These are the answers I would have given had the questions been addressed to me, or the ones I should have given if I had thought faster under pressure.
Question A1: There are many strong personalities running for council. How are you going to build a less fractured council?
I've worked with far bigger jerks than anyone who's running for this election. I don't take jerks personally and I'm not intimidated by them, and I'm a good actress. I can act like I love them no matter what I actually think of them. I'll make it work.
Some friends suggested that I might end up being the douchebag on Council. See, my friends feel free to speak their mind to me! So I can't be that bad. The reality is that I firmly believe that feelings should never get in the way of right action, and I do practice what I preach. I don't worry about my own feelings, and I don't think feelings have any place in a professional, let alone political setting. What I care about is getting work done. From time to time this involves having to tell somebody that they're wrong or that it's not about them. If that hurts their pride, I'm ok with it. Let's just get things done, and let your loved ones worry about your feelings.
Question A2 (Father Don): There hasn't been enough good faith with the Youth Centre, which serves more than 200 at-risk teens. Other Youth Centres across Canada receive considerable support from their municipalities. Discuss.
The Youth Centre needs to stay where it is, it's a good fit for the location. The zoning problem can be easily solved by rezoning the lot. We also need to give them moral support and what financial support we can afford, and we need to work jointly with them and other community groups to create a community vision for our youth and pursue it together.
Question A3: What are the three greatest opportunities and three greatest challenges facing this council?
Opportunities:
Challenges:
Question A4 (Tom Lakusta): In the past every candidate talked about "team-building" but we still got autocratic decision making. So seriously, what are you gonna do about it?
I'm very autocratic myself, I hate to see time wasted in hemming and hawing. If people don't make up their mind I make it up for them. Luckily we have some candidates who are also decision-makers, so I don't think it will come down to one person doing all the talking (as was often the case in the outgoing Council).
Question A5 (myself on behalf of a citizen): Taxes in the corridor: are they going down, and when?
There are several complaints about the variety of tax and water rates. Some of them have been reviewed recently, some are being reviewed. In principle I support uniform rates for both because we're a community and we should act as one, not as a bunch of interest groups each pulling to pay less of everything. However there is also a logical argument to be made for lower taxes for the corridor. In this case I prefer the ethical over the logical argument. Regardless of which one we follow, the one thing that does not make sense is for the Council to let itself be intimidated in setting the rates. The only tax rate anyone likes is 0%, but governments need taxes to live.
Question A6: Regarding the IT contract, the consultant said that the current service is excellent and is good value, and recommended signing a long-term contract with ArcTech, a local employer. Do you support that recommendation?
If the SAO recommends something else, I would listen to the SAO. He's smart and we're paying him good money to give us his opinion. Andrew Cassidy was quoted in the paper as worrying that an in-house employee would be more expensive because s/he would be unionized, and that's exactly why I support in principle using Town employees over contractors, not only for the IT contract but for much of the labour. We should not use companies with lower standards of labour relations and occupational health and safety than the Town employees enjoy.
Question A7 (Sandra Lester): (I didn't quite get the details but it was about hiring local contractors rather than out-of-town.)
I think we should always pick the contractor that will do the best job for what we can afford to pay. If that means "local" contractors are at a disadvantage, they need to pull up their socks and match the quality of other proponents. Second, we need to consider how much local labour is employed and under what conditions, rather than local ownership. The Arcan situation is a good example: Arcan was preferred for the firehall for being "local". Much of the unskilled work is local residents, hired at various rates rather than a collectively-agreed rate; but many if not most of the skilled workers and subcontractors are from the south. Safety and labour practices are often questionable, planning looks sketchy, and I haven't looked at their product in detail but quality is usually no better than safety. Had we brought in a top-notch company like PCL or Clark Builders, they would hire the same people with better conditions and do a better-quality job faster, which ultimately benefits the community more. Hiring "local" contractors puts money in the pockets of people who already have it; my concern is getting the money distributed to more people with smaller bank accounts.
Question A8: If there is a majority on the two ballot questions, what happens?
I will vote against it on October 15. If it then goes to a vote in Council, I will vote for it if more than 87.5% of the vote was in favour; otherwise I will consider myself to represent the portion of the voters who are against it.
Question A9 (Jane Groenewegen): When there is a mandatory reassessment, why doesn't the mill rate go down? That was just a $600,000 cash grab. And why don't we use a zero-based approach to the budget?
I think if the Council didn't get so much resistance on putting taxes up, it wouldn't have taken this back-door approach. Again, no one likes taxes, but how else do we propose to pay for our amenities? So I don't think the increase in tax take was wrong, but I think the Council should have put up the mill rate when they needed it and taken the flak for it.
