There has been a lot of very disturbing news coming out of my hometown of Radilih Koe'/Fort Good Hope in the last little while, most having to do with buildings intentionally set on fire.

This is serious, and in this case, points to some of the more underlying situations in our communities.

It is true that our young people feel out of place with not a lot to do to fill time when not in school. Even among the students, there is a definite feeling of hopelessness these days. Some complete high school only to find they have to upgrade further to go any further.

Of course, a lot of this local discontent has to do with the poor economy these days. But I do believe there is more to it than we are willing to see.

I have been working with the GNWT's Department of Industry, Tourism and Investments now for the past three summers, promoting the arts to our five Sahtu communities. One of the main issues we have had to deal with continually is one of apathy, people just not wanting to do things for themselves.

When I was a child here in the North, things were very much different. We had to struggle for everything we got and this feeling of wanting for a better life is still with me.

At that time if there was a program in place like Sahtu In the Arts I would do all I could to get something good out of it, and could not help but succeed given the resources available.

People keep saying these cases of arson are a problem with the youth, which is partially true. But we as adults need to take responsibility to make things right again.

It is no secret that we are addicted to just about any form of gambling in the North. Some people even consider games like Texas Hold'em to be a social event and cannot get enough of these games of chance. We never learn that we are simply throwing away our money at the cost of taking away the one thing most important to a child, our time.

Even children from prominent families are dealing in drugs and alcohol. We are willingly creating the dysfunctional kind of place in which anything can happen.

One of the sadder things I have had to come home to from my travels away from the Great Bear Lake region is the amount of mischief today's youngsters have the time to get into.

Even adults are glued to the TV, with scenes of extreme violence being seen as normal.

Commercials sell our children on the idea of being consumers right from birth.

Of course, there are many more parts to these problems, but I wouldn't go so far as blaming only the youth.

They are growing up in a cultural void we have created for them, leaving them little choice but to act out their frustration by taking a match to a building.