How is freight looking for you or your company?

[Roadmedic]

I learned in sociology that the US is not considered a post industrial/pre informational society.

Meaning that blue collar jobs are becomeing few and far between, and it's basically rich, and poor. With little or no middle class.

Strange thing is, I am the middle class. So, what are my options?

Most likely?

Unless you win the lottery, you will not be going higher. I have felt for many years, that it will come back to the point of rich and poor or slave and master.

 

[Sinister]

I'm a little more optimistic than that. I think people can still rise above squalor by using the opportunities inherent in a free and free market society.

However, when I look at places like California, and say, Long Island, where a large part of my family still lives, I see their decreasing quality of life due to the cost of living, and I'm more and more convinced that this is in fact happening by design.

So your idea has merit, but scares the hell out of me.

Welcome to 1984.

 

[patriciajnsn]

I stay out longer with this company then any other at least 6 weeks.Not by choice.But I think after the first month they're better at getting me home.I have to start bugging them 2 weeks in advance.I was surprised I got home for the labor day weekend.I did'nt ask for it.But I think after getting ripped off 2 days home time they decided to let me have this weekend at home.Miles are not too bad.They would give me more then 2800 miles.But told Donna I don't need to run that hard.She's fine with that because I do stay out.

 

[Keendriver]

I'm a little more optimistic than that. I think people can still rise above squalor by using the opportunities inherent in a free and free market society.

However, when I look at places like California, and say, Long Island, where a large part of my family still lives, I see their decreasing quality of life due to the cost of living, and I'm more and more convinced that this is in fact happening by design.

So your idea has merit, but scares the hell out of me.

Welcome to 1984.

Whose design? And to what end?

 

[Roadmedic]

I'm a little more optimistic than that. I think people can still rise above squalor by using the opportunities inherent in a free and free market society.

However, when I look at places like California, and say, Long Island, where a large part of my family still lives, I see their decreasing quality of life due to the cost of living, and I'm more and more convinced that this is in fact happening by design.

So your idea has merit, but scares the hell out of me.

Welcome to 1984.

I will have to go back and review 1984.

I worked in an accounting office from 1976 through 1997 with a brief stint in the loan industry during 18 months in 1980 and 1981. The employer was one of the wealthy and believed the employees needed very little to live off. In fact, the entry level was not much above minimum wage. I foresee the company stopping the health insurance in the near future.

I have seen the dropping value of the dollar and the stagnant salaries in the economy. The salaries have always just seemed to only bring the person back to the level of "meeting the inflationary amount".

I have prepared returns for people that have larger incomes and their ability to live has been dropping over the years. Of course, many are also stretching their living costs to the max.

Look at the family you referenced and see if there is fault on their behalf. Otherwise, consider the ease with which this can be accomplished.

 

[Sinister]

Whose design? And to what end?

Well, now that I'm good and drunk and this thread is waaaayyyy off topic, i might as well rock out with my paranoid theory out.

In the story 1984, there was The Party. A ruling class that ruled over the rest of the populace through means not dissimilar to ones we see today. They could see everything, hear everything, and knew what you were thinking largely by your habits and actions. Of course, this sotry being written in 1948 (ha ha yes Orwell thought it funny too) had the technology a little different, but the principle is the same.

You may have seen the phrase BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING. This is where it comes from. I'm not the only one who sees this crazy pattern. People are starting to spray paint in everywhere, similar to "Trust Jesus" that we see in plain blue ink on all the overpasses.

The main character toils his life away working in a place called the Ministry of Truth, which is a huge propaganda machine whose sole purpose is to distort facts and history to make the public, or proletariat, or "proles" as the story calls them believe what it wants. I'll let you draw the similarites there.

There are two classes of people. The Proles, or lower class, and The Party. The poor, and the rich. Again, draw your own conclusions.

One day, Winston Smith (our main character) meets a girl, and is enticed by her to step outside his role, and begins doing things outside what he's supposed to.

Long story short, he gets caught, is re-brainwashed and lives out his life a mindless robot.

The crux of the thing is that when he is captured, he is tortured, and the point of the thing is explained to him.

The Party is not a socialist organization by any means. They do not portend to seek power for the good of the people as socialist organizations do. One could say that our conservative talk show friends have it wrong on this point. It's much more sinister than conservative vs. liberal.

The Party seeks power - and I quote - "for powers sake". Just to stay in control. I could whip out the exact quote, because I'm sure it's readily accesible online, but that would make me look like more of a nutjob, and I'm doing fine without whipping out quotes. But in the story, The Party member says to Winston, "...picture a boot stomping on a human face forever, and you'll get an idea of what The Party is about."

Of course I've paraphrased. 13 Coronas will do that!

And it is the scariest book I have ever read.

So to answer the question:

Whose design?

Theirs Those in power. The rich folk, who employ the rest of us all, and decide what we need to live on.

What end?

To stay in power. And not let us - the proles - challenge them in any serious way.

To make you dependent on government in any way possible. Through health care, voter registrations, etc.

Of course, this paraoid bullshit thoery only really works if you susbscribe to the (largely class warfare) idea that the worls is basically rich vs. poor.

Like I said, I'm a little more optimistic than that. But this president really makes me wonder...

Am I crazy enough now?

 

[Roadmedic]

I am not limiting it to just this current president.

I have seen the decline of the living standards and such for more than just the last 8 months or the last 2 years.

I do not subscribe to a theory, I only note what I see and where it could lead.

Your 13 beers do not distort the take on 1984. There is much to think about here.

