Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This motion is bigger than it states on words on the paper. Mr. Speaker, we talk about those who are dependent and we want to denormalize the issue, but we have to also recognize those people who are living with these people who are abusing alcohol. I'd like to take this time to talk about a couple small stories. They're really small, but just to give you sort of a personal sense of where it's sort of gone and come from in my perspective.

I remember growing up in Fort Simpson and knowing somebody who flew in from one of the communities so he could get his hands on a Texas mickey. Being a youth, to realize that someone would charter a plane to fly into Simpson to get a Texas mickey, that's control and that control has to be broken, Mr. Speaker. That wasn't a choice; that's some type of control that the alcohol has on them.

Mr. Speaker, I remember growing up and I remember a particular father. He was a drunk and he used to beat his kids regularly, and that wasn't really fun to watch. I was very thankful that wasn't happening at my house, I can tell you that. I remember he used to beat his kids down the street, beat them on the way home. It wasn't just sort of pay attention; it was like he really laid it to his kids. This guy was controlled by alcohol.

I remember one of the best things about summertime -- and I lived right close to it but, then again, you live to close to almost everything -- but we used to look forward to spring this time of year because we used to go to the aboveground swimming pool, and anyone who has been to an aboveground swimming pool will know that it's not really deeper than your waist. One of my buddies growing up, one of my best friends, Mr. Speaker, he never swam but he was always at the pool with us and he tormented us all the same as we did to everybody else at the pool, and we all did those fun things there. I can tell you a story about one time he went and got drunk, and he decided to swim across the Snye. But to tie the story together, he couldn't swim. So he was controlled by alcohol and it gave him courage to do something that he couldn't do.

Mr. Speaker, I know of another person growing up. He liked to drink and sometimes he was motivated to drive afterwards. I'm not going to say encouraged to drive, but I'd say the people who got in the vehicle obviously had some type of courage because I can tell you one person didn't make it out. They're now on full-time dependent care for the rest of their life because they were in that vehicle with him. It wasn't the first accident that they had, but you kind of wish they would have caught on to the first one, but the second one was even more devastating.

Mr. Speaker, my last little story on this particular case would be I remember this school friend of mine, growing up again in Fort Simpson. This friend of mine, it was a young lady, her favourite song -- this is when ABBA was really popular, so this will set you back a few years, obviously -- I remember her favourite song was I Dream of Angels. It sounds sort of nice when you hear that. Her two brothers got drunk, started shooting at each other. They missed themselves, but they didn't miss her. You look back and you kind of wonder, you know, did she know something? That was her favourite song. So every time I hear it today, when it comes up every once in a while, I do think of her and I wonder about that horrible situation. I wish they had choices.

This motion speaks to the issue of choices and we have people dependent and they can't make a choice in the sense of breaking away from this problem, but we forget about the people who are locked into this situation who don't have any choices. We forget about the kids that are locked in; we forget about the wives that are locked in; sometimes even the husbands, but we can't forget about those. This motion reminds me of that situation that a lot of folks are trapped. Although we're talking about denormalizing alcohol for the folks that are using it, but when I read the motion and I hear about the motion, I think about the folks that have become victims of the motion and I look at this.

Mr. Speaker, I don't have a lot more to add, but I can't help but think about the kids who live in that household, possibly neglected, who knows if they're abused or beaten, but I can tell you I have witnessed some of that stuff myself. I've seen kids that have gotten the rough ride when they shouldn't have. Precious years were lost on people because the kids became victims, and I'm sure many precious good years have been lost on spouses who become victims of those attached to alcohol.

Mr. Speaker, I thought I'd talk about this perspective because booze just doesn't affect the drinker; it has radiating effects to everybody else. I haven't even got into the community and things like that, which don't need to be talked about today, we've heard a lot from other Members. But I'm just sort of speaking about my perspective. So I'll say to the government -- and I know they're listening very closely because this is an important issue, and I know they support us in our endeavours, they support this side of the House, although they don't vote with us obviously on this particular issue -- but I'll say if you can't bring yourself to help those who are dependent on the alcohol, then maybe their focus and our spirit behind this motion can we look at the ones that are loved and fall through the systems, and the victims. So could we do it for maybe the loved ones if we can't do it for those who are dependent? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues.

---Applause