He passed away recently. I just wanted to say “Happy Trails.”

The only thing out of routine had been making trip to the port police for, an un-necessary, port ID card.  Well, this is, until I started out the gate, after running, my empty flatbed, through the radiation detector.

Waiting at the gate, was a small mob, of U.S. Customs Agents. I was surprised, and taken aback, seeing them there.

I could see what was going on, so I parked the truck, left the driver’s door open, and opened the side door on the sleeper birth. One of the agents, pointed to another, and told me that the agent wanted to run my TWIC. I handed it to him, and he went off, to his patrol car, with it. He had a serious look on his face, and stared, intently, at my TWIC as he went.

Another agent came up with a dog, that he put in the cab of my truck. The dog laid it’s ears back, and refused to get in. The agent made an excuse, for the dog, and pick it up. The dog didn’t want to go in the truck, and most likely, knew it’s job better than the agent.

I go through Boarder Patrol check points and know the routine. I had seen the dog and knew to leave the doors open. I also know that the dog doesn’t need to get in the truck, or have the doors open.  Apparently, the dog knew that too.

Except for the stern faced agent, that took my TWIC, the agents seemed pretty relaxed, and engaged in light conversation. No one asked any questions as it was self evident what my business in the port was.

The stern faced agent returned, with my TWIC, we exchanged some “Be safe out there’s,” and “have a good day,” with each other, and I was free to leave the port.

I left the port knowing that the agents were there for me. Most likely, my name was flagged. I know that I have been data based, and have  made some of the lists.

As I made way for the Interstate, I just shrugged it off, and decided not to take it too personally.

Further news events unfolded, in following days, and I realized that the port had been on alert. It turns out the the state of high alert may have been triggered by an incident at the Savannah River nuclear plant.  I will get to that after describing  the next event.

Within a week, a news report, from WSB-TV, in Atlanta, caught my attention. Department of Homeland Security, VIPER teams, were inspecting, and x-raying trucks, at the Douglasville, truck scales.

Link to video report.

From WSB; Counter-Terror Operation Stops Trucks On I-20

Channel 2 Action News confirmed that agents from several federal agencies, including Homeland Security, the Department of Transportation, and the Transportation Security Administration were involved. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office assisted in the exercise.

A TSA spokesman told Channel 2 the event is known as Visible Inter-mobile Prevention and Response, or VIPER, an operation that is conducted with local authorities as a training exercise. The TSA spokesman said the operation is not in response to a specific threat.

While the report states that the action, on I-20, was just a training exercise, it also states;

“However, federal sources told Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne the inspections are part of a counter-terrorism operation.”

Which is, mostly likely, the case as we examine an earlier incident.

From Effingham Now, reported Sept, 9, 2010;

Effingham deputies call feds after arresting Russians with shovel, wire cutters outside Georgia Power plant

SPRINGFIELD — Effingham County sheriff deputies have reported the early Sunday morning arrest of three men to the federal Joint Terrorism Task Force.

The men, two from Russia and one from Kazakhstan, were found near Georgia Power’s Plant McIntosh on Old Augusta Road about 1 a.m. Sunday after a ranger with the Department of Natural Resources reported a suspicious vehicle, Effingham County sheriff’s spokesman David Ehsanipoor said.

Deputies reported the men, who were inside a 1995 Nissan Pathfinder, had a machete, shovel, wire cutters and ski masks. One man also had black silk stockings in his front left pocket.

Arrested were Evgeniy Luzhetskiy, of Kazakhastan Nail Idiatullin and Rustem Ibragimov of Russia. All three reported they lived in Charleston, S.C., deputies reported.

The men were all charged with possession of tools during the commission of a crime.

The three were released after being interviewed by task force members, Ehsanipoor said.

“They did all have visas that allowed them to be here and are supposed to be leaving the country soon,” the story concludes.

There you have it. Three foreigners, from former Eastern Block nations, committed burglary, at a nuclear power plant, and were released. The response , of the United States Government, was to harass it’s own citizens, two weeks later.

Now, can I, out of hand, prove this to be the case?

No, not really, but it does all seem to fall into place.

Three foreign nationals were caught breaking into a power plant. The Department of Homeland Security goes on alert. Patriots, on watch lists, are put under scrutiny. VIPER teams are put onto the general public in the conduct of their lawful business.

The part that galls me the most, is that the three perpetrators were only charged with possession of tools, during the commission of a crime, and released.

DHS has failed, in it’s stated purpose, of stopping terrorism, and should be abolished. Clearly, the only purpose  served, by DHS, is to wage war on the American people.