 

[lunachic]

Yea we are screwed.........Do you hear or see any effort at all of industry being brought back to America. Our decline started when we moved everything to other countries. A few years back does any one remember Regis & Kathy Lee, When she was brought to her knees by using (sweat shops) in mexico for her line of clothes.
Well if any improvements had been made know matter what product, Why do they still come here to find work!
Calif. has the right idea if its true leagalize pot, go ahead laugh but think about it.
It can be taxed..well everything here is. But It will eliminate all the drug cartels.

 

[Roadmedic]

I doubt the legalizing of pot in California would put the drug cartels out of business.

They import more than just pot. Plus the rest of the country would not be legalizing it.

 

[lunachic]

I doubt the legalizing of pot in California would put the drug cartels out of business.

They import more than just pot. Plus the rest of the country would not be legalizing it.

The rest of the country would need too.

Mexico, a major drug producing and transit country, is the main foreign supplier
of marijuana and a major supplier of methamphetamine to the United States.
Although Mexico accounts for only a small share of worldwide heroin production,
it supplies a large share of heroin consumed in the United States. An estimated 90%
of cocaine entering the United States transits Mexico. Violence in the border region
has affected U.S. citizens. More than 60 Americans have been kidnaped in Nuevo
Laredo, and in July 2007, Mexican drug cartels reportedly threatened to kill a U.S.
journalist covering drug violence in the border region. The United States and Mexico
are reportedly negotiating a new counternarcotics initiative.​

 

[lunachic]

It would be a big enough hurt to them for a start. And put billons of dollars back into our Country.

 

[Roadmedic]

Drug cartels are not limited to Mexico.

They are very prominent in Columbia.

Even if the entire country legalized it, Cocaine is the major import from the cartels. Easier to ship, smaller in bulk that pot.

 

[Mike]

One of our company's terminals is migrating to an all "owner operator" setup, and most of the company drivers are now running out of our yard.

the extra trucks pulling our loads seemed to slow us down a little for a week, but I think we have simply taken on even more freight which means we are still swamped.

Taking a few days off right now, tried to squeeze in Tuesday as an extra day off, but that wasn't happening. Have to pick up a North Carolina load on Tuesday, deliver on Thursday morning, which will give me a 2000+ mile week even with the days off. Pretty cool to take 5 days off and still manage to get over 2000 miles each of the weeks that the time off fell on.

 

[rebel]

Taking a few days off right now, tried to squeeze in Tuesday as an extra day off, but that wasn't happening. Have to pick up a North Carolina load on Tuesday, deliver on Thursday morning

Well good, stop on by and have a beer!

 

[the big bad trucker j]

The miles are still looking good here pick a load up in va going to ca
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[misterbreeze]

Well, now that I'm good and drunk and this thread is waaaayyyy off topic, i might as well rock out with my paranoid theory out.

In the story 1984, there was The Party. A ruling class that ruled over the rest of the populace through means not dissimilar to ones we see today. They could see everything, hear everything, and knew what you were thinking largely by your habits and actions. Of course, this sotry being written in 1948 (ha ha yes Orwell thought it funny too) had the technology a little different, but the principle is the same.

You may have seen the phrase BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING. This is where it comes from. I'm not the only one who sees this crazy pattern. People are starting to spray paint in everywhere, similar to "Trust Jesus" that we see in plain blue ink on all the overpasses.

The main character toils his life away working in a place called the Ministry of Truth, which is a huge propaganda machine whose sole purpose is to distort facts and history to make the public, or proletariat, or "proles" as the story calls them believe what it wants. I'll let you draw the similarites there.

There are two classes of people. The Proles, or lower class, and The Party. The poor, and the rich. Again, draw your own conclusions.

One day, Winston Smith (our main character) meets a girl, and is enticed by her to step outside his role, and begins doing things outside what he's supposed to.

Long story short, he gets caught, is re-brainwashed and lives out his life a mindless robot.

The crux of the thing is that when he is captured, he is tortured, and the point of the thing is explained to him.

The Party is not a socialist organization by any means. They do not portend to seek power for the good of the people as socialist organizations do. One could say that our conservative talk show friends have it wrong on this point. It's much more sinister than conservative vs. liberal.

The Party seeks power - and I quote - "for powers sake". Just to stay in control. I could whip out the exact quote, because I'm sure it's readily accesible online, but that would make me look like more of a nutjob, and I'm doing fine without whipping out quotes. But in the story, The Party member says to Winston, "...picture a boot stomping on a human face forever, and you'll get an idea of what The Party is about."

Of course I've paraphrased. 13 Coronas will do that!

And it is the scariest book I have ever read.

So to answer the question:

Whose design?

Theirs Those in power. The rich folk, who employ the rest of us all, and decide what we need to live on.

What end?

To stay in power. And not let us - the proles - challenge them in any serious way.

To make you dependent on government in any way possible. Through health care, voter registrations, etc.

Of course, this paraoid bullshit thoery only really works if you susbscribe to the (largely class warfare) idea that the worls is basically rich vs. poor.

maLike I said, I'm a little more optimistic than that. But this president really kes me wonder...

Am I crazy enough now?

I must have missed something. Obamas policies dont favor the rich. In fact he wants them to start paying thier share. He wants to narrow the gap not expand it. And referencing 1984 in this situation may be off. It seems to reflect "animal farm" also by Orwell. The policies of the Republican party are what has made us move towards a 2 class system because they cater to Big Business and the Rich by removing government constraints (less government). Now back to the subject of this thread. Export airfreight is increasing to the point that our custumers are contimplating adding flights. Not enough room on planes for what is moving or storage pre-flight.