The season opener this year was one in which Morgan Spurlock works in a coal mine for 30 days. I love this show because it shows exactly what day to day life is like for the men who work there. It's a pretty awful job but a lot of the men said they wouldn't do anything else...even though many of them end up with black lung. It also shows other viewpoints such as coal miners who now protest the tactics used by some of the energy companies for whom they used to work because of environmental concerns.
The next episode had a retired pro football player who had to use a wheelchair for 30 days. Again, it was eye-opening to see the crap people in wheelchairs must go through every single day. It was really informative, though, because I was not aware that quadriplegics have some use of their hands. I always thought they couldn't use anything below the neck but that's not the case. Everything depends on where the injury occurs. In fact, one of the guys on the show who was a quadriplegic, had a tricked out truck and drove himself around all the time. He was a young guy who dove into a dark body of water...and it wasn't deep enough. Sad.
The episode last week was probably the most difficult one to watch out of all shows from any season. It involved a tried and true hunter going to live with a family of PETA animal activists. They showed some footage that I couldn't watch, like animals being skinned alive for fur. Some of the most disturbing footage involved dairy farms and the treatment of calves. It will make you think twice about eating veal or dairy products.
However, the one thing that really upset me was the visit to the local pound. They showed all the dogs in their cages and I immediately fell for this one grey pit bull. He was so excited when people would come up to his cage. I knew he just wanted a family to play with him. The employee put on his leash to take him for a walk and the dog was giddy with excitement. He was so dang cute, I just wanted to adopt him. Then I realized what was happening. My favorite dog out of the whole kennel was being walked to his death. I was mortified. I'm crying right now just thinking about it. They said that the bigger dogs rarely get adopted because of their cost. Now, I feel I shouldn't get a Jack Russell. I should get one of the harder to place dogs. I do have a certain affinity for pit bulls after watching "The Dog Whisperer" all the time. There is one well-trained pit bull on the show named Daddy and I LOVE him. I would take him in a heartbeat if I could have him.
So, despite the horrors and sadness inherent in some episodes, it is still a great commentary on our world. It teaches acceptance and does it's best to dispel stereotypes. Seasons 1 and 2 are available on Netflix and I strongly encourage you to add them to your queue as soon as possible.
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