April Fool's Day Truckers' "Shutdown" Gains Momentum
"Call it a strike, a shutdown or just flat-ass going broke.” That's how independent trucker/cattle hauler Dan Little describes his intention to pull over on April first. The Quad City Times reports that "what started as a small, online grassroots effort now appears to have the potential for something bigger." Little's website– uscattlehaulers.com— is the locus for the one-day action. He's calling for a suspension of all federal and state fuel taxes, insurance changes and countrywide uniformity in safety regs. Little says he has two thousand truckers pledging their participation. Little does not have the support of either the all-important Teamsters Union (800k+ truckers) or the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (160k+ small trucking companies and drivers). But the Industrial Workers of the World (16k members) told TTAC they're putting the idea to a vote on Wednesday at 6pm. Meanwhile, in an interview [podcast below], Little says Hillary Clinton's office called twice "for background." Developing…
More by Robert Farago
Comments
Join the conversation
I'm sure it takes much precision to drive on roads. its not like the lines are marked for you. Currently, I learn and work as a server techie. Both of which require much more "brilliance" than driving a truck. You say trucking is so hard? Show me some proof. I've done "material safety" with things more dangerous than the average truck carries. You believe that the oil situation is different? Show me some proof. Where are the deposits of oil (other than in nature preserves, that is)? Anyone can say a job requires more skill than one can imagine. However, saying that all jobs are equal because of it is nonsense. Even though it is harsh, it is the reality of the world that truck drivers will always be looked down on. I could go on, but would rather let you respond to these points first.
Dan, You completely missed my point about judgement, but I think we can all understand why.
The Hydrogen Education Foundation appreciates truck drivers’ concerns over high fuel costs. As the cost of fuel continues to increase, the general public, as well as truck drivers, is eager to explore alternative fuel solutions. One alternative solution currently being explored is using hydrogen as a fuel. Today, truck drivers have the ability to add a hydrogen injection system on to today’s trucks bypassing the need for a fueling infrastructure all together. The Canadian Hydrogen Energy Company (http://globaltech.ca) has developed a system that can be installed in existing technologies that would increase fuel saving by 10 percent (guaranteed). One great aspect of this system is no storage of hydrogen is necessary. The unit is an on-demand system that uses distilled water. In addition to improving fuel efficiency, the release of greenhouse gas emissions, with this technology, would be reduced by about 50 percent. We invite truck drivers to learn more about hydrogen by visiting the www.h2andyou.org.
wouldn't it be more efficient to store the hydrogen as a liquid or solid (contained within bucky balls!)?