Alaskans' independence requires great responsibility

Frontiersman editorial board

If you ask an Alaskan, especially one who lives outside of Anchorage, to define what it is to be Alaskan, it won't be long before the word "independent" comes up. There are many traditions stemming back to the early settlement of this state, and a sense of individual freedom on a scale greater than what most Americans can imagine is perhaps the most persistent.

It's important to note that great freedom always comes at a price, and it always requires something of its beneficiaries. The price in Alaska has always included a thinner safety net than in many other places. You don't have to travel far in Alaska to get off the beaten path, and the farther you live from that path the more precarious is your life. Alaska-style independence often means living near the line of economic, medical or social disaster. That kind of independence requires a level of responsibility most Americans have simply forgotten.

The recent controversy over David Straub's kennel is an example of what can go wrong when personal responsibility fails to meet the challenge. It's a story of a man who lost his grip on the thin tether that connected him to economic security, and who may have been too proud to seek adequate help. It's the story of a man who followed a dream to Alaska and then discovered he wasn't up to the reality that this state can hit you with so hard. His dogs were starving. At least one of them died. Because he was living pretty much below the radar, nobody knew how bad things had become.

On Saturday several mushers gathered at the home and kennel of Lynda Plettner to discuss the problem, and to respond to what will surely be another black eye for their sport. Animal rights activists, many of whom have no personal knowledge of mushing, have always used Alaska mushers as favorite targets. In truth, the majority of professional mushers and most recreational mushers take good care of their dogs. It's true that the dogs are not normally treated as one would treat a pet, but the animals are fed, exercised and given vet care. It's also true that some people who claim to be mushers do not even approach that level of animal care. Perhaps it's time for serious mushers to embrace a more formal kind of regulation -- on their own terms. Perhaps it's time to weed out the bad mushers and prevent new ones from cropping up. Alaskans will always want to live their own way, and they should. But that kind of liberty is reserved for people who can handle it.