Posted on 03/29/2009 2:31:32 AM PDT by Scanian
Someone once explained to me on one of these threads that Mexican trucks have no trailer brakes. If that was really the case, imagine how much better a Mexican truck driver is than his American counterpart. LOL
"We've established it, and we don't have to prove it. People will believe anything they read."
Such as, a driver who speaks French and operates on the metric system?
You mean, we've been letting unsafe Mexican trailers operate on our roads since, well, almost forever?
"We've established it, and we don't have to prove it. People will believe anything they read."
LOL What the Congressman said is truthful.Mexico has no national database for vehicle inspections, accident reports or drivers records. The US does. Canada does!
Ping!
It might, it might not. But since the Mexican truck has to satisfy FMCSA regulations to get its USDOT number, the point is moot.
I will resist the urge to call you the name that pops into my mind, because you seem to be more intelligent than that, but let's take it easy on the strawman approach.
In the first place, it's not clear what Obama really wants to do about the trucks. He did sign the bill, but he is only too happy to sacrifice Mexican trucks to get the massive leftist agenda funded. IMO it's likely he will restore the Mexican truck program eventually. Hillary and LaHood are making noises that hint that's what he really wants. Congress can reinstate the program very quickly if it wants to.
In the second place, if you think that the US should continue fighting in Afghanistan for a while at least, I could call you "pro-Obama" because that is what he says he is going to do. To do so, of course, would be preposterous.
If you are going to insult me, don't make it a lame insult like "pro-Obama."
Notice he said Mexico has no real database of accident reports or drivers records. So the drivers have to have a "Licencia Federal," and the FMCSA bureaucrats check it off their list. Yeah, that makes me feel a lot better.
I believe the Mexican CDL is called a "Licencia Federal de Conductor."
One possibility is that the drivers in the program so far are OK. The companies in charge may be well acquainted with the initial drivers. That alone would not guarantee that all future drivers in the program will be safe. I don't trust the Mexican government's standards.
What is the average amount of accidents for the number of driver-miles over that time period for the pilot program? I don't know. If that number is very low, it may be too early to evaluate.
Another possibility is the program could have intentionally picked out very safe routes for the trucks. That would tend to make their US driving records safer when compared to all US drivers. For example, do they travel on California highway 152 (shortcut between interstate 5 and San Jose)? I don't think it's the most dangerous in the USA, but I have been on it twice and saw accidents both times.
Since I don't know what routes they drive, I don't know whether that is the case. Even if it were the case, it would not condemn the program. The point is just that some statistics are misleading.
What is the average amount of accidents expected, based on US driver statistics, for the same number of driver-miles over that time period in the pilot program?
Agreed, but his 'wants' don't matter. His actions on this issue will cost me money and hurt America; actions matter more than words when it comes to running the nation On this forum we can see words but not the actions, so here it's the words that matter. At one point you appear to say you're OK with the 100 trucks, and at another you also seem to say you want them kicked out.
Your words match Obama's, but personal actions can't be proven here so they're not relevant, even though I have to agree with you that it's sometimes handy to toss out a snide remark or two to keep everyone from falling asleep. Nevertheless I'll eschew such inane dasituity and not even bring up your lactimastic actions in Obama's support because then I'd only be trading the specious for the mendacious.
My sincere thanks though, for showing how strutting while typing is not only possible, it's fun!
The truth is, if the program were frozen in time, the current evidence would seem to support your assertion that right now, the program is OK. If I find out tomorrow that a significant number of the Mexican drivers in the program are really working for a drug cartel, that would be different. For that matter, if I found out that the drivers in of the USA unions were working for such criminals, or some such scandal, that would change things too.
But I still have doubts about the future of this program. Once the government gets its foot in the door, many programs get bigger and more dangerous. We have enough bad drivers here without importing more.
My sincere thanks though, for showing how strutting while typing is not only possible, it's fun!
I am not typing just for the sake of typing, if that is what you mean. I have sincere concerns.
The NASCAR teams didn’t think much of driving to Mexico City, they needed armed guards to make it there. And a long haul driving friend did the trailer drop off at the border for mexicans to pickup, and the mexicans would steal anything and everything off the trailer and then bring back a looted trailer that would need an overhaul to pass the safety inspections. Mr. Lowry can go back to his Manhattan apartment and continue to cash his checks from whomever would pay him and the rest of us will continue to deal with a corrupt mexican culture.
Sounds like you're glad Obama kicked out the 100 Mexican trucks. The fact is that these particular Mexicans were better drivers than the average American driver and I think we need more good drivers here without expelling what we got.
"...not typing just for the sake of typing,"
Please forgive, I enjoy your style and am goofing off on an otherwise tedious Monday morning. I got serious concerns too; I just try to avoid taking them too seriously...
Is that why those American firms (ABF?) bought those trucking companies in Mexico? So that they could be robbed?
Actually, I was not referring to the current drivers. I meant that I hope the program does not bring in bad Mexican drivers in the future.
Assuming that the statistics on the Mexican drivers are not misleading (for example, if they drove safer roads or less dangerous hours than average US drivers), so far I have nothing to complain about, although the statistical evidence could change in the future.
OTOH, those of us who know how the system works in Mexico find it disturbing that the US Dept. of Transportation issues misleading statements about the vetting of Mexican drivers.
One thing I don't understand is how the insurance works. Are the drivers required to be insured by a US insurance company? I have talked to Mexican 18 wheeler drivers who do not have insurance because they know that Mexican insurance companies have a reputation of not paying claims.
As I said, I believe that Obama will reinstate the program eventually, but he may want to do it in a way that shifts the blame to congress, because of course he wants those union votes. It should be interesting to see how he tries to pull it off.
If you operate in the United States, you must have a federally-approved insurance carrier.
Let's hope "federally-approved" means that the insurer will act in good faith, and that it's not a political rubber stamp.
Lately even US insurance companies have been kind of shaky.
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