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Passing judgment on someone when you don't know the relevant facts is generally a bad idea. If this was a tourist near Anchorage or Fairbanks or Denali, that's

Passing judgment on someone when you don't know the relevant facts is generally a bad idea. If this was a tourist near Anchorage or Fairbanks or Denali, that's one thing, but there probably aren't many tourists up near Kotzebue, especially in December.

ramraj07 4y ago
We know enough relevant facts- they went on a snow machine into the wilderness. Only got saved by an instrument that luckily worked as it’s advertised but not with a guarantee. Only an idiot would go out into the cold in Alaska depending on technology that explicitly says it might not work for you if you have a hill or you’re in a weird latitude. You can bet his townsfolk are talking about his stupidity as well. Maybe his baby was choking and he was going to get help. But maybe all our corrupt politicians are also held hostage by aliens and that’s why they’re corrupt? If we can’t judge anyone until all the facts are in then we can’t judge anyone ever. I’d prefer to judge with what I have but be ready to amend when new information comes in.
- labrador 4y ago
  Alaska natives apparently don't have much sympathy for those from the lower 48 who get in trouble because they didn't research or prepare for Alaskan conditions before venturing out. The majority of Alaskans share some version of the opinion that McCandless was deeply out of his element The Cult of Chris McCandless https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/the-cult-of-chris-mccandless-20121015/ https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/the-cult-of-chris-mcca... made famous by "Into The Wild" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Wild_(film) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Wild_(film)
  - Cupertino95014 4y ago
    Do you have any evidence at all that this was someone from the lower 48?
    - labrador 4y ago
      Depends on how much you trust Wikipedia
      - dumpsterdiver 4y ago
        I think the parent commenter was referring to this incident, not the kid from Into the Wild. Based on the demographics of the two villages he was traversing, it's very likely that this man is Alaska native.
        labrador 4y ago
        Thanks for clearing that up. I must have misread the article based on my prior knowledge of Into The Wild and some of the comments previously made.
        Cupertino95014 4y ago
        That guy was definitely out of his depth.
- di456 4y ago
  > A spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Public Safety told(Opens in a new window) Insider that search and rescue teams were dispatched at 3:30 a.m. and the stranded man was taken to Kotzebue at 6 a.m. According to Insider, the man did not have another form of satellite communication and was wearing “appropriate clothing” and had “fire-starting supplies.” If you read the last line above from the article, that sounds like someone with experienced who was prepared for the journey. There are probably dozens to hundreds of people across Alaska making the same type of journey right now. We don't know from the article but could presume they had also shared a trip report in case something went wrong. How much real life experience do you have with arctic climates? You don't sound very educated or qualified to pass judgement. The fact that they were located using his device doesn't invalidate other forms of preparation or qualify someone as an idiot or stupid.
- reaperducer 4y ago
  We know enough People who know enough about what happened: The guy who got rescued, and the people who rescued him. People who do NOT know enough: Every other person on the planet, including and especially the nattering nabobs on the internet.
- grecy 4y ago
