4/17/2020
My dear Friend & POTUS, DJT,
Whose idea was it to give “keys” to those truck drivers who visited the WH yesterday? It was a nice gesture, but those keys didn’t look like truck keys so it seemed a bit odd.
Those drivers are the cream of the crop! Stephen Richardson has been shipping Jack Daniels hand-sanitizer. Charlton Paul drives his UPS truck 606 miles a day, and Tina Peterson not only drives her Volvo on the long haul from Saint Paul to Dallas, she does the books, & according to her husband, is picky about decimal points. Did she tell you about the “touch a truck” events she hosts to get kids excited about becoming drivers? It’s great to see a woman representing such a macho activity. Thanks for recognizing truckers for their important role in our economy.
om/trucking-news/featured/dave-and-tina-peterson-love-life-on-the-road-and-to-advocate-it-through-tmaf
I was surprised no one at yesterday’s event mentioned that truckers are making their trips in record time because the roads aren’t clogged up with commuter traffic. GPS data shows that a truck can get through Spaghetti Junction in Atlanta at 53 mph during “rush hour.” BCV traffic poked along at 15 mph at that time of day. The truckers must love that.
I was also surprised that no one mentioned that there are fewer trucks on the road. Apparently 2 of the 7 biggest beef processing plants have shut down so we’re down from slaughtering 660,000 head of cattle a week to 500,000. Folks aren’t shopping for non-essentials, and no one’s buying large ticket items like cars & washing machines, so truckers who move that stuff are sitting idle.
https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-04-16/coronavirus-japan-nationwide-state-of-emergency
Finally, I was surprised you got so close to those drivers and you weren’t wearing a mask. Shinzo Abe has started wearing a mask. I think you should, too.
HYITL,
RCA
PS – “The virus is another reminder that hardship is woven into the warp and woof existence.” That’s from David Brooks’ piece in the NYT today. Don’t worry, he doesn’t say anything about you. Instead he waxes poetic about the need to be tough. It’s worth a read.
