudeaus plan is likewise worthyofapplausebutmayalsoleadtosticker- shock lifting the two per cent cap on annual increases to payments to First Nations from the federal government is long overdue. The freeze was enacted in 1996 but the First Na- tions population has grown by more than six per cent yearly since and ination has reduced thebuyingpowerofthosedollarsevenfurther. Tackling that gap which manifests most visibly in the decrepit housing stock many indigenous communities cannot afford to maintain let alone replace will be a signi- cant undertaking. So too will be Trudeaus fth point an ambitious plan to implement all 94 recommendations from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission TRC. Someofthecostsofthoserecommendations would be fairly straightforward for example the construction of a highly visible monument in each provincial and territorial capital. Oth- erssuchascreatingmandatorycurriculumon residentialschoolsforK-12reducingthenum- berofAboriginalchildreningovernmentcare improvinghealthcareoutcomesforAboriginal peopleandincreasingfundingtotheCanadian BroadcastingCorporationtobetterenableitto supportreconciliationmaybehardertosussout. Well into 2016 once the cost implications of all these noble plans come more into focus it will likely be time for sober second thoughts. What of all the wonderful things promised by the federal Liberals can Canada afford Ex- pectations will be high. It will be tough but necessary then to set priorities do what has to be done but at the same time the spending to include only what is affordable. InthemeantimeTrudeauandcompanyare ontherighttrackmakingaMMIWinquirytheir rst order of business one important enough to all Canadians to be a priority for funding eveninadecitenvironment.Thetimeisnow. It will not be 2015 for much longer. A cursory review of the NWT territorial criminal docket one day last week revealed 181 charges under Section 266 of the Criminal Code which deals with assault. Are Albertans aficted with climate change Stockholm Syndrome Editor Its clear the Alberta government asked itself the wrong question and then not sur- prisingly failed to reach the right answer. Is the task of a climate plan to ensure the oil and gas industry can do business pretty much as usual in the face of climate change Or is it to take steps to reduce carbon emis- sions from our province and do our part to avoid global climate change induced chaos If climate change is the challenge it seems undeniably to be our task must be the latter and if so the Alberta governments plan fails. The provincial government has come up with a plan that astonishingly doesnt reduce Albertas emissions from todays ex- tremely high levels. Indeed even though coal is going to be eliminated as a fuel for generating electricity by 2030 because oil sands emissions are going to be allowed to grow by 43 per cent Albertas overall GHG emissions will keep growing until they sta- bilize in 2030 at a level higher than todays. Thats right under the governments plan Albertas emissions keep growing. The challenge for Albertans is to change the way we think the greatest hurdle we face in addressing the need to reduce our carbon emissions is not economic but psychological. It looks as if many of us are suffering from something like Stockholm Syndrome where hostages become so insecure and fearful they come to identify with their captors interests. Many Albertans seem to believe we can- not break free of the forces that threaten our well-being and limit our economy. But we could break free if public policy did not cater to the oil and gas industry in inappro- priate ways. If the government had adopted the carbon price recommended to it by the Pembina In- stitute Albertans could have been proud of the resulting plan. The Institute wanted to see a carbon price starting at 40 per tonne of CO2 emitted in 2016 with a schedule for increasing it by 10 per tonne annually over the rst 10 years of the policy. This is gener- ally the level of stringency necessary for Al- berta to make a fair contribution to Canadas international commitments. As it is the governments plan is another in a continuing series of embarrassments on the fossil fuel industry and carbon emis- sions front. Janet Keeping Leader Green Party of Alberta Bunnik a six-month-old fawn belonging to Inuviks reindeer herders made her debut at the communitys Christmas parade held Dec. 13. PhotoTownofInuvikFacebookpage