He, and his wife, had opened a freight broker office at a place that I had worked at for a few years.

I thought it would be fun to catch up with them, and just maybe, get a free lunch out of him.

I showed up at the office, a little early, and had to wait while he took care of some business in the truck shop. Taking a seat, in front of his desk, I got a little bored, and picked up a box of voice activated software, just to have something to read.

My friend came through the door about that time, saw me with the box, and began to tell me all about it. He had bought the software as a short cut to learning typing. He told me how one could just speak at their computer and not have to touch the keyboard.

But, there was a problem, “It don’t work,” he said.

After hearing him speak so highly of the product I was a bit confused.

“What do you mean, it doesn’t work?”

“No,it don’t speak redneck,” he replied.

I don’t make any of this stuff up, I just report it as it happens.

Echo, Utah

After being held captive, in hostile northern territory, for some weeks, I thought good fortune had come my way. A delay ridden trip across the frozen plains had landed me in the Pacific North West. 

The three and a half day delay in, the rainy, north west was welcomed relief compared to the trip on snow packed, and icy roads. There was a bright spot at the end of that cloudy tunnel.

I knew that a load in Portland Oregon would take me to the Republic of Texas. The Heart of Texas is hundreds of miles from, my home in, the Heart of Dixie. But it was a trip to Dixie none the less.

I arrived in Portland with dreams of trip down through the central valley of California. I had imagined a rest stop in the Mojave Desert to visit with old friends. An easy trip of brightly lit sun shiny days dashed to pieces by the evil machinations of a north west freight broker.

The wicked Freight Broker, of the Pacific North West, had added stops to the trip, without telling anyone. What a surprise to find that I must travel to the Heart of Texas via Butte Montana, and Gillette Wyoming.

Through icy mountain passes, and fogged in valleys, the truck’s stacks, blowing, billowy clouds, of white vapor; I must make it to Dixie.

Five days later, I have met the last delay, a truck service, in the Mile High City. The icy mountain passes are behind me. The truck is ready to run another 25,000 miles. The weekend has begun with not much chance of another DOT inspection to delay me.

The morning sunrise will find me traveling across the mountains, of northern New Mexico, and onto the plains of Tejas.

There are those who believe that, somewhere, across the frozen plains, there are tribes of people, that live without parkas, ear muffs, and touques.

Some believe that they may be the architects of the lost cities of Atlanta, or Ft. Lauderdale. Some believe that there are brothers who live without snow shovels. Somewhere beyond the snowdrifts…

Fleeing the tyranny of Old Man Winter, piloting a Peterbilt 379, a solitary, rag tag rebel, is on a lonely quest…

A shining place, known as the Heart of Dixie

It’s 8:45, in the evening, and the Allied Van Lines truck driver has gotten himself unstuck, and made his turn,in the parking lot. For about, an hour or so, the Werner truck, to my left, finally got backed in, after chaining his drive tires.

I’m sitting in my truck and having a beer. It is a fine micro-brew of local origins, imitating a brown English beer . It’s not like there is any real danger of me drinking and driving.  Hell, I’m trapped in a snow drift.

I know there is a company rule against this, and these days, I am most likely, in violation of some law. I can remember life before,  the neurotic, hand wringing, ninnying, world of big brother took over. Therefore, I do not care.

The C. R. England truck, that sat beside me, for two days, escaped the snow drift. All day he worked his truck back and forth, until he made a rut to drive out.

Yesterday morning I helped him get is truck started. What the heck, it was Christmas, and I showed a little kindness to a rookie driver. Got out, before day light, helped him out with some jumper cables, and some ether.  The wind blown ice was like small knives cutting in the eyes.

I’m glad he made it out. He is headed east, and the roads are open past Omaha.

The past two days, I have watched, the more ambitious, go into the truck stop, and barrow the snow shovel. Young men, of good physical constitution, would work for minutes, and then, return the snow shovel. I laughed, this afternoon, when a middle aged, portly fellow, returned the snow shovel, no sooner than, he had walked out with it.

Yesterday, I dutifully, moved the truck, fore and aft, until it broke free of the ice. Since then, the snowdrift, has moved ever closer in. The snow has piled in between the drive axles, once again.

The beer has ran out, and the last song, about snow, has played. Here I sit, as I was, trapped in the snowdrift. The highway is closed to the west, and here, I must, take my rest.

Drivers for Arrow Trucking have been notified to turn in their trucks at the nearest Freightliner Dealership. Some drivers have ran out of fuel, at truck stops, and have been instructed to turn in their truck keys, to truck stop attendants.

