Safety will be the death of us?

overdriveonline.com

Article thanks to Wendy Parker and overdriveonline.com. 

Links provided below:

March 26, 2014

I heard a rumor today that one of the big three in the mega-fleet business is mandating all company drivers remove CB’s from the cab of their trucks, citing safety concerns and distracted driving. I’m not going to mention which one, because I haven’t been able to get anyone in management to confirm the rumor. They also won’t deny it.

Citing safety concerns is the new way to completely control any environment someone chooses to control completely. We see it every single day in the trucking industry. It bleeds into our lives like an insidious poison every time the government removes another of our civil liberties in the name of protecting us from ourselves. Apparently no one has the sense to realize the safest a human body can be is dead and buried in the ground, and I doubt very seriously the good Lord intended us to come here to achieve only that.

Life is dangerous from conception. The new womb is a maelstrom of hormonal imbalance, and I think everyone pretty much knows how unpleasant hormonal imbalances can be. The minute you hit the ground running, it’s a race between this side of the dirt and a check for your loved ones from State Farm. Life is a dangerous and messy affair — you get dirty, you fall down, things get broken and you learn valuable lessons. And that’s just in one Saturday night at the Dew Drop Inn.

It’s our responsibility to protect future generations by passing these valuable lessons on to them. Progress of the species is retarded when there is no failure. You can’t keep someone safe from themselves: no matter how many rules you impose, there are human beings out there who will continue to test the limits. Some of them will kill innocent people in the process, some will discover new ways to improve the human race as a whole.

I realize rules and regulations are necessary. I’m by no means an advocate of frenzied anarchy, but we’ve taken it too far when we take the CB out of trucking. Seriously. That’s like taking the athletic cup out of baseball. Not everyone chooses to use one, but it’s a safety call the officials allow the players to make on their own.

I’d venture to say those who choose not to use one probably change their minds after they get nailed in the beans a couple of times, just like a driver who runs without a CB may choose to use one after they’re stuck in an avoidable traffic jam (which is the equivalent of being nailed in the beans to a trucker). The point is they have a choice.

We’ll be at MATS the rest of the week. I’ve got my ears peeled and I’ll be listening. See you in Louisville!

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