I have just finished watching the “Ice Road Truckers” series on the History Channel. I was wondering if any of you in The Nation have watched it and what you thought of the men who drive over the ice. Are they the embodiment of our past “hell bent for leather” masculine ideal or modern independent businessmen grabbing for a big payday? In my opinion they are, as most things are, a subtle mixture of both.
True, they are out there for the money. They readily admit this. The thing that sets them apart and makes them interesting is the conditions that they operate under. I would think that the drive up the ice at 15 to 20 mph over cracking ice at 40 below zero would require one to have a sturdy make up. These kinds of truly dangerous jobs are disappearing from the American landscape.
I am speaking of jobs that give you a swagger in your walk and that other people admire and some wish that they could do them. Of course Police and Fire personnel have always had the most dangerous of public jobs, but dangerous occupations in the private workplace are far and few between.
Any comments on the show or thoughts on jobs with a swagger to them?
KEN.