  > Only an idiot would go out into the cold in Alaska depending on technology that explicitly says it might not work for you if you have a hill or you’re in a weird latitude Tell me you're not from the North without telling me you're not from the North. I lived in the Yukon for 4 years, spent plenty of time up in the Arctic Circle (in early December the day time high temp was -48C / -55F. Slept in a wall tent plenty of times bison hunting when it was past -50C / -55F overnight. All our thermometers stopped at -50C so we don't know how cold it was. When you make a comment like yours you are showing you don't understand the life up there, and you don't understand why people choose to live in the north and go on adventures. The very, VERY vast majority of Alaskans say stuff like "I'm never going back to the lower 48". People in the north want the adventure life, they want to take risks and they want to live. They don't want to live in a cage and have their water changed three times a day. Let them live the life they want without criticizing and without push your opinion of what is acceptable risk onto other people.
  - Cupertino95014 4y ago
    Hear, hear. If you live out in the middle of nowhere and it's routinely -50F in the winter, you have a different attitude than someone living in urban US. Speaking as one who's only read about it :) But "Coming Into The Country" is a great book to read.
  - FireBeyond 4y ago
    > People in the north want the adventure life, they want to take risks and they want to live. They don't want to live in a cage and have their water changed three times a day. Doing okay til here, sport. "You're insulting everyone in the north." And then proceeding to insult everyone else, all us cage dwellers. Perhaps don't throw insults at people you're telling not to insult you.
    - grecy 4y ago
      Let's be clear, it's not me insulting "everyone else", it's the people who moved from the lower 48 up to Alaska and say "They'll never go back because it sucks down there". It's an extremely, EXTREMELY common sentiment across Alaska. I personally think that means there must be something to it. I suggest you try it. Get some on the ground perspective on what it is people are passing judgment on. Maybe there's something you're missing.
- Cupertino95014 4y ago
  In reading this thread, I'm not seeing anyone citing the obvious possibility: He was drunk I'm not from Alaska (and probably you are not either), but from all I've read, in very remote, isolated communities, alcohol is a big, big problem.
- toast0 4y ago
  > We know enough relevant facts- they went on a snow machine into the wilderness. Only got saved by an instrument that luckily worked as it’s advertised but not with a guarantee. We don't know that they 'only got saved' by their iPhone etc. We know they had appropriate clothing and firestarting equipment and that they requested and received assistance. They may have been prepared to wait it out and maybe hike if they had to, but assistance was available, so why not?
- dumpsterdiver 4y ago
  > Only an idiot would go out into the cold in Alaska depending on technology that explicitly says it might not work for you if you have a hill or you’re in a weird latitude. Many people who live in those remote villages practice at least some degree of self subsistence. You realize they were doing this long before iPhones were a thing, right? This is a way of life for many people in remote Alaskan villages. Do you think they were carrying around iPhones when they went out whale hunting with spears? Just because you don't understand another culture doesn't mean you should disparage their way of life. You basically just called everyone who lives further north than Fairbanks, Alaska stupid. Source: Lived in Alaska for around 20 years, and have been thoroughly exposed to Inuit and Athabaskan culture.

