Got your mojos working

Mojo is an old word that’s been newly hijacked to describe “mobile journalists.” Beginning tomorrow, that’s us. Land Line Senior Editor Jami Jones, Staff Writer Charlie Morasch and I will be southbound for the Mid-America Trucking Show. In Kentucky, we’ll meet up with Senior Technical Editor Paul Abelson, Field Editor Suzanne Stempinski and Columnist Bill Hudgins.Also headed to Louisville are

‘Badge of dishonor’ could invite more than bargained for

Some state lawmakers around the country believe that imposing differently colored license plates on the vehicles of convicted drunken drivers will be a deterrent as well as a law-enforcement mechanism.The intentions might be OK – drunken driving kills thousands each year and ruins a great many more lives – but the sanity ends as soon as the neighborhood vigilantes or vandals provide unintended

Oxygen needed in the system of transactions

Someone said diesel is the lifeblood of ground transportation.If that’s true, then truckers are the heart. And many are needing life support.But don’t stop pumping just yet.The good news is, more and more media are reporting the plight of independent truckers and the fuel cost crisis. The word is getting out in local and national media outlets all over the country. People are starting to

Ad valorem: Latin for ‘in proportion to value’

Can we get a little “Tax Man” Beatles music here?Three states use a tax to bilk bucks out of trucking companies large and small for running miles in their state. It’s called an ad valorem tax, and it’s a property tax used by Kansas, Arkansas and Kentucky.What a boneheaded “property” tax. It doesn’t matter if you don’t own property in any of these states. If you have registered a vehicle through

The blogging revolution

OK, revolution may be a bit strong.But Web logs, like the one you’re reading right now, have come a long way since the online journals of the early 1990s.According to Wikipedia.com, Land Line Magazine’s blog was one of at least 112 million blogs as of December 2007.Bloggers like Matt Drudge of the Drudge Report and Will Leitch, founder of the sports blog deadspin.com, have gained a lot of

Why doesn’t OOIDA call for a strike?

It’s a trucking nightmare – 16 states averaging above $4 fuel. Calls for a shutdown are common, and here at OOIDA we are slammed with phone calls and e-mails from truckers whose businesses are suffering. This week, 90 percent of the thousands of calls we’ve received are about the cost of fuel. Many are asking why OOIDA does not call for our members to strike.As a trade association, it is not

Blacklist days behind us?

The good news is, after six months, it seems we are off the FMCSA’s blacklist.Thank you all for e-mails, phone calls and “shame on the FMCSA” messages to your lawmakers in DC and to FMCSA’s Office of Public Affairs. We have been overwhelmed with the support of truckers, friends in Congress and comrades in the press who have expressed their outrage at the agency’s decision to “close the door” on

A tale of two realities

The first weekend of March arrived with lions and lambs for those of us who love trucking.The snarling lion was this grim article by a writer from The Associated Press about the plight of many an independent trucker, small fleet and owner-operator. Read about it here.It starts off with an interview with a trucker who lives in the next town over from me, which somehow makes his plight even more

And my thanks to the makers of Red Bull

Talk about life in the fast lane, our candidates who are making their way to the top for the impending presidential contest – are they even human? The campaign trail of today is not just a contest of issues, wit and rhetoric, but of physical strength and super-power endurance. That and who’s got the fastest jet.It’s like one of those crazy “Great Race” movies.John McCain and devoted people have

‘Gee our old Lasalle ran great’

Do we have a presidential candidate? Do we have a president? Is it November yet? Can I unbury my head from the sand?Don’t get me wrong. One of the utmost privileges of being an American is the ability to vote. Countless lives have been lost in past wars to ensure that our rights and freedoms are held high and I do not take that lightly. As a military vet, I know firsthand of the sacrifices. That

Everybody in the whole cell flock

I looked up into my rear-view mirror and saw a scene that’s becoming ever more common. Dude’s on his cell phone with his right hand, holding a big foam cup of coffee in his left while resting that hand on top of his wheel and steering. He sorta looks in the sideview mirrors and slides into the left-hand lane, without signaling. Who knows how – maybe used a knee? The vehicle shimmies more than it

You can help me by ... handing over your cash

After Christmas, I blogged about helping strangers, weird-acting strangers who seem to be in need, just too peculiar for you to step right up and say “sure, how can I help?”I got a lot of good feedback from readers. One clever person even sent me a sound file of a little voice saying “help me help me.” I wonder if the sender knew I would recognize the creepy insect voice of Jeff Goldblum from