Re: Attention NY truck / trailer operators

Posted by Billy NY on June 08, 2006 at 20:44:50 from (64.12.116.74):

In Reply to: Re: Attention NY truck / trailer operators posted by Bret4207 on June 08, 2006 at 18:08:32:

Hey now, I think we both know it's useless to even attempt to accurately identify ones tone in a discussion forum, but I'll look you in the eye and tell you the same thing I wrote here. You can search this forum and not find one bit of flaming or nonsense by me, I don't subscribe to it, I enjoy the polite etiquette here more than anything. Even in regards to my own concerns about the latest regulations, I think I stated I needed to update myself on the latest, as I run an older, but well kept truck to haul agricultural products to and from our farm. Yeah I'm a bit concerned that I'm going to get harrassed because it's an old truck, but I've made sure to keep it legal to the best of my ability and knowledge.

Reflecting on ones experiences, such as I did in the first lengthy thread I wrote, I will make it abundantly clear about my attitude towards law enforcement in the context and or the confines of the subject I spoke about. You may have gotten the wrong idea somehow, and please don't patronize me by putting words in my mouth, your doing yourself an injustice by doing so. It really sounds like you are sour when you refer to your occupation as being resented, (I won't quote you ) when in actuality it's not.b You are not going to please everyone, that is a given, which yields to the common good.

There was a time when the bills were paid and food put on the table, by having to get up when it's dark, and go drive a truck for 10-12 hours a day, like many of us, you did what you had to do, and that Class 1 / CDL was the only reason possible to make a decent blue collar wage. It also put me through 2 years of college, I used to drive a tri-axle dump right to school after work, the security guy thought I was nuts, but you do what you have to do, I had no intention of making a career of it, but at the time it is what paid the bills. I can also recall about 9 people the same age, who decided selling drugs was a lot easier, they had $50,000 cars, all the attention of the ladies, you name it they had it, openly bragging, right in front of the D.E.A., right until they finally went down, they hid a lot of the money, but did 10 years each, one of them is benefitting from that money now. Nope, I'll drive a truck and pay my way, now you decide who is good or bad. With that decision, you get a little protective of what you do have, per say your drivers license especially.

Now, I could say I took a lot of crap from law enforcement while behind the wheel, which is true, and complain about all the times I was pulled over etc. etc., but you know that would not be fair to the person whose job it is to get in a patrol car and do their job which I regard as a very important job that must get done. I never once blamed the person in uniform, matter of a fact I always greeted them with respect, and always will ( to clarify the tone of the first thread ).

Observations and reflections of my particular experiences, they are what they are, yeah I noticed the NYS guys training the local guys about weight and d.o.t. inspections, d.o.t guys hiding around the corner in the arsenal, so what ? Blame the guys in the orange suits or wearing a uniform, no you have the wrong idea there, the point was the revenue to be collected, it's part of the process, which I always hoped the priority was law enforcement, unsafe trucks and overweight trucks etc., sometimes it just does not look that way, especially when the big fines are imposed or the frequency of or quantity of violations issued are outrageous. I found that authority of law enforcement can also be undermined by politicians, as in the case where we were told not to worry about weight on one particular job.

Like I said earlier, got nailed by a local, unbeknownst to me my license was suspended for failing to pay a fine for no inspection on a tractor trailer I did not even own, the miserable owner was supposed to pay, he did'nt pay, hell they even stuck me for all my overtime hours when I quit. 4 years, 6 days a week never missed a day perfect attendance and good service when sick and injured I worked, even when the place burned, I made sure their deliveries were done, while everyone else watched in awe of the fire. Now I'm faced with being arrested by town police, after this owner fails to pay. I had to barter with them to take me to an ATM so I could bail out and avoid being locked up, as well as aggravated unlicensement, having to call my boss (who was a friend fortunately) to finish the day in the truck, all because the d.o.t. guy wrote the violation in my name. Did I blame him ? NO. I learned very quickly that I did not have to recieve any equipment violations in my name. All this just for showing up to work, now my license is at stake, and this was just the beginning. No matter where I went or what outfit I worked for, there was constant involvement with law enforcement, enough to not want to get in the seat any more, did I blame them, NO, I decided this occupation was not a rewarding one anymore and pursued a career in a different line of work.

Funny, even after 12 years of staying out of the seat, I just happen get behind the wheel of a brand new tractor trailer to do a family member a favor and one of your rookies comes up along side me, he's gonna make a traffic stop, it's the car directly in front of me, so what does he do, pulls right in front of me at 65 M.P.H., I had a witness behind me who saw the whole thing, she made a complaint, the trooper made a mistake in judgement, it was narrowly avoided, but very close to being catastrophic, I would have had no choice but to hit him and would have, done a lot of miles and know better to make a sudden move to avoid a collision. Do I blame him, in that case YES, he screwed up big time, never even gave it any consideration, I watched him from above, start to finish. When you pay state taxes which pays the salaries of you guys, and you get one that is a jerk, yeah, then I'll change my tone, because of the lack of professionalism, but hey there are jerks in every walk of life, fortunately the good ones still outnumber the bad ones. I don't see that being wrong, I hold a job, earn a wage that is taxed and is used to support this society, which includes law enforcement salaries, I would expect that the people who take the oath, honor it, partially because we honestly support you guys, not because you are an indentured servant to the civilian population because our taxes pay you. When the performance of a law enforcement officer is lacking, everyone has a right to be concerned, not to badmouth, but voice an opinion.

I don't know what to tell you, it's not about ragging on you guys in uniform, and or the law itself, it is what it is. When it gets ridculous so as to prohibit an average guy from being able to take a hobby on the road to a show, then it's time for a change, which has absolutley nothing to do with the guy who enforces it, but everything to do with the political people making these proposals into law. Being that is not the case here, just speculation/discussion about the laws governing commercial vehicles, how the hell did we get so far off track from that?

You of all people would be most informed about this, but your people skills are a little different it seems, is is possible your attitude is a little harsh and abrasive ? Well that's ok, everyone has a bad day, I guess I was expecting more out of a guy who wears a uniform and is trained in these matters. In any case, a good discussion and or debate always challenges the gray matter up top LOL ! Have a good day and keep up the good work !

Replies:

• Re: Attention NY truck / trailer operators Bret4207 12:08:26 06/09/06 (0)

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