Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Public Television Documentary on the Bakken

I have not watched the documentary (I don't watch television any more, unless I am somewhere where I can catch NASCAR, or maybe some football). My television watching is pretty much limited to the original Perry Mason series on Hulu.com. But I digress.

What makes me think this documentary would be about par for public television? Here's the synopsis, verbatim, from the website: The 60-minute documentary shows us:
  • the towns that don’t have the infrastructure to support the uncontrolled and dramatic growth;
  • the ranchers who now view bumper-to-bumper traffic all day rather than the rare vehicle traveling along the two-lane horizon to horizon; and, 
  • the oil workers who earn huge salaries but live in makeshift housing without hope of finding homes suitable for their families. 
Sounds pretty grim up there in the Bakken. I guess the roughnecks and truck drivers earning $100,000 salaries could be flocking to Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Libya, Saudi Arabia, or other such oil countries to drill wells and experience the above, along with:
  • roadside bombs;
  • miserably hot weather most of the year;
  • sand;
  • more sand;
  • no alcohol (which might be good);
  • sand;
  • burning US embassies;
  • makeshift housing without hope of finding homes suitable for their families; and,
  • did I mention, sand?
Anyway, it's there if you want to watch it, at the link.