Open Letter To All Truckers

Trucker Dan is proposing a National Trucking Shutdown as follows:

April 1, 2008 is when My trucking Co & thousands of others are shutting down at 8 AM on that date. From that time on we will no longer accept any loads at ANY price until such time as our FED Gov admits & puts into action a plan that will give all O/Os some help.

Here is what I would like to see happen,
1# suspend ALL Fed & State fuel taxes until such time that this economy is back on its feet
2# Fed create a FED Oversight Committee to oversee Ins Premiums Charged for Class 8 trucks Insurance
3# Stop allowing Large Trucking Fleets to self Insure, this would make a more level playing field for all trucking Cos
4# Fed Regulations for Brokers & Shippers that are enforced, with set max amounts they can charge.
5# Standardized Fines from Coast to Coast for safety violations. In other words if a log ticket cost $50.00 in Missouri then a log ticket in California should only cost $50.00

I will not return to hauling until our Gov. the people we put into office gets off their butts an does something to help this Industry my email address is dlittle@uscattlehaulers.com
Send me an email if you plan on shutting down on April 1, 2008

Mish note: I corrected numerous typos, spelling errors, and grammatical errors in the above clip for ease in reading. The text one would see if clicking on the link is slightly different than posted above. This statement is not intended to be a criticism of the literary skills of "Trucker Dan". His intent after all was not to write a piece for the New York Times, or even a blog.

On TruckerToTruckerCom, Trucker Dan Little posted this Open Letter To All Truckers.

Some are asking what date is the shutdown & what will happen ?

Here's the what, why, & when of it.

The reason for this shutdown is not to hurt this country in any way shape or form. But is in fact a peaceful method of sending a message to Washington, D.C. That we do indeed need help & our industry is the backbone of life in America as we know it.

The why of it covers issues that you & I as truckers, both O/Os & Co. drivers face on a daily basis. These problems range from excessive Regulations ie., Fuel, Federal & State Fuel tax's, excessive DOT regulations on NON-SAFETY related items, Excessive Insurance Pre., The list goes on & on.

The when of it, is APRIL 1st, 2008 {see www.uscattlehaulers.com } I & several others picked that date for a reason. April 1,2008 is Aprils Fools Day, that being said, we as an industry are going to send a Strong message to the otherwise FOOLS in Washington, D.C. that "enough is enough"

We Will Be Heard.

I & Thousands of You have been telling people for Years now, that a change needed to take place.

Well, here's your chance to Stand Up for Yourself & let The World know We will Stand Strong. "one for all and all for one"

Thank You & God Bless each & Everyone of you,
Dan Little
Little & Little Trucking LLC

My reply to "Trucker Dan"

Upfront Note: Please read the entire piece. It ends dramatically different than it starts out.

Trucker Dan, you are barking up the wrong tree. No one owes you a living. For that matter no one owes anyone a living. If you stop delivering, someone else will. All you will accomplish by halting deliveries is to put yourself, your business and your family at further risk.

You are asking for a handout you do not deserve. The problem is that everyone is asking for undeserved handouts: bankers, farmers, homebuilders, teachers, bus drivers, Realtors, etc etc etc etc.

On the other hand you have a legitimate gripe, and here it is: Although no one owes you a living, the country owes you a fair chance. On that score, the deck has been stacked against you and it has been stacked against you badly for one hell of a long time.

One can look at the greed, fraud, manipulation and bailouts in housing, structure finance, and banking to see where priorities lie. But it goes far beyond greed and misplaced priorities to the literal destruction of the US dollar itself.

You are upset about the rising price of diesel. You have every right to be. But you are wrong in what to do about it. You are asking for more of the bailouts that everyone else is asking for. Instead what needs to happen is for all subsidies and bailouts to end and for the country to return to sound economic policies.

The US military is the world's largest user of fuel. Imagine what would happen to fuel prices if the US stopped flying all these needless missions in Iraq. Imagine what would happen if the US stopped stationing troops and silos in Germany, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, etc etc etc. Imagine what would happen if troops were deployed in the US protecting our borders rather than spending money in Germany and Japan.

Imagine what would happen to the price of diesel if the US eliminated tariffs and subsidies on ethanol and instead allowed imports of sugar cane based ethanol from Brazil. Here's a hint on the latter: fuel prices would drop and food prices would drop.

The sad irony here is that truckers are bearing a huge brunt of misguided military and agricultural policies. The mistake you, "Trucker Dan" are making is that instead of correcting the fundamental flaws you are asking for more bailouts.

Sadly, such bailouts only further serve to weaken the US dollar for everyone, truckers included. Here is the deal "Trucker Dan": Look in the mirror. If you voted for Bush, you can partially blame yourself.

There is only one candidate that knows exactly what to do. That candidate is Ron Paul. Unfortunately he does not have a snowball's chance in hell. McCain has vowed to spend another 100 years in Iraq. Sadly, I do not believe Hillary will exit Iraq either.

I am not a rabid Obama fan by any means (except in the context of Obama vs. McCain), but you do the math. The very best thing we can do for the US economically is to stop blowing trillions in Iraq. My position is simple and here it is: First things first, it's time to get the H out of Iraq an it's time to stop being the world's policeman. We can no longer afford either.

Those who disagree can look in the mirror and blame themselves for what's happening. Forget, the trucker strike, instead vote to eliminate existing ethanol policies and to get out of Iraq.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com
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