Drivers are left on their own to find transportation home. Daimler is offering, up to, $200 in travel expense reimbursement.

BREAKING NEWS: Arrow drivers wake to nightmare before Christmas

Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2009 – On Tuesday, as many as 1,400 truck drivers for Arrow Trucking Co., based out of Tulsa, OK, have been frantically trying to figure out their next moves as the company unexpectedly announced it was “suspending all operations” that day.

Truckers started calling in to the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and Land Line after they were awakened with phone calls from their dispatchers alerting them to the grim news that the company was shutting its doors and that their instructions were to turn in their trucks to the nearest Freightliner dealership. However, no instructions were given for drivers of International trucks.

One OOIDA member told Land Line on Tuesday, Dec. 22, that he had a bad feeling this was coming down the pike when his fuel card didn’t work at a truck stop the previous night. As of press time, the company driver, who didn’t want to be named, was stranded at a Freightliner dealership in Roanoke, VA, because he didn’t have enough fuel to make it to his delivery in Maryland.

The the rest of the article from Landline Magazine.

What’s the problem?

While the L.E.D lights are working out pretty good in Orlando Fl, they are creating  winter driving hazards in Milwaukee. Because L.E.D.s don’t produce heat, like a conventional light, they don’t melt snow and ice. The snow covered lights can’t be seen.

Northern cities have been working on solutions to the problem. Solutions range from; workers clearing the lights by hand to blowing away the snow with compressed air.

My favorite proposal is adding heaters to the lights. I am waiting to see how energy efficient that is.

Good article from Yahoo News. Energy-efficient traffic lights can’t melt snow

During snow, motorists, should approach the intersection, and treat them, as if there is a power outage, and the light isn’t working at all. The rules for uncontrolled intersections can be found in the motorist rule book in any state.

This is the view that I woke to Saturday morning. These pictures were taken near McCannon Idaho.

All the fighting with Old Man Winter, this winter, was forgotten. This scenery made all the hassles of winter really worth it.

I know that you folks, living in crowded cities, have concerns about global warming, and over population. This is what most our country looks like; wide open spaces, and a lot of them.

I took time to take it in, and got a little emotional, as I gave thanks, to the Lord, of all creation, for it.

I had already walked around the building and talked to the girl at the receptionist desk. I stood at the door, with my freight bills in hand, and pondered what to do next.

In a short while, an employee walked up to the door, placed his forearm against the RFID scanner, the door opened, and he walked in. He was followed by a manager, cell phone stuck to his ear, who did the same. The manager, not speaking into his cell phone, or to me, motioned me in the door behind him.

Both, the manager, and the hourly employee, were chipped. The micro chips were implanted in their right forearms. I noticed, while making my delivery, that none of the employees, walking around the outside, had employee I.D. badges. They were all chipped.

I had to pick up some empty trailers, at a local trucking company, in Salt Lake City, later in the afternoon. I had to be let in to the shipping dock by an employee, using an I.D. badge, with an RFID chip. I asked him if he hadn’t been chipped yet. He replied by telling me how he had injured his arm. He knew what I was talking about but really avoided the subject. It was obvious, to me, that he knew where the chips go, by referring to his right arm. I dropped the chip subject and talked motorcycles instead.

The young man, that decked my trailers, was more eager to talk about folks getting chip implants. He said that there was a couple of companies nearby requiring micro chip implants. He also told how the chips had to be deactivated if the employees left the companies and that the chips couldn’t be removed.

I have suspected, for some time, that there are more people being chipped than we are being told. When you look at the best information you get the idea that there aren’t so many getting chipped.

It was announced, last year, that 500 hospitals would start using it. Blue Cross, of New Jersey, is requiring it for chronically ill patients, there was that nursing home in Florida. There are really too many news stories to list here. Best to check in with Dr. Albrecht’s site to get caught up to speed; SPY CHIPS.COM.

I was alarmed at learning this today because of a recent conversation with a friend in Alabama. My friend told me that he had just picked up his T.W.I.C. card.

My friend had struck up a conversation with the lady that issued his card. She told him that the next step would be micro chip implants for everyone. She also told him that she would be quitting her job when it happened. Understand here that the women is a low level, government employee, and she knows what is coming. I question why she hasn’t quit her job already.

T.W.I.C. and Real I.D. are just excuses to get RFID chips associated with people. The central banking establishment wants the cashless society by the year 2012.

The parasitical, central banking pigs, want us all to be tagged like animals. Micro chip implants are human branding, just like tagging your dog, or a cow.

