The History of Tonka Trucks

Look, I like watching large machines move large quantities of large stuff as much as the next guy (provided that the next guy isn't really into the smell or sound of diesel). I would rather watch documentary type programming revolving around the course of human events- ya know- history. I find old footage, artifacts, sweeping vistas, Ken Burns-esque pans across old photographs and the casual, occasionally dry banter of academics.
I like history and when I turn on the History Channel as I turn in for the night, I prefer to be lulled into profound dreams by the sound and glow of days of yore.
So since the History Channel abandoned knights, generals, kings, presidents, wars, constitutional conventions, etc. in favor of Tonka Trucks and Erector Sets, I have had to search far a wide for the mild intellectual fare that I would prefer. Now, don't get me wrong, machinery has an important place in history, but only in a historical context: "We developed the Jeep to kick Nazi ass," or "This 19th century railroad technology affected the course of the history of Butte, Montana." That's fine. In fact I really enjoyed Modern Marvels when it delved into the history of technology, before it became a video catalog of the Cat bulldozer and earth moving company. The James Burke Connections series showed technological advances and how they shaped the growing knowledge of past societies. Sure it mentioned the current uses of such innovations to draw conclusions, but it focused on the freakin' history.
There is a time and a place for the diesel belching reality shows. But when I feel like witching "big machine break big rock into several still big rocks and other big machine move big rocks to still other big machine," I am fully capable of surfing 3 channels over to the Mike Rowe / Mythbusters channel all by myself. That's what they are there for, History Channel. I am sure that the fact that Alex has hauled 265 tons of crap over some lakes will have some bearing on the course of western civilization, but I would rather see some actual history