Question A10: (Sandra Lester) The Wright Crescent sewer was supposed to be replaced in 2007 and that never got done. Why? Why isn't the capital plan followed?
I'm with Cassidy on this one. A capital plan is only good if there is money behind it. If we want to have a plan and stick to it, we need a plan to fund it, too. Until we have that, we will always be on the back foot when it comes to infrastructure maintenance and upgrades.
Question A11: (myself, speaking for myself) You keep telling us the administration knows best, so why don't we listen to the Bylaw Officer and his proposal of the ATV Bylaw?
Obviously I'm for the ATV Bylaw, though not exactly the draft presented by the Bylaw Officer. We need to identify an ATV area, same as we did the Off-Leash areas. Should they have a corridor? I'd have to see proposals as to where that corridor would be. I'm inclined to make them use the roads, in that it will force them to obey traffic laws including registration and licensing – or else put their machine on a truck and haul it out to their riding area. Again, I'd have to hear proposals for snow machines, as they can't use the roads.
Question A12: Comment on the organizational review.
I did not read the organizational review report as that is not one of my areas of high concern. I think the SAO will do a fine job of managing it and I don't need to look over his shoulder. My priority is to think of solutions to the macroscopic problems, not the small ones.
Question A13: (Wayne Keefe) What are you gonna do if there's a jerk on Council?
Live with it. The only place I don't have to put up with jerks is my own house.
Question A14: The recommendations from the 2005 organizational review weren't followed. Are you gonna do something about this one?
See question A12. I believe in the SAO.
Question A15: (Tom Lakusta) What kind of things are you gonna promote to make Hay River an even better place to live?
Foster pro-social behaviour in all members of our community. In practice this will mean introducing community standards of behaviour (Edmonton has a "Community Standards" bylaw instead of a noise bylaw – I think that's a great idea), giving people cognitive-behavioural tools that they're currently lacking, vigorously encouraging people to see themselves as part of a whole rather than self-seeking individuals, setting people challenges, and other methods. Improved communication will be essential to this, including installing billboards and organizing rallies. "Relay for Life" is incredibly successful in doing exactly this – now let's have a "Relay for Hay River."
Question A16: (myself, speaking for myself) As a follow-up to my previous question, I don't know what part of the public you were listening to, but there was lots of support for the ATV bylaw. So how are you gonna make sure you actually hear from ALL the public and not just those who want a bylaw kiboshed?
I like doing surveys; not the kind where people write out comments but ones with metrics such as Likert scales. I think it's the most reliable way to measure public opinion. In addition when we talk about "engaging the public", in practice it's mostly limited to the speaker's demographic. Luckily I have many friends among the poor and otherwise disenfranchised, and I plan to ask for their opinion as well. We can also use more rigorous methods of selecting people from various demographics to create a more representative sample when asking questions.
Question A17: Exactly what method would you use to improve communications?
As I said, billboards, rallies, surveys. We also need a venue for people to make speeches. Some of the other candidates (Cassidy, at least) have mentioned "town hall" type meetings. That's better than no town-hall meetings, but it won't draw out the disenfranchised, which is exactly why they're "disenfranchised". We need to seek them out and bring them into the conversation.
Question A18: The kids at the skateboard park use foul language.
Tell me about it. Reducing coarse language is part of my vision for pro-social behaviour. I propose to challenge everyone to a "community cuss jar". Everyone will have a cuss jar at home and turn it in on a regular basis. The proceeds will be used for a community barbecue or similar event. There might be prizes for the richest cuss jar or the greatest improvement in cussing in a household. Likewise we will find challenges for other anti-social behaviours.
Question A19: (Jane Groenewegen) The Council spent an inordinate amount of time trying to prevent people having outdoor pellet stoves. Will you try not to limit people's options in controlling their cost of living?
I'm glad I didn't get that question, I think Cassidy answered it best.
Question A20: (myself for a citizen) I'm surprised no one has said this yet: what about the flooding? You know, what are you gonna do about the fact that the river floods in the spring?
As I said before, I think flood control needs to be done by flood control engineers. However, any flood control system is only good to a certain limit, and some, like in New Orleans, fail before their expected breaking point. A failed flood control system is more catastrophic than no flood control at all, and it's expensive, so it's only a good investment in places where land is scarce. This is not the case here, so I think we'd be better off arranging our affairs so that we're not bothered by flooding, rather than trying to stop the flooding. Nonetheless, I would consider bringing in an engineer with experience in flood control, or attempting my giant-wall-of-ice idea. I would consider other ideas as they come up, but so far I haven't really heard any that I believe in.
