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Perspective May
1-14, 2020 • 10
Letters
RE: Fellow journalist has editor
considering attempting CDL test
Welcome to our new editor. I would
agree with your friend (mentioned in
the original column) that your insight
into promoting what is relevant to
your readers depends entirely on your
knowledge of the subject.
Including a CDL would be the base
of any resume that I would demand of
any new hires to my magazine about
trucking.
Not to offend you, but the righthand
seat, although (it) does give
some experience, lacks the knowledge
of actually being in top mental condition
for 11 to 14 hours a day.
I would encourage you to seek out
a CDL certification. It’s not that hard,
and in some cases TOO easy. Fortunately,
you seem to be worried that
you will fail. I wish that some of our
current workforce had that same attitude.
Stay scared; that is what keeps
you alive at 3 a.m. turning your 14th
hour.
I am getting a little windy here, so
I’ll close with GO FOR IT. Please remember
this: The term “professional
truck driver” is not indicative of experience
or skills; it just means you get
paid to do the job.
Best of luck,
-Bryan Ballantyne
Hopefully, the positive image of trucking is here to stay
Wendy Miller
editor@thetrucker.com
Mad Dog’s
Daughter
As I sit down to write this column, I’m
not even sure where to start. This past month
has been a whirlwind. Like many other workers,
The Trucker news team has been working
from home since the last issue of the newspaper
was sent to press in mid-March. Because
of this, we were not able to produce an April
15 print edition of The Trucker. I hope you
didn’t miss us too much! We are SO happy to
be back in print, even though we’re still working
from home. In the meantime, we have
been typing away, battling our pets and other
distractions as we work to bring you news.
In next month’s issue, we will feature a
special keepsake insert that I hope you all will
enjoy. Our team is working to produce a glossy
magazine that will include inspiring, uplifting
stories of the resiliency of truck drivers
through the COVID-19 pandemic. This global
crisis is something that I have most definitely
never seen in my lifetime, and it is likely that
you guys and gals haven’t either. Let’s hope
that none of us ever see it again.
As we prepare this new product, we are
also working daily to not only cover the issues
you all face on the road, but we are also
looking to find the good in all of this. If we
don’t focus on the “good,” we will all go
crazy, right? For instance, the story on Page
26, written by the newest addition to the team,
Linda Garner-Bunch, is a beautiful story of a
woman who was called to show a small token
of appreciation to the trucking industry in
these trying and unprecedented times. These
are the stories I enjoy telling.
With that being said, I realize that those
kind gestures, no matter how sincere, do not
adequately explore the experiences truck drivers
are having on our roads and in their financial
dealings. This issue’s cover story isn’t
fun, and it isn’t necessarily pretty. It involves
one of my favorite things, though — the First
Amendment. Our right to protest is one that is
quite unique in the world, and this is the same
freedom that ensures I am able to produce this
newspaper.
The reality of the situation is that even
with a newfound appreciation for the undervalued
front-line workers of the supply
chain, there are serious issues going on
behind the scenes and behind the wheel.
These issues deserve not only the attention
of The Trucker staff, but also the attention
of the key players in the trucking industry,
as well as those in governmental leadership
roles. Hopefully, extensive news coverage of
these problems will lead to a solution. That
is, after all, one of the fundamental purposes
of the news industry. The Trucker will undoubtedly
dig into these issues and attempt
to bring them to light.
In my last column, I expressed disappointment
that truck drivers did not immediately
gain recognition as the driving force behind
keeping our nation’s stores stocked and providing
us with the products we need to stay
at home. Now, however, there’s an outpouring
of support. I just hope that this support has
staying power. Another story I’d like to call
your attention to is on Page 18. In this story,
Kris Rutherford delves into the possibility
that this positive image of truck drivers that
has currently consumed the general public
will translate into the courtroom when a driver
and/or trucking company is slammed with
a “nuclear verdict.”
We have seen small (and even larger)
trucking companies closing their doors each
day because of such courtroom verdicts and
the high insurance premiums that follow. That
is another issue that no one is considering
right now as everyone shares thank-you’s on
social media.
Seeing the outpouring of support does
warm my heart, and I smile every time I see
or hear of someone going out of their way to
show appreciation for truck drivers. Those
are stories that need to be told, but more importantly,
those are stories that need to be remembered
once life returns to normal.
The pandemic has hopefully taught our
country a much-needed lesson about logistics
and the supply chain. Can you believe how
many people really never made the connection
between the toilet paper on the grocerystore
shelves and the trucks they yelled at for
driving too slow on the interstate? Now they
get it. All we can do it hope that the public
remembers that when everything goes back to
normal. As much as I crave “normal,” I hope
that this is something that sticks.
Again, from the bottom of my heart and
the hearts of those on The Trucker news staff,
we thank you for all that you do every day.
Until next time, be cool and be careful.
And more importantly, be safe. 8
WORTH REPEATING
In this section, The Trucker news staff will select quotes from stories throughout
this issue that are just too good to only publish once. In case you missed it, you
should check out the stories that include these perspectives. Don’t worry, though, the
Point of View section will return soon. In the meantime, if you have an opinion you
would like to share, email editor@thetrucker.com.
“We can’t shake (truck drivers’) hands or
hug their necks right now, but the next best way
to show people you love and appreciate them is
to feed them, to break bread and meet needs.”
— Shannon Newton, president of Arkansas
Trucking Association, on FHWA allowing
states to permit food trucks to operate
at rest stops to serve truckers.
Full story on Page 4.
“If at any time as a mentor, if
I feel like the student is not ready to
be up in the (front) seat by himself, I
will continue to stay up there.”
— Orlando Roberts, driver-trainer for
Swift Transportation, on FMCSA restriction
waivers for student drivers.
Full story on Page 6.
“When that man said that (someone) was
still trapped in the burning vehicle, I’m like,
‘We gotta get him out.’ I don’t know how yet. I
haven’t seen it yet, but we gotta get him out.”
— Ed Zimmerman, recipient of
Truckload Carriers Association’s Highway Angels
of the Year for 2019, on how he and his wife Tracy
saved the life of a motorist.
Full story on Page 25.