Verizon Sponsoring Anti-Climate Rally Backed By Coal Giant Massey Energy
Verizon Sponsoring Anti-Climate Rally Backed By Coal Giant Massey Energy
On Labor Day, tens of thousands of people will be gathering for the coal-powered “Friends of America Rally” in Holden, WV. The point of the gathering is to rail against the Waxman-Markey clean energy legislation. It will feature right-wing guests such as Sean Hannity and Ted Nugent (who once ranted about killing Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton), and is being pushed by mountaintop-removal mining company Massey Energy. Last week, Massey CEO Don Blankenship even recorded a video inviting people to attend the rally, saying they would learn about how “environmental extremists and corporate America are both trying to destroy your jobs.” Watch it:
The sponsors for the rally are mostly regional oil, gas, and coal companies. However, the list also includes the Science and Public Policy Institute — a fringe climate-denial organization — and Verizon Wireless. CREDO Action recently launched a campaign calling on Verizon to drop its sponsorship. CREDO Political Director Becky Bond contacted Verizon’s Vice President of Corporate Communications Jim Gerace to inform him that that CREDO would be launching a campaign against Verizon. Gerace responded by disparaging Bond:
This is how our response is going over with the activists. Becky once lived in a tree for a while. At least now I know where the emails are coming from.
For the record, Bond never lived in a tree. Verizon’s vice president of federal government relations also sits on the board of the global-warming denier National Association of Manufacturers.
Blankenship recently gained attention because the Supreme Court rebuked him for buying West Virginia judges. He has called opponents of his coal “communists,” “atheists,” and “greeniacs” and labeled a cap and trade system a “Ponzi scheme.”
Verizon Wireless spokeswoman Laura Merritt told the Charleston Gazette that Verizon’s decision to sponsor the rally was made “at the local level to support the community.” “It wasn’t an effort to take a position on any particular issue,” she added. However, the pro-coal policies that Verizon is now sponsoring actually hurt communities in West Virginia. As the Wonk Room’s Brad Johnson has written:
The coal-dominated economy of West Virginia is a troubling example of the cruelty of coalocracy. Despite $118 million in coal-mining annual income, West Virginia has the nation’s lowest median household income, worst educational services, worst social assistance, the highest population with disabilities, and nearly a quarter of West Virginia children in poverty.
Interestingly, Verizon brags that “environmental stewardship is ingrained in Verizon’s heritage, and the company prides itself on having a positive influence on the environment in which it operates.” It has a whole page devoted to its “green initiatives.” Take action here and tell Verizon that if it really wants to be green, it needs to stop sponsoring global warming denial rallies.
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I’m now even happier that I dumped Verizon for CREDO Mobile.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:47 pmJust like all of our wonderful capitalistic corporations, Verizon is spinning it’s image into what we common folk are supposed to believe is true. Sort of reminds one of political parties and politicians in general as well.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:48 pmWho wants to bet that instead of the 72,000 signed up to attend only about 10,000 at the most show up.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:49 pmCan that really be a true number of folks signed up?
There is a term for periods of history when the best minds are ignored or even persecuted. Those periods are called “dark ages” and the Reichwhiners are intent on deepening the dark age that began when Jerry Fallwell’s “Moral Majority”, with the duplicity of Ronnie Raygun, began their concerted assault on the barrier between church and state.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:50 pmGlobal Warming thread. I see a wingnut avanlance coming. Nothing brings out the brainwashed zombies like a Global Warming thread
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:52 pmAnd yet another company that will never get my business.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:56 pmIf they use hot dogs for bait, they’ll likely get a pretty good turnout.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:58 pmI see this group of climate scientists sitting in the corner whispering “Can you hear me now?”.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:59 pm“Friends of America Rally” aren’t really friends of America at all.
Maybe it should read -
“Fiends of America Rally”
There, that’s more true.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:06 pmLet me see if I have this straight: Massey Energy, a corporation, and Verizon, another corporation, will be telling their guests how corporate America is trying to destroy your job. Are you sure The Daily Show or The Yes Men didn’t make that video?
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:06 pmVerizon puts its towers in the boonies, where no one else goes, unless ya lives there. So this is just appeasement.
The network is as bloated as a Sarah Palin promise.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:06 pmThank you Verizon – now I can leave you with a good reason…
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:16 pmCan you hear me coughing now?
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:19 pmVuck Verizon.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:22 pmVerizon put in fios cable and most of the neighborhood went from Comcast to them. Except for us. Am I glad we negotiated a better Comcast deal instead.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:30 pmComcast is run by a pack of Righties too.
Their CEO’s house was the only venue in or around Seattle where Dubya could show his face without sparking a riot.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:33 pmAnyone considering Verizon service – BEWARE.
They have these great print ads and televison spots on bundled service for X price and they won’t honor it once you’ve signed up.
Our business lines are supposed to be included in a bundle for $300. per month – but they’ve been charging us over $700. per month and our other option is At&t and they’re not much better.
I’ve complained to the A.G.’s office on consumer affairs and been told tough shi* – it’s deregulated.