Question A21: (Father Don) What about all those NTCL barges in the river? Don't they affect the flow of ice?
Considering where the barges are and where the flood damage has happened in the past, I don't think the barges were the cause of the problem.
Question A22: (Sandra Lester) Why is my water bill higher in the corridor than in town? Do you support a uniform water rate?
Yes, I do, until someone shows me compelling reasons against.
Question A23: (Wayne Keefe) Lots of talk about long-term vision. Do you have something stunning or semi-interesting to say? Rather than just tearing trees down along the river?
I do. I think we need to establish light manufacturing in differentiated products, for example micro-brewing, clothing, and winter boots. The cost of shipping is not the deterrent to manufacturing here; the main factor in locating industries is the cost of labour. However, a differentiated product can be marked up, thanks to our "northern" branding which the GNWT has worked on promoting. Beer in particular supports union wages in the south. Also by making this concern widely or cooperatively held and professionally managed, we would eliminate the need to pay for the owner's lifestyle, leaving more money to put into wages. It would be important to structure the ownership so that no individual, family or interest group can strong-arm its way into control of the concerns. This would provide manufacturing jobs for less-skilled workers, which is exactly what we need, as well as something we can export, thus creating an inflow of cash instead of an outflow as in the case of government jobs. If need be we should get subsidies from the GNWT. Many industries are subsidised anyways, for example agriculture and aerospace. The GNWT subsidizes fur traders and fisheries, which are our past; there is no reason it shouldn't subsidize our future.
Question A24: (Kandis Jameson) How will you hold councillors accountable for their attendance and portfolio work?
I don't know about the other seven, but I always show up to work. This is a job, and I intend to do it well.
Question A25: (myself, speaking for myself) The Minister of Finance was here last week asking for suggestions for his upcoming budget. Given that the GNWT spends 17 times as much per person as the Town of Hay River, what would you tell the Minister to do with his budget in order to improve our quality of life?
What I told the Minister was that if we'd spend our economic development money better (e.g. by creating manufacturing), we wouldn't need so many social programs; also if we had better labour laws and we enforced them, again, people would have their own money and not need so much support.
I also told the Minister what I think of power subsidies. Any energy subsidy is a slippery slope. It encourages people to waste energy; the government has no control over energy costs and no way to fund this program; and you can't get rid of it without a public outcry. Many governments in the Global South are regretting putting in place energy subsidies. Let's not go that way.
Question B1: (Jocelyn Grant for the Youth Centre) How are you gonna increase efficiency in supporting youth?
Other than my lame answer about the Youth Centre, I think we should organize the various voluntary and leisure organizations, youth or otherwise, so that all information is available centrally. This would allow potential volunteers to be matched with volunteering opportunities, as well as bring more participants to programs. I have already been working on making a master schedule of all regularly-scheduled activities in Hay River, and the idea of a website for coordinating volunteers has been floated with the Recreation department. We just need to implement.
We should also create synergy in fundraising. There seems to be a marked slowdown in both volunteering and fundraising so that many organizations are cancelling or delaying programs; on the other hand the Relay for Life consistently attracts large numbers of volunteers and dollars. If the community organizations worked together as an umbrella group, they could rival the Relay for Life in attracting dollars that would stay in our community. The main difficulty I foresee is in distributing the cash among the groups without bickering.
Question B2: (written question read by Bernie Langille for a citizen) Any plans to increase recycling and bring back town clean-up?
Now that I've heard the other candidates' answers and had some time to think about it, I would have to say that for the time being the most likely solution would be to sort out and collect anything that can be recycled somewhere else, and then ship it out. In some cases this is quite lucrative; for example, my neighbour in the Highrise is here collecting scrap metal from all over the South Slave, which he then hauls back to Alberta and cashes in. Many recyclables that are worthless in household quantities become valuable in large amounts; for example paper can be turned into blown insulation for houses. And hauling to Alberta is relatively cheap because too many trucks go back empty. So by collecting our recyclables and hauling them to Alberta in large quantities, we might be able to cover part of the costs of the program.
As for town clean-up, as Vince McKay said, the dump can't handle it now. We need to reduce the amount of stuff being thrown out. On the other hand, in Bolivia they sometimes have a national cleaning day where everyone cleans house and in particular gets rid of standing water (this is to prevent dengue fever). We could create a similar custom here and turn town clean-up from "throw out all your stuff for free" into "let's all get together and clean this town", e.g. pick up garbage, help neighbours who may be facing challenges in maintaining their property, put a fresh coat of paint on the CN bridge, and so on.
