— warning, spoiler—
While chatting with friends someone mentioned this show, Gold Rush Alaska. It sounded really interesting. I love nature, the frontier life, and Alaska! So I started watching it and I found myself shocked at how blind the families seemed to be in the venture. Brave, but blind to go in with so little experience. The next thing that stands out as shocking was that three young boys were taken as well along with many fire arms and ammo. I can’t picture those things being locked up because they where needed to ward off wild life like bears. They had good reason to bring fire arms, but I was still worried for the boys. They where lost for so long and I was surprised they could work so long without pay. One of the things that stood out was the sexism and how manly men where portrayed and any one else was picked on. I had thought this might be a show that I might introduce to my children but even with bleeping out the cussing I do not want them seeing that bad example. Soon the families came up to stay. Still no real gold. Then a child became ill though with no known cause but it was discovered the drinking water they thought was a mountain stream, that they never boiled or purified, was run off from a road, and likely very…. well gross.
Yet another example of how unprepared they where for such an adventure. Still very little gold and so the families where sent home. Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong for those poor guys. I was really feeling for them and even forgetting about the sexism that so bothers me. The land owner sent in a guy to help them, and thanks to some other helpful people in the end they pulled out 20k worth of gold for the whole season. They spent well over 250k in that time. However they where right on top of the gold and they just needed to wait till winter past to get it out. They finally where on their feet and had experience.
So season 2 comes along. They get up there and set up and where mining in 3 days. Who shows up, the owners friend who had bossed them around. As it turns out the horrible man bought the whole property out from under them and an error on their parts lost them the claim. The gold sitting right there, all those months of work for nothing, to have the slimy old man take it on them. They did the work, he will get the gold. Of course the new owner says people will hate him for it, call him names, but that he is not at all bad and actually wonderful….. (This in my own words mind you.)
So that is as far as I have gotten. I went from interested in the topic of the show, to thinking these people where just blind sheeple, to being worried for them all, to being thrilled for them, and now I am just sad for them. The be betrayed like that by another human being (as if aliens betray us? LOL) is very disheartening. The new owner “Dakota Fred” in my eyes is the gleaming example of the evil in this world, greed.
Thank you for letting me ramble. Now to go finish Season 2, Episode 1.