If anyones considering Verizon – Please Don’t.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:39 pmThere needs to be some regulation of the ability of companies and trade groups from influencing public debates. I am not talking about 1st amendment rights here. Conservatives argue that Constitutional rights do not apply to non-citizens. The thing is that corporations are not citizens either. Why are we allowing non-citizens to influence are public policy?
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:41 pmJust earlier you had a post about Duke Energy pulling the same sh*t. I hope Americans realize the scam that is being pulled right before their eyes. Just because these As*holes call something ‘green’ doesn’t make it true.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:52 pm“green initiatives” is corporate speak for maximizing profit, as in lots and lots of greenbacks.
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:01 pmA green picnic on a leveled mountaintop mine.
¶ Isnt it lovely, isnt it beautiful ¶
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:02 pmThis corporate rally is part of a War On Labor Day!
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:19 pmAlert the media.
Our interlocked Power & Energy Corporations are going to experience the same fate as the dinosaurs; but this time extinction will be from Global Climate Change caused by Them rather than an asteroid.
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:27 pmI am less concerned by another astroturf rally. My concern is for the people in the coal mining areas who may be displaced by cap and trade. Unless the federal and state government intervene, the locals will not support cap and trade. If we reduce our reliance on coal, then these mining areas need industry to replace coal mining. These areas are among the poorest in the US.
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:46 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
conservaTROLL
You have never made a correct choice in your life. You mean you made the rightwing choice because that is the kind of ignorant punk you are. If you want to a make an actual GOOD choice then just go kill yourself. You are so stupid you will never be anything but a burden in decent people until you do the right thing
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:50 pmCG@ 25:
I understand property values are _reeeeeaaaalllllly_ low around mountaintop-removal areas. Why don’t you move there?
(Of course, there is that little problem of no safe drinking water, but that shouldn’t bother you, CG.)
September 2nd, 2009 at 9:20 pmI dumped cell phone service (Verizon) almost three years ago.
September 2nd, 2009 at 10:11 pmSaving $50/month and my brain is safe. AT&T is next to go.
Save a coal miner — outlaw astroturf
September 2nd, 2009 at 10:13 pmi’ve got to ask — is there any real true green jobs out there????? i ask because every industry puts out some kid of waste or uses harmful cemicals. The big thing right now is wind mills, but has any one givin any thought to the resources it takes to build one, or the fuel it takes to haul it, or set it up?? If we take into concideration dams– lets take a good look at what they have done to migrations of the fish, and how the backed up water holds heat or cold thus– changing the wind currents by changing the natural up and down drafts. I could go on for some time but i hope i’ve brought up some food for thought.
as for Verizon– i would not use them, at least not after they tried to stick my brother-in-law with a $20,000 bill for one month, they can go pound sand
September 2nd, 2009 at 10:29 pmi aint you says:
Yes there are true green jobs out there. Not enough of them. There are true green research jobs. There are truly green agriculture jobs. I know of a business that raises insect predators to use instead of insecicides THAT would be a true green job. That there is SOME pollution is not the thing if there is LESS pollution from the work. I like to think my job on the railroad is green because though some trains are dirty polluters they are STILL not as bad as the hundred or so trucks that each train takes the place of
September 2nd, 2009 at 10:37 pmIs this the same groovy Verizon Corporation that was secretly helping the Bush gangster regime and NSA illegally spy on all Americans?
September 2nd, 2009 at 10:45 pmconservative guy says:
I made the right choice in going with pro-pollution Verizon.
fixed
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:36 pmOval12345678 aka James K. Sayre says:
Is this the same groovy Verizon Corporation that was secretly helping the Bush gangster regime and NSA illegally spy on all Americans?
Yes
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:36 pmI once thought it would be a good idea to get a pre-paid wireless for emergencies and the “service” was provided by Verizon. The damn thing didn’t work at all in my city of residence. I was not satisfied with their customer service and am unsurprised that their corporation has other issues.
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:39 pmLeftside Annie @ 1:
When Qwest announced that they were going to transfer their cell service to Verizon, I dumped them for Credo also.
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:42 pmEugeneDebs
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:44 pmHere is the problem with your comment. Trains burn more fuel then trucks when you figure the TRUE weight to fuel. And the biggest problem with trains is that you will never be able to compete with trucks because you CAN NOT provide the level of service demanded by today’s just-in-time inventory systems.
So you can stay on your train but it will never be able to compete with the Trucking Industry. Your just to slow and you don’t guarentee that you will get it there on time.
EugeneDebs–
I’ve heard it said that a train can move 1 ton of fright one mile on one gallon of fuel, but I can move 22 tons of fright one mile on 0.1724 how’s that for cost effectiveness. That is based on 5.5 mpg (that is my low end) but the reality of it is I pull 7.5 mpg that takes it down to 0.133 gallons per mile. Not to bad for a stinky old truck huh?
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:45 pmT.H.E.Cat says:
CG@ 25:
I understand property values are _reeeeeaaaalllllly_ low around mountaintop-removal areas. Why don’t you move there?