Question B3: (written question read by the moderator) Regarding the IT contract, the consultant said that the current service is excellent and is good value, and recommended signing a long-term contract with ArcTech, a local employer. Do you support that recommendation?
See question A6.
Question B4: Define "local". Do you have to own a residence here, or keep the money here?
I would define "local" as what benefits the greatest number, that is, the workers.
Question B5: (Harvey Werner) I shouldn't be able to quash bylaws in court. Do you support reviewing and enforcing our bylaws?
Like I said, I agree. We need to review and rewrite our bylaws so that the ones we have are useful and enforceable, we need to enforce them, we need to stop giving the Bylaw Officer attitude, and we need to stop picking what gets enforced and what doesn't.
Question B6: (Chris Robinson) We're in an economic downturn, yet there is no location for new businesses. How are you going to encourage businesses to move here?
There are locations where businesses could move in, either by adapting existing structures or clearing them and rebuilding. Much of the industrial stretch on the east side of the highway is now empty and needs to be revitalized. We should be putting businesses into these spots rather than opening more land.
Question B7: (Ken Latour) What can we do in this town without looking to the outside for projects to come here?
See question A23.
Question B8: (Tom Lakusta) Not everyone (of the candidates) was here last night. Just sayin'. No one from the Council has ever come to Minor Hockey to thank us for our work. What can the Town do to help community groups?
See question B1.
Question B9: (Linda Carman) What kind of partnerships can the town establish to promote health and well-being. Also rogue ATVs are dangerous and we need that bylaw.
Thank you for backing me on the ATV Bylaw!
I think we can create town traditions that will promote health. For example, in the past it was traditional in parts of Europe to go for a family walk after lunch on Sunday. We could do this and encourage people to draw out their friends and neighbours. We need to challenge people to come together and exercise, like the Chinese do. Workplaces could have tai chi in the morning before or after safety meeting, or at coffee break, or at lunch. If we can create an ATV corridor we could create a bike corridor and challenge people to use it. Again, by making our trails safe for pedestrians, we would increase walking.
I think we should also have a fitness trail. See this post.
As well, as part of my vision to increase pro-social behaviour, we would encourage people to respect their bodies. This would not happen quickly, but it can be done.
Question B10: (Father Don) We have an inter-agency group consisting of 22 organizations that recently came up with a new long-term plan after having met all the goals of our previous long-term plan. Can you give us any help in coordinating this work and the flow of information, and maybe some money?
See question B1.
Question B11: With the success of shows like Ice Pilots and Ice Road Truckers, is there a definitive marketing plan to bring tourists here and see that they stay here?
I'm not quite sure whether he meant for tourists to spend more time in Hay River, or for them to settle here permanently. As to the former, like I said, I think tourism is better than no tourism, but it's not the solution we need. There is only so much that tourists can do here, and for the cost of getting here, it's a hard sell. As to making people move here, again, I don't think that's a good idea. Normally people migrate to where there is economic activity; trying to move people here in the hope that their money will create activity does not make sense.
Question B12: (Rebecca Bruser) What are you going to do for mental health and addictions?
It's all part of my vision for pro-social behaviour. We need to give people cognitive-behavioural tools. We need to give them ways to improve self-control, which will give them a better chance to beat addiction. We also need to teach people to be bored, rather than try to find more ways to keep them entertained. You don't have to be destructive just because you're bored. Creating a greater sense of social responsibility and concern for each other would also improve mental health and resistance to addiction.
Again, by rejuvenating our economy with manufacturing concerns that can employ the less-skilled workers in good-quality jobs, we would reduce poverty, inequality, boredom, depression, hopelessness, and other factors that detract from mental health and make people more vulnerable to addiction.
There. That's all of them. You can send me more on Facebook or by email at one dot green dot mouse at gmail dot com.
Question A1: There are many strong personalities running for council. How are you going to build a less fractured council?
I've worked with far bigger jerks than anyone who's running for this election. I don't take jerks personally and I'm not intimidated by them, and I'm a good actress. I can act like I love them no matter what I actually think of them. I'll make it work.
Some friends suggested that I might end up being the douchebag on Council. See, my friends feel free to speak their mind to me! So I can't be that bad. The reality is that I firmly believe that feelings should never get in the way of right action, and I do practice what I preach. I don't worry about my own feelings, and I don't think feelings have any place in a professional, let alone political setting. What I care about is getting work done. From time to time this involves having to tell somebody that they're wrong or that it's not about them. If that hurts their pride, I'm ok with it. Let's just get things done, and let your loved ones worry about your feelings.
