The very hollow economy

Every month, Squawk ("Hay River's arts and entertainment magazine") conducts a survey for entertainment purposes. But sometimes, there is even some political-economically valid lesson to be drawn from it.

This month's survey: "you won $50 million in the lottery and have to spend it all in Hay River. What do you buy?"

Ouch. It's prima fascie obvious that Hay River does not contain $50m of stuff I want. If I had $50m, I'd buy a truckload of books, a better piano, a better violin, a cello, a viola, a tricycle, new eyeglasses, and perhaps a better camera. Not one of these things can be bought in Hay River, which is why I do all my shopping online, except food and Thrift Store clothes.

So... What can I buy in Hay River? I answered thusly:

"I'd buy the (16-storey building where I live), strip it down to the concrete, redo everything, and hand-pick the tenants.

I'd buy some land (just outside of town) and keep horses there. And flowers. And peacocks.

I'd eat at (a friend's restaurant) until I became monstrously fat.

I'd get some work done on my car."

Seemed like a good idea at the time, except...

• All the materials and the machines for the building renos would have to be imported, the GC and subs would be excellent companies from down south, and even most of the labourers would be brought in.


• When you think about it, the land where you can run horses is actually outside of town, so x-nay to that, too.


• Horses, flowers and peacocks all have to be brought in, along with their gear, feed, buildings and anything else they need.


• The labour at the restaurant is local... sort of. The talent is an import, and almost all the food comes by truck from Alberta.


• The labour for my car is local, but all the parts are imported.

Obviously I already knew that our economy is hollow, since that's my electoral platform; I wonder if anyone else will notice. The extent of manufacturing in this town is essentially limited to making tanks. Tanks for containing fluids, not tanks for waging war. The same concern that makes the tanks also sets up trucks (light and heavy) for delivery to the consumer, but the trucks and the parts all come from elsewhere. Only a very small amount of machining is done on location.

Again, what's alarming isn't even that this is true, but that I don't know anyone else who seems to notice.