The G7 finance ministers' meeting is Feb. 5 and 6 in Iqaluit, Minister Leona Aglukkaq with the help of Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty put a good one over on us in the west! Oh well, I think all of those G7 or G8 or G20 are a puzzle, they seem to meet so damn often on the world situation. Look at the mess the world is in, maybe they are like the United Nations - an old boy's club.

Our NWT is in a mess, all you read in the paper is bitching about money, our people in the Sahtu region read something to cheer us up, the headline in News/North, "Large mineral deposit discovered in Sahtu." It goes right into the Gwich'in region to Eagle Plains - so maybe they will need a highway soon!

I loved Mike Bryant's column in Yellowknifer - all you people should read him. And all get on your high horses and voice your opinions to your members of the legislative assembly, and stop these trips like the one to Copenhagen. I'll bet it will cost more than $86,000. I hear someone from Good Hope is going with them. How many hangers-on are accompanying them to Copenhagen?

GNWT should make public just how much money each department has, as slush money, money put aside to pay for various whims that the heads of departments have. Let's get friendly with the Department of Finance.

Anyhow, I see Senator Sibbeston is in hot water over his remarks, I agree with him in a way, there seems to be no end to social problems, but social problems have been here since the beginning of time. You help and cure someone then another shows up.

The only ones we should worry about are children. We should hire field workers. They can get to know the people who need help and the youth and little children.

There are parents who cannot help their children with homework, especially the new math. Work with parents who gamble, some all night. Their children need someone to make sure they don't miss school and check on neglect, fieldworkers can do much to help families and street people. The GNWT has money to spare, this is your chance to scream for change, no more wasting and lending $40,000 to companies in other provinces. The Status of Women and Native Women's Association should join forces and ask for an audit and find out exactly how much money civil servants spend to travel to Vancouver and Ottawa, Edmonton, you name it they fly thousands of miles, airfares, hotels, taxies, meals, etc. for a one- or two-day meeting. You citizens of the NWT better wake up! How many of you will join me if I want to sue them for mismanagement?

In the Nov. 27 issue of The Globe and Mail, the North faces big problems, warming permafrost melting. I remember when Inuvik was being built, many lived in tents and shacks, their fridge was to dig into the moss about a foot or so, you hit ice, you put your beer, meat, whatever to keep cool! There were some pictures of houses in Alaska falling over from melting permafrost. We know the ice is melting and that means the ocean's water will rise! So all of you people who have homes on low lands should get the GNWT involved in checking any community that are on low lands. Tell them to forget Copenhagen and start checking at home - Tuktoyaktuk is on real low land.Who is really running the community anyway? Our Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been travelling to countries, good he went to India, he was dragging his foot about going to Copenhagen, waiting to see if all of the world's leaders were going. Now that President Barack Obama decided to go, our prime minister is going to go to Copenhagen. He should go to China next! I think I'll send him a note in Copenhagen and tell him he should give our GNWT representatives hell and tell them to go home.

My goodness, civilized countries are sending tons of food to those hungry countries, then you see on TV and read in the papers about the little country of Nepal, where Hindus are slaughtering 250,000 beasts for religion's sake! Animal sacrifice in these modern times? And when their neighbours are starving? And then you read about Lima, Peru, where they discovered a gang was killing peasants for their body fat, which they sold to cosmetic companies in Europe. No more makeup for me!

I'm writing this from Edmonton, it is melting here! Warm and beautiful. I'll be home Monday, Dec, 1.