Question A2 (Father Don): There hasn't been enough good faith with the Youth Centre, which serves more than 200 at-risk teens. Other Youth Centres across Canada receive considerable support from their municipalities. Discuss.
The Youth Centre needs to stay where it is, it's a good fit for the location. The zoning problem can be easily solved by rezoning the lot. We also need to give them moral support and what financial support we can afford, and we need to work jointly with them and other community groups to create a community vision for our youth and pursue it together.
Question A3: What are the three greatest opportunities and three greatest challenges facing this council?
Opportunities:
- The strong administration team and good relations that were built up by the previous Council put us in a good position to get things done now, whereas previous Councils were hampered by dissent. We should make use of that momentum and continue to build on it.
- The three projects: Avalon, Tamerlane, Aurora. These will create the kind of industrial jobs that we need.
- Our natural environment, which can be developed so we can admire it without destroying it. It needs to be protected with bylaws, blinds for people to observe wildlife without disturbing it, trails and pathways maintained and not ruined by ATVs, and forest management. This is our greatest tourism draw and the greatest benefit Hay River has for its citizens – we cannot get this anywhere else.
Challenges:
- Deteriorating social conditions, as evidenced by the high homicide rate and widespread anti-social behaviour: littering, vandalism, B&Es, theft, shouting obscenities in the streets, tipping mailboxes, reckless driving, inconsiderate use of ATVs, abusive labour practices, and many more. We need to hold ourselves to higher standards. I suggest watching movies like Gridiron Gang and To Sir with Love to see what I'm on about.
- Dysfunctional economy. I'll have to write a post about this alone but briefly, our economy is dominated by the GNWT and other governments, which creates a huge imbalance between public and private sector employees. We also have almost no wealth-creation, that is, no manufacturing. Our businesses are focused on retail, service, tourism. Only tourism brings in outside dollars, but it isn't a source of quality jobs, and with our limited attractions and the high cost of getting here, it cannot be counted on to provide for all of us. We need some differentiated light manufacturing.
- The non-existent infrastructure reserve. No matter what anyone says, money will not appear from nowhere to replace our infrastructure, so we're going to have to find a way to pay for it. I doubt any measure can be implemented that will not be unpopular – which is exactly why we don't have an infrastructure reserve. Again, my solution is to start wealth-creating initiatives so that our people have more money, so they can afford more tax without crushing them. Everything works together.
Question A4 (Tom Lakusta): In the past every candidate talked about "team-building" but we still got autocratic decision making. So seriously, what are you gonna do about it?
I'm very autocratic myself, I hate to see time wasted in hemming and hawing. If people don't make up their mind I make it up for them. Luckily we have some candidates who are also decision-makers, so I don't think it will come down to one person doing all the talking (as was often the case in the outgoing Council).
Question A5 (myself on behalf of a citizen): Taxes in the corridor: are they going down, and when?
There are several complaints about the variety of tax and water rates. Some of them have been reviewed recently, some are being reviewed. In principle I support uniform rates for both because we're a community and we should act as one, not as a bunch of interest groups each pulling to pay less of everything. However there is also a logical argument to be made for lower taxes for the corridor. In this case I prefer the ethical over the logical argument. Regardless of which one we follow, the one thing that does not make sense is for the Council to let itself be intimidated in setting the rates. The only tax rate anyone likes is 0%, but governments need taxes to live.
Question A6: Regarding the IT contract, the consultant said that the current service is excellent and is good value, and recommended signing a long-term contract with ArcTech, a local employer. Do you support that recommendation?
If the SAO recommends something else, I would listen to the SAO. He's smart and we're paying him good money to give us his opinion. Andrew Cassidy was quoted in the paper as worrying that an in-house employee would be more expensive because s/he would be unionized, and that's exactly why I support in principle using Town employees over contractors, not only for the IT contract but for much of the labour. We should not use companies with lower standards of labour relations and occupational health and safety than the Town employees enjoy.
Question A7 (Sandra Lester): (I didn't quite get the details but it was about hiring local contractors rather than out-of-town.)
I think we should always pick the contractor that will do the best job for what we can afford to pay. If that means "local" contractors are at a disadvantage, they need to pull up their socks and match the quality of other proponents. Second, we need to consider how much local labour is employed and under what conditions, rather than local ownership. The Arcan situation is a good example: Arcan was preferred for the firehall for being "local". Much of the unskilled work is local residents, hired at various rates rather than a collectively-agreed rate; but many if not most of the skilled workers and subcontractors are from the south. Safety and labour practices are often questionable, planning looks sketchy, and I haven't looked at their product in detail but quality is usually no better than safety. Had we brought in a top-notch company like PCL or Clark Builders, they would hire the same people with better conditions and do a better-quality job faster, which ultimately benefits the community more. Hiring "local" contractors puts money in the pockets of people who already have it; my concern is getting the money distributed to more people with smaller bank accounts.
