Capitalism was murdered by none other than Big Brother himself; through mandates, legislation and regulation. First and foremost is the trucking industry, the lifeblood of the nation. Without the trucking industry, you wouldn't have a thing. Without trucking, capitalism no longer exists for there is nothing to capitalize on.
Our fearless leaders have regulated, legislated and mandated the industry to death. It is no longer possible for those of us who actually keep the world turning to do what is necessary to keep it turning.
Through the ELD mandate it will no longer be possible to get cargo delivered in the safest or most efficient way possible. There is now a literal race against the clock, whereas before, were there inclement weather or road conditions that might set somebody back an hour and a driver were able to fudge his hours of service (which is a whole other can of worms not worth getting into at the moment) he is no longer able to do such due to a computer telling him how to do his job.
Now most of us on the road are of the older generational mindset that our job is our pride. We live in our trucks at least two thirds of the year. It is our home, our ride, our pride.
We don't just go to the office for 8 hours a day, do our work and go home.We get in our truck on Sunday evening and return Friday night, and that's if we're lucky. Sometimes we end up out for a month at a time, living in 48 square foot without bathroom facilities at the ready.
When we get home we work on the truck to ensure it is properly serviced and up to code to be on the road for the safety of everyone else traveling these roads.We don't just drive our trucks. 90{43a21437b022293ea22983a65937d7e18883fb2ff2b11e03a1041d36bd400603} of the time we are looking out for the best interest of all the other travelers on the highways and byways of America due to the simple fact that most of the travelers aren't paying attention to their surroundings.
We spend our weekends working on the trucks when we would much rather be at the lake or golfing or any other kind of activities with our friends and families.For most of us, our only contact with our loved ones is via telephone or other such forms of communication until the holiday season; having better relationships with truck stop diner staff and truck stop attendants than our own flesh and blood.With ELD that gap will broaden because we won't be able to power through that extra hour to get home and spend Christmas with the family.
Now to the industry side of things.
Folks love their barbecues.
Folks love getting deals on foods for their barbecues.
With ELD, prices on everything you see in the grocery store will go up by 40{43a21437b022293ea22983a65937d7e18883fb2ff2b11e03a1041d36bd400603}.
Cattle prices will skyrocket. Trucking prices will skyrocket.
There will be animals dying from being held over in the trucks for ten hours at a time.
Even if there are facilities put in place for offloading and holding over for the ten hour break, there will still be animals dying left, right and center from spread of disease.
There is no way around any of this unless you all start talking to your local and state representatives and legislators.
Sincerely,
Logan Yost
Logan grew up in Nebraska and likes to say he “gypsied around” until he found himself in Big Sky Country. He has been trucking for seven years and knows that once trucking is in your blood it is hard to stray.