It is every bit as evil as the tattooing that the Nazis did during WWII. It is, in fact, the same thing; what is the difference? The chip can’t be seen with the human eye but there is number encoded on it just the same.

Here, in the modern age of fascism, the authorities no longer need warrants to enter a trucking company and examine records. They can just waltz in and examine anything they want.

In the interest of public safety, we are told, the trucking companies, and the drivers, are required to incriminate themselves. It’s probably “For the children”, or to make life easier for lazy law enforcement.

Now, just what did I do? Since Thanksgiving work has been slow and I have spent a great deal of time sitting around. This means that my sleep patterns are messed up and I sometimes find myself wide awake at 1:30 in the morning.

At 1:30, or so, in the mornings, unable to sleep, I have gotten up and drove the truck, when my logbook said that I was sleeping. The truck that I drive is equipped with a Satellite system, and GPS, I was busted.

I didn’t do it to get in more miles, than I would have normally, or just to get in more hours. I logged all the hours that I actually worked, and the miles that I actually drove, just not in the order that I did them.

The hours of service rules, that we now have , these past few years, doesn’t let the driver stop the clock. The driver has to log off duty fourteen hours after logging on duty and then take a ten hour break. You might think that doesn’t sound too unreasonable, but it is.

Because the driver can’t stop the clock, any break time, during the work period, counts against the fourteen hours. You see,there is a penalty for taking a break.

Under the old system, I would often times, take a break during peak commute times. I would stop short of a city, like Atlanta, and eat, or take a nap. After the traffic jams were over I would continue on. Under the old rules I could take into consideration, known traffic patterns, weather conditions, and the availability of truck parking in the areas I was driving to. Under the new rules I can be cited for being in the sleeper berth too long.

The new HOS rules forces drivers to continue driving; there is no stopping to get in a power nap. If you think that you have been seeing more trucks on the road, when you are commuting to work, you are right. There aren’t anymore trucks out on the road, just more trucks, that are forced to drive. If you think you have been seeing more truck accidents,again, you are probably right.

One might reason here, that forcing truck drivers on the road, contributes to accidents, traffic congestion, wasting natural resources, and air pollution. One of the reasons that I have an accident free driving record, with more than 2 million miles driven, is that I have chosen the hours that I drive. By not driving into heavy traffic, I have not had accidents, and operated my trucks efficiently. Makes sense and sounds reasonable doesn’t it?

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Commission, is currently, considering a split sleeper berth option, so that,drivers can split up their driving time. It is being fought by organizations like Public Citizen, who are partly responsible for the convoluted, and arbitrary rules we currently have. They are afraid that we might work more hours than we do now.

I am actually sympathetic with organizations like PATT, and CRASH, they represent people that have been hurt in accidents with trucks. I believe that people shouldn’t  have to fear for their lives by getting out on the public highways.

I have been, personally, outraged at companies that keep putting bad drivers on the road. I have seen it for the past 25 years that I have been driving big rigs. I have worked with drivers that had no regard for peoples property and lives, and those people are criminals. This past summer, I worked, for 2 weeks, for a criminal trucking company, I quit, and turned them in, to at least, two government agencies.

I have links to PATT and CRASH on one of my web pages, I really am a friend, but, when you don’t know what you are talking about, butt out. There wasn’t anything wrong with the old HOS rules.

The old HOS rules were written with the labor laws, and were in order with the labor laws. What everyone forgets is that there are labor laws that apply to the trucking industry. There was nothing wrong with the old HOS laws. But they were old you say.

Context is everything. In the 1930′s, when the original HOS rules were written, there were no Interstate highways, driving was harder. The trucks didn’t have power steering and air conditioning as they do now. Driving is just easier and the HOS regulations did not need to be changed.

The problem was enforcement, as with many laws, we don’t need new ones, just better compliance, and enforcement. This problem of HOS violations often starts in the trucking company offices. Dispatchers, and freight brokers, dispatching drivers on loads that could not be delivered within the framework of the HOS rules.

The focus of enforcement has always been on the driver. If the people behind the desk risked losing their jobs, fines, or being jailed, log book violations would stop. Doubt it?

The well meaning people that were trying to make the roads safer have done the direct opposite. Look forward to an increase in truck accidents after this next round of HOS changes. I, for one, was not born with a switch in my head, that I can flip on and off. I can’t flip the switch to be awake, and then go to sleep.

Because we now live in a society were opinions, even uninformed ones, is the rule, we have lost reason, and the ability to reason.