Inuusivut, Our Life

Just when I start to become comfortable, or ignorant in my lifestyle here, forgetting that there is often unease lying below the surface of calm, someone, or a couple people take gun shots just out side our buildings. I figured it out when I tried to leave for work on Wednesday morning and the street I usually take was completely blocked off by RCMP. The following article was posted by CBC news following the events of the morning.

2 men in hospital following Iqaluit shooting

Suspect in stable, but critical condition
CBC News Posted: Nov 23, 2011 7:42 AM
RCMP in Iqaluit block off a city block of the city after reports of gunfire early Wednesday morning.
The RCMP responded to a call about gun shots early in the morning in the 100-block area of the Nunavut capital. RCMP said when officers arrived at the scene, they were confronted by a man who pointed a firearm at them.
Shots were fired and the man fled.
Police said they found the man a short time later near house 238, bleeding from the chest area. The suspect was taken to the Qikiqtani General Hospital where he was treated for injuries. As of this morning, he was in stable but critical condition.
Another man living in the 100-block area of homes in Iqaluit was injured during the incident. He was being treated for non-life-threatening injuries in hospital.
Parts of the downtown area near the Snack restaurant and the Public Health building were cordoned off by police vehicles and tape.
People nearby described hearing multiple gunshots very early Wednesday morning. Iqaluit resident Travis Daley said he was sleeping inside his house when he was abruptly woken around 4 a.m. Wednesday morning.
"I just heard a couple bangs and got up thinking some kids were messing around with the house and I looked outside and I saw an RCMP truck, doors wide open and they just chased a kid down the street."
Daley said he went back to bed and then woke up this morning.
"That's all I know, then they put tape around my house and I woke up this morning in the crime scene,” said Daley.
The RCMP’s policy is to have an outside police or independent agency investigate serious matters that involve RCMP officers.
Det. John Monette of the Ottawa Police Service Major Crime Unit were to arrive in Iqaluit Wednesday to oversee the investigation, and a team from the N.W.T. will handle the investigation, according to Iqaluit RCMP.

This is the photo that CBC published with the article, edited by me

I love Iqaluit, I love it's people, I love it's culture and I love its scenery. I spent all of Wednesday listening to people talk at work about the incidents of the morning. I had a good chance to converse with my friend Mai who works with me at Tim's. She's lived here all her life and as we talked, we recounted the events of the last year or so, the murders, the suicides and the rest of the life shattering goings-on. Regardless of how much I adore this land, I spent that day, as I have many times before, stuck with my thoughts. My mind filled with questions about faith, about love, about respect and about the blatant disregard for the value of life. A disregard which we have seen too often lately. Every time one person makes the choice to take or harm their own life, or the life of another, they are impacting an entire City. They are putting ache in the hearts of those who are touched directly and indirectly by their actions. In Iqaluit, or any small community, that ache is felt by every individual. I wish, daily, that the people around me would find faith in their hearts and hold onto it for dear life.