Question A8: If there is a majority on the two ballot questions, what happens?
I will vote against it on October 15. If it then goes to a vote in Council, I will vote for it if more than 87.5% of the vote was in favour; otherwise I will consider myself to represent the portion of the voters who are against it.
Question A9 (Jane Groenewegen): When there is a mandatory reassessment, why doesn't the mill rate go down? That was just a $600,000 cash grab. And why don't we use a zero-based approach to the budget?
I think if the Council didn't get so much resistance on putting taxes up, it wouldn't have taken this back-door approach. Again, no one likes taxes, but how else do we propose to pay for our amenities? So I don't think the increase in tax take was wrong, but I think the Council should have put up the mill rate when they needed it and taken the flak for it.
Question A10: (Sandra Lester) The Wright Crescent sewer was supposed to be replaced in 2007 and that never got done. Why? Why isn't the capital plan followed?
I'm with Cassidy on this one. A capital plan is only good if there is money behind it. If we want to have a plan and stick to it, we need a plan to fund it, too. Until we have that, we will always be on the back foot when it comes to infrastructure maintenance and upgrades.
Question A11: (myself, speaking for myself) You keep telling us the administration knows best, so why don't we listen to the Bylaw Officer and his proposal of the ATV Bylaw?
Obviously I'm for the ATV Bylaw, though not exactly the draft presented by the Bylaw Officer. We need to identify an ATV area, same as we did the Off-Leash areas. Should they have a corridor? I'd have to see proposals as to where that corridor would be. I'm inclined to make them use the roads, in that it will force them to obey traffic laws including registration and licensing – or else put their machine on a truck and haul it out to their riding area. Again, I'd have to hear proposals for snow machines, as they can't use the roads.
Question A12: Comment on the organizational review.
I did not read the organizational review report as that is not one of my areas of high concern. I think the SAO will do a fine job of managing it and I don't need to look over his shoulder. My priority is to think of solutions to the macroscopic problems, not the small ones.
Question A13: (Wayne Keefe) What are you gonna do if there's a jerk on Council?
Live with it. The only place I don't have to put up with jerks is my own house.
Question A14: The recommendations from the 2005 organizational review weren't followed. Are you gonna do something about this one?
See question A12. I believe in the SAO.
Question A15: (Tom Lakusta) What kind of things are you gonna promote to make Hay River an even better place to live?
Foster pro-social behaviour in all members of our community. In practice this will mean introducing community standards of behaviour (Edmonton has a "Community Standards" bylaw instead of a noise bylaw – I think that's a great idea), giving people cognitive-behavioural tools that they're currently lacking, vigorously encouraging people to see themselves as part of a whole rather than self-seeking individuals, setting people challenges, and other methods. Improved communication will be essential to this, including installing billboards and organizing rallies. "Relay for Life" is incredibly successful in doing exactly this – now let's have a "Relay for Hay River."
Question A16: (myself, speaking for myself) As a follow-up to my previous question, I don't know what part of the public you were listening to, but there was lots of support for the ATV bylaw. So how are you gonna make sure you actually hear from ALL the public and not just those who want a bylaw kiboshed?
I like doing surveys; not the kind where people write out comments but ones with metrics such as Likert scales. I think it's the most reliable way to measure public opinion. In addition when we talk about "engaging the public", in practice it's mostly limited to the speaker's demographic. Luckily I have many friends among the poor and otherwise disenfranchised, and I plan to ask for their opinion as well. We can also use more rigorous methods of selecting people from various demographics to create a more representative sample when asking questions.
Question A17: Exactly what method would you use to improve communications?
As I said, billboards, rallies, surveys. We also need a venue for people to make speeches. Some of the other candidates (Cassidy, at least) have mentioned "town hall" type meetings. That's better than no town-hall meetings, but it won't draw out the disenfranchised, which is exactly why they're "disenfranchised". We need to seek them out and bring them into the conversation.
Question A18: The kids at the skateboard park use foul language.
Tell me about it. Reducing coarse language is part of my vision for pro-social behaviour. I propose to challenge everyone to a "community cuss jar". Everyone will have a cuss jar at home and turn it in on a regular basis. The proceeds will be used for a community barbecue or similar event. There might be prizes for the richest cuss jar or the greatest improvement in cussing in a household. Likewise we will find challenges for other anti-social behaviours.
