Ice Road Truckers

[LongIslandPiney]

Anyone watch the series on The History Channel? I think the whole thing is pretty crazy. I do not like the way they are tearing up the tundra up there, all this for...diamonds?
It's pretty sad what folks support just to "look good". I'll make it a point not to purchase diamonds, I dont need them for anything.

 

[this_is_nascar]

Yes, I watch it faithfully. I must say, that I do like the show. Yes, the entire existance of the ice-road is for diamond mining.

 

[MarkBNJ]

Anyone watch the series on The History Channel? I think the whole thing is pretty crazy. I do not like the way they are tearing up the tundra up there, all this for...diamonds?
It's pretty sad what folks support just to "look good". I'll make it a point not to purchase diamonds, I dont need them for anything.

Well, I think the majority of the diamonds mined in the world are for industrial use, by a very large margin.

People open up wildernesss and make it serve their needs, and if they didn't none of us would be here. At some point you conserve what you have left, but Canada has far more wilderness than they need.

 

[LongIslandPiney]

The problem is it sounds like there are too many mines up there. If there are a few I dont have a problem with it, but if they are recklessly tearing up tundra to explore for diamonds I do have a problem with that.
Also when these trucks fall into the ice the dangerous chemicals and fuel can spill into the lakes, polluting these delicate environments.

 

[watchingtrainsgoby]

Ive seen it, i thought the same thing as LIP.

 

[this_is_nascar]

The problem is it sounds like there are too many mines up there. If there are a few I dont have a problem with it, but if they are recklessly tearing up tundra to explore for diamonds I do have a problem with that.
Also when these trucks fall into the ice the dangerous chemicals and fuel can spill into the lakes, polluting these delicate environments.

It's my understanding that the lands they're "bombing" to mine the diamonds are confirmed to have them in there. It's not like they're saying "hey, let's blow-up this spot and see what's there".

 

[MarkBNJ]

You also have to understand how truly vast Canada's northlands are, and how nearly unpopulated. Mining sites are invisible pinpricks in a soggy green carpet that stretches more than 3000 miles east to west, and nearly 1000 north to south. Canada has a more conservation-inclined society and government than we have here, and I doubt they are proceeding in a way that would do any lasting damage.

 

[wis bang]

I worked for the US office of a Canadian Carrier & our Alberta office used to deliver to Oil Wells who's addresses were long/lat coordinates...

The Canadian Federal Goverment as well as the Provincial goverment in the N.W. territories are very environmentally aware. While the History channel did it's best to Hype up the story; this show is not representative of the actual ice road but it did show the intervention when the fuel tanker started to go through the ice.

While some rigs have gone through, they are not left to despoil the wilderness. The motor carrier has to get them removed or pay the government double the cost.

The same weather conditons limit the companies to bringing supplies in by this most unusual highway also limit the possibility of manufacturing this stuff on site.

I was privledged to meet a few 'real' northern canadian truckers. Just the wrinkles from chain smoking Players 'navy cut' to stay awake and the knarled fingers from working in artic conditons have marked them for life. The guys on TV were to 'pretty' to be the original item...

 

[andy1015]

i did watch the show and did enjoy(not as much as dc though) but it bothers me sometimes when they hype shows like that up so much, than the guy was taking a nap, big deal so show it how it is, it probobly would be just as exciting as it is without the stupid lies, but anyway if you don't buy diamonds from canada, you ar more than likely buying blood diamonds, so you may be better off buying from canada

 

[LongIslandPiney]

i did watch the show and did enjoy(not as much as dc though) but it bothers me sometimes when they hype shows like that up so much, than the guy was taking a nap, big deal so show it how it is, it probobly would be just as exciting as it is without the stupid lies, but anyway if you don't buy diamonds from canada, you ar more than likely buying blood diamonds, so you may be better off buying from canada

Yeah everything is hyped on TV lately, even Discovery is doing it alot.
I am glad they finally got rid of that horrible show "American Chopper". Who wants to see a bunch of men yell at eachother?
They also have too many repeats, it seems new episodes of Mythbusters are few and far between.
I'm glad they got some new Survivorman shows, though I am dissapointed they still have not done a show in the NJ Pine barrens. I'd love to see how Les Stroud would spend 7 days marooned deep in the pine barrens!
Though the new shows are already over, I guess Man vs. Wild is next, I like Les better. Man vs Wild is more for entertainment than learning about actual survival. I like both shows though.
It would be nice to have some shows about the pine barrens though.

 

[MarkBNJ]

History Channel seems to have gone to hell, too. Used to be my favorite place to land, but now half the shows are on the prophecies of Nostradamus, the Knights Templar, or some guy in a windbreaker hunched down in a sewer saying "Wow! Cool!" every thirty seconds.

 

[LARGO]

History Channel seems to have gone to hell, too. Used to be my favorite place to land, but now half the shows are on the prophecies of Nostradamus, the Knights Templar, or some guy in a windbreaker hunched down in a sewer saying "Wow! Cool!" every thirty seconds.

Indeed Mark,
There has been a lot of strangeness I assume to grab the interests of those who watch same said crap on the mainstream channels. I like to think of it as a "lost leader" to get people watching. I still find several documentaries wonderfully informative and in the early morn' every week they run and rerun three or four day segments mostly on old world history that I love. I actually prefer older world history over that which is in the last few hundred years, especially the many ties of religious influence and it's incredible movement of entire cultures against one another.
We've experienced dark and yet fascinating times to get to where we are today. Let's hope the history channel doesn't go totally to shit in a handbasket shall we. I will say, once I see "Queer eye for the Mongol horde guy", I'm out!

G.