ramraj07 4y ago

We know enough relevant facts- they went on a snow machine into the wilderness. Only got saved by an instrument that luckily worked as it’s advertised but not with a guarantee. Only an idiot would go out into the cold in Alaska depending on technology that explicitly says it might not work for you if you have a hill or you’re in a weird latitude. You can bet his townsfolk are talking about his stupidity as well. Maybe his baby was choking and he was going to get help. But maybe all our corrupt politicians are also held hostage by aliens and that’s why they’re corrupt? If we can’t judge anyone until all the facts are in then we can’t judge anyone ever. I’d prefer to judge with what I have but be ready to amend when new information comes in.

labrador 4y ago
Alaska natives apparently don't have much sympathy for those from the lower 48 who get in trouble because they didn't research or prepare for Alaskan conditions before venturing out. The majority of Alaskans share some version of the opinion that McCandless was deeply out of his element The Cult of Chris McCandless https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/the-cult-of-chris-mccandless-20121015/ https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/the-cult-of-chris-mcca... made famous by "Into The Wild" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Wild_(film) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Wild_(film)
- Cupertino95014 4y ago
  Do you have any evidence at all that this was someone from the lower 48?
  - labrador 4y ago
    Depends on how much you trust Wikipedia
    - dumpsterdiver 4y ago
      I think the parent commenter was referring to this incident, not the kid from Into the Wild. Based on the demographics of the two villages he was traversing, it's very likely that this man is Alaska native.
      - labrador 4y ago
        Thanks for clearing that up. I must have misread the article based on my prior knowledge of Into The Wild and some of the comments previously made.
        Cupertino95014 4y ago
        That guy was definitely out of his depth.
di456 4y ago
> A spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Public Safety told(Opens in a new window) Insider that search and rescue teams were dispatched at 3:30 a.m. and the stranded man was taken to Kotzebue at 6 a.m. According to Insider, the man did not have another form of satellite communication and was wearing “appropriate clothing” and had “fire-starting supplies.” If you read the last line above from the article, that sounds like someone with experienced who was prepared for the journey. There are probably dozens to hundreds of people across Alaska making the same type of journey right now. We don't know from the article but could presume they had also shared a trip report in case something went wrong. How much real life experience do you have with arctic climates? You don't sound very educated or qualified to pass judgement. The fact that they were located using his device doesn't invalidate other forms of preparation or qualify someone as an idiot or stupid.
reaperducer 4y ago
We know enough People who know enough about what happened: The guy who got rescued, and the people who rescued him. People who do NOT know enough: Every other person on the planet, including and especially the nattering nabobs on the internet.
grecy 4y ago
> Only an idiot would go out into the cold in Alaska depending on technology that explicitly says it might not work for you if you have a hill or you’re in a weird latitude Tell me you're not from the North without telling me you're not from the North. I lived in the Yukon for 4 years, spent plenty of time up in the Arctic Circle (in early December the day time high temp was -48C / -55F. Slept in a wall tent plenty of times bison hunting when it was past -50C / -55F overnight. All our thermometers stopped at -50C so we don't know how cold it was. When you make a comment like yours you are showing you don't understand the life up there, and you don't understand why people choose to live in the north and go on adventures. The very, VERY vast majority of Alaskans say stuff like "I'm never going back to the lower 48". People in the north want the adventure life, they want to take risks and they want to live. They don't want to live in a cage and have their water changed three times a day. Let them live the life they want without criticizing and without push your opinion of what is acceptable risk onto other people.
- Cupertino95014 4y ago
  Hear, hear. If you live out in the middle of nowhere and it's routinely -50F in the winter, you have a different attitude than someone living in urban US. Speaking as one who's only read about it :) But "Coming Into The Country" is a great book to read.
- FireBeyond 4y ago
  > People in the north want the adventure life, they want to take risks and they want to live. They don't want to live in a cage and have their water changed three times a day. Doing okay til here, sport. "You're insulting everyone in the north." And then proceeding to insult everyone else, all us cage dwellers. Perhaps don't throw insults at people you're telling not to insult you.
  - grecy 4y ago
    Let's be clear, it's not me insulting "everyone else", it's the people who moved from the lower 48 up to Alaska and say "They'll never go back because it sucks down there". It's an extremely, EXTREMELY common sentiment across Alaska. I personally think that means there must be something to it. I suggest you try it. Get some on the ground perspective on what it is people are passing judgment on. Maybe there's something you're missing.
Cupertino95014 4y ago
In reading this thread, I'm not seeing anyone citing the obvious possibility: He was drunk I'm not from Alaska (and probably you are not either), but from all I've read, in very remote, isolated communities, alcohol is a big, big problem.
toast0 4y ago
> We know enough relevant facts- they went on a snow machine into the wilderness. Only got saved by an instrument that luckily worked as it’s advertised but not with a guarantee. We don't know that they 'only got saved' by their iPhone etc. We know they had appropriate clothing and firestarting equipment and that they requested and received assistance. They may have been prepared to wait it out and maybe hike if they had to, but assistance was available, so why not?
dumpsterdiver 4y ago
> Only an idiot would go out into the cold in Alaska depending on technology that explicitly says it might not work for you if you have a hill or you’re in a weird latitude. Many people who live in those remote villages practice at least some degree of self subsistence. You realize they were doing this long before iPhones were a thing, right? This is a way of life for many people in remote Alaskan villages. Do you think they were carrying around iPhones when they went out whale hunting with spears? Just because you don't understand another culture doesn't mean you should disparage their way of life. You basically just called everyone who lives further north than Fairbanks, Alaska stupid. Source: Lived in Alaska for around 20 years, and have been thoroughly exposed to Inuit and Athabaskan culture.