Question A19: (Jane Groenewegen) The Council spent an inordinate amount of time trying to prevent people having outdoor pellet stoves. Will you try not to limit people's options in controlling their cost of living?
I'm glad I didn't get that question, I think Cassidy answered it best.
Question A20: (myself for a citizen) I'm surprised no one has said this yet: what about the flooding? You know, what are you gonna do about the fact that the river floods in the spring?
As I said before, I think flood control needs to be done by flood control engineers. However, any flood control system is only good to a certain limit, and some, like in New Orleans, fail before their expected breaking point. A failed flood control system is more catastrophic than no flood control at all, and it's expensive, so it's only a good investment in places where land is scarce. This is not the case here, so I think we'd be better off arranging our affairs so that we're not bothered by flooding, rather than trying to stop the flooding. Nonetheless, I would consider bringing in an engineer with experience in flood control, or attempting my giant-wall-of-ice idea. I would consider other ideas as they come up, but so far I haven't really heard any that I believe in.
Question A21: (Father Don) What about all those NTCL barges in the river? Don't they affect the flow of ice?
Considering where the barges are and where the flood damage has happened in the past, I don't think the barges were the cause of the problem.
Question A22: (Sandra Lester) Why is my water bill higher in the corridor than in town? Do you support a uniform water rate?
Yes, I do, until someone shows me compelling reasons against.
Question A23: (Wayne Keefe) Lots of talk about long-term vision. Do you have something stunning or semi-interesting to say? Rather than just tearing trees down along the river?
I do. I think we need to establish light manufacturing in differentiated products, for example micro-brewing, clothing, and winter boots. The cost of shipping is not the deterrent to manufacturing here; the main factor in locating industries is the cost of labour. However, a differentiated product can be marked up, thanks to our "northern" branding which the GNWT has worked on promoting. Beer in particular supports union wages in the south. Also by making this concern widely or cooperatively held and professionally managed, we would eliminate the need to pay for the owner's lifestyle, leaving more money to put into wages. It would be important to structure the ownership so that no individual, family or interest group can strong-arm its way into control of the concerns. This would provide manufacturing jobs for less-skilled workers, which is exactly what we need, as well as something we can export, thus creating an inflow of cash instead of an outflow as in the case of government jobs. If need be we should get subsidies from the GNWT. Many industries are subsidised anyways, for example agriculture and aerospace. The GNWT subsidizes fur traders and fisheries, which are our past; there is no reason it shouldn't subsidize our future.
Question A24: (Kandis Jameson) How will you hold councillors accountable for their attendance and portfolio work?
I don't know about the other seven, but I always show up to work. This is a job, and I intend to do it well.
Question A25: (myself, speaking for myself) The Minister of Finance was here last week asking for suggestions for his upcoming budget. Given that the GNWT spends 17 times as much per person as the Town of Hay River, what would you tell the Minister to do with his budget in order to improve our quality of life?
What I told the Minister was that if we'd spend our economic development money better (e.g. by creating manufacturing), we wouldn't need so many social programs; also if we had better labour laws and we enforced them, again, people would have their own money and not need so much support.
I also told the Minister what I think of power subsidies. Any energy subsidy is a slippery slope. It encourages people to waste energy; the government has no control over energy costs and no way to fund this program; and you can't get rid of it without a public outcry. Many governments in the Global South are regretting putting in place energy subsidies. Let's not go that way.
Question B1: (Jocelyn Grant for the Youth Centre) How are you gonna increase efficiency in supporting youth?
Other than my lame answer about the Youth Centre, I think we should organize the various voluntary and leisure organizations, youth or otherwise, so that all information is available centrally. This would allow potential volunteers to be matched with volunteering opportunities, as well as bring more participants to programs. I have already been working on making a master schedule of all regularly-scheduled activities in Hay River, and the idea of a website for coordinating volunteers has been floated with the Recreation department. We just need to implement.
We should also create synergy in fundraising. There seems to be a marked slowdown in both volunteering and fundraising so that many organizations are cancelling or delaying programs; on the other hand the Relay for Life consistently attracts large numbers of volunteers and dollars. If the community organizations worked together as an umbrella group, they could rival the Relay for Life in attracting dollars that would stay in our community. The main difficulty I foresee is in distributing the cash among the groups without bickering.
Question B2: (written question read by Bernie Langille for a citizen) Any plans to increase recycling and bring back town clean-up?
Now that I've heard the other candidates' answers and had some time to think about it, I would have to say that for the time being the most likely solution would be to sort out and collect anything that can be recycled somewhere else, and then ship it out. In some cases this is quite lucrative; for example, my neighbour in the Highrise is here collecting scrap metal from all over the South Slave, which he then hauls back to Alberta and cashes in. Many recyclables that are worthless in household quantities become valuable in large amounts; for example paper can be turned into blown insulation for houses. And hauling to Alberta is relatively cheap because too many trucks go back empty. So by collecting our recyclables and hauling them to Alberta in large quantities, we might be able to cover part of the costs of the program.
As for town clean-up, as Vince McKay said, the dump can't handle it now. We need to reduce the amount of stuff being thrown out. On the other hand, in Bolivia they sometimes have a national cleaning day where everyone cleans house and in particular gets rid of standing water (this is to prevent dengue fever). We could create a similar custom here and turn town clean-up from "throw out all your stuff for free" into "let's all get together and clean this town", e.g. pick up garbage, help neighbours who may be facing challenges in maintaining their property, put a fresh coat of paint on the CN bridge, and so on.
Question B3: (written question read by the moderator) Regarding the IT contract, the consultant said that the current service is excellent and is good value, and recommended signing a long-term contract with ArcTech, a local employer. Do you support that recommendation?
See question A6.
Question B4: Define "local". Do you have to own a residence here, or keep the money here?
I would define "local" as what benefits the greatest number, that is, the workers.
Question B5: (Harvey Werner) I shouldn't be able to quash bylaws in court. Do you support reviewing and enforcing our bylaws?
Like I said, I agree. We need to review and rewrite our bylaws so that the ones we have are useful and enforceable, we need to enforce them, we need to stop giving the Bylaw Officer attitude, and we need to stop picking what gets enforced and what doesn't.
Question B6: (Chris Robinson) We're in an economic downturn, yet there is no location for new businesses. How are you going to encourage businesses to move here?
There are locations where businesses could move in, either by adapting existing structures or clearing them and rebuilding. Much of the industrial stretch on the east side of the highway is now empty and needs to be revitalized. We should be putting businesses into these spots rather than opening more land.
Question B7: (Ken Latour) What can we do in this town without looking to the outside for projects to come here?
See question A23.
Question B8: (Tom Lakusta) Not everyone (of the candidates) was here last night. Just sayin'. No one from the Council has ever come to Minor Hockey to thank us for our work. What can the Town do to help community groups?
See question B1.
Question B9: (Linda Carman) What kind of partnerships can the town establish to promote health and well-being. Also rogue ATVs are dangerous and we need that bylaw.
Thank you for backing me on the ATV Bylaw!
I think we can create town traditions that will promote health. For example, in the past it was traditional in parts of Europe to go for a family walk after lunch on Sunday. We could do this and encourage people to draw out their friends and neighbours. We need to challenge people to come together and exercise, like the Chinese do. Workplaces could have tai chi in the morning before or after safety meeting, or at coffee break, or at lunch. If we can create an ATV corridor we could create a bike corridor and challenge people to use it. Again, by making our trails safe for pedestrians, we would increase walking.
I think we should also have a fitness trail. See this post.
As well, as part of my vision to increase pro-social behaviour, we would encourage people to respect their bodies. This would not happen quickly, but it can be done.
Question B10: (Father Don) We have an inter-agency group consisting of 22 organizations that recently came up with a new long-term plan after having met all the goals of our previous long-term plan. Can you give us any help in coordinating this work and the flow of information, and maybe some money?
See question B1.
Question B11: With the success of shows like Ice Pilots and Ice Road Truckers, is there a definitive marketing plan to bring tourists here and see that they stay here?
I'm not quite sure whether he meant for tourists to spend more time in Hay River, or for them to settle here permanently. As to the former, like I said, I think tourism is better than no tourism, but it's not the solution we need. There is only so much that tourists can do here, and for the cost of getting here, it's a hard sell. As to making people move here, again, I don't think that's a good idea. Normally people migrate to where there is economic activity; trying to move people here in the hope that their money will create activity does not make sense.
Question B12: (Rebecca Bruser) What are you going to do for mental health and addictions?
It's all part of my vision for pro-social behaviour. We need to give people cognitive-behavioural tools. We need to give them ways to improve self-control, which will give them a better chance to beat addiction. We also need to teach people to be bored, rather than try to find more ways to keep them entertained. You don't have to be destructive just because you're bored. Creating a greater sense of social responsibility and concern for each other would also improve mental health and resistance to addiction.
Again, by rejuvenating our economy with manufacturing concerns that can employ the less-skilled workers in good-quality jobs, we would reduce poverty, inequality, boredom, depression, hopelessness, and other factors that detract from mental health and make people more vulnerable to addiction.
There. That's all of them. You can send me more on Facebook or by email at one dot green dot mouse at gmail dot com.
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