(Of course, there is that little problem of no safe drinking water, but that shouldn’t bother you, CG.)
A little coliform shouldn’t hurt our friendly little troll at all, don’t you think?
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:47 pmTed Nugent? Well that’s certainly impressive. He’s boasted in no fewer than 3 major publications to urinating and defecating in his jockeys for an entire week before reporting for his draft board physical to avoid serving his country during the Vietnam War. Maybe if he’s still wearing those jockeys 40 years later the rally will break up sooner rather than later.
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:48 pmTed Nugent is a washed up musician with mental illness. Why has he not been arrested ON THE SPOT for threatening Obama and Hillary Clinton while performing on stage before a bunch of drunken teabaggers is beyond me.
To this day, I STILL DO NOT HAVE ANY TED NUGENT RECORDINGS in my collection and never will.
He flat out sucks. Can’t write, can’t sing and can’t play.
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:52 pmOutlaw284 says:
You are flat out wrong on many levels. Trains can carry things so heavy NO TRUCKS can carry them on the highways. Also UPS is our biggest costumer so you obviously and as usual have no idea what you are talking about. I also do not believe trains burn more fuel per ton mile. A train can carry more than a hundred cars of coal a hundred and forty tons apiece that would be the same as what about three hundred trucks? There ARE no guarantees. Trucks cant gaurantee they will make it they crash they are subject to weather and highway conditions. We DO get from Chicago to LA in 48hrs. Any truck would be lucky to do any better. So once again you show that you flat dont know what you are talking about
http://www.factcheck.org/askfactcheck/can_a_freight_train_really_move_a.html
Can a freight train really move a ton of freight 436 miles on a gallon of fuel?
A: Yes, and some do even better. The figure used in the rail industry’s advertising is a national average.
This question is generated by an advertising campaign by the railroad industry, which is arguing that a good way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is to move more freight by rail rather than by truck. An example of the industry’s ads can be seen on the Web site http://www.freightrailworks.org.
Clayton W. Boyce, vice president of Public Affairs and Press Secretary of the American Trucking Association. “While railroads almost certainly have a fuel efficiency advantage over trucks,
Why dont you try at least once in your life having some dim idea what you are talking about before spewing what you WISH were true?
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:53 pmi aint you says:
You heard WRONG see my post above you were wrong by about 400 times reality
September 2nd, 2009 at 11:55 pmOT:
Oops. There goes another right wing vote down the shitter.
http://www.gloucestertimes.com/punews/local_story_242224402.html
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:00 amIn a time of universal deceit – telling the truth is a revolutionary act. George Orwell
Can’t get the truth on TV. Can’t get the truth on radio. Can’t get the truth in print. And it’s damn hard to find the truth on-line.
That’s why crap like this can draw a crowd, while the truth gets booed.
The future is not bright boys and girls.
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:01 amEugeneDebs
I may have heard wrong about the ton to mile, but you are wrong about the weight trucks can carry on the highway, the heaviest load I carried was about 82K lbs, plus 35.5k lbs added to that for the weight of the trk and trl. That put me at 117.5k gross. the heaviest load I’ve seen was 160k lbs Also I can make the trip from Chicago to LA in 30.7 hours my best time was 28.9 and burned only 266+ – gallons of fuel that time of course is when I have a team driver with me. I’ve (we) made it from Harrisburg PA to Portland OR in 40 hours. No luck involved
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:21 ami aint you says:
160,000lbs is only 80tons. I have been on MANY trains with more than a hundred as many as 118 cars of more than 140 tons apiece so that WOULD still be about 200 trucks. I didnt know they could carry that much weight. I have seen single loads on my train of well over 300 tons. Got a truck that could carry THAT on a highway? That sounds like some good driving. Since Chicago to LA is more than 1740 miles. I guess you had good weather and didnt hit any heavy traffic. I would say that was lucky
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:31 amEugeneDebs
Once again you are the one that doesn’t know what you are talking about. To start with a solo driver can go from Chicago to L.A in 49 hours. So then you are there one hour sooner but then they have to drive the load from the rail yard to the consignee which adds how many hours to it. So you can’t get it there faster. A team can do it in 29 hours and that beats your 48 hours by almost a day. So you lose on the time part of it. Oh and that is 100% legal. for a solo driver it is 11 hours driving 10 sleeper and then 11 hours 10 hours sleeper and then 7 hours to the shipper.
I hate to tell you but trucks can haul 117,000 every day on the road in Wyoming and you can haul more then that through all the states with the proper permits. Trucks can haul more on one trailer setup then you can put on one car.
As to the coal that would depend on weather they are traveling on road or off road as to what they could haul. in Wy. that would be just over 200 trucks. In other states that would depend on weather they are legal for 105,500 in which case it would be about 300 trucks. so you aren’t gaining any ground there.
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:52 amAs to your “There ARE no guarantees” Ever trucking company out there has contracts that say they will get loads from point A to point B in a certain amount of time. You pick a load up in Chicago on Monday and they tell you they want it there on Wed. you will have it there on Wed. It happens every day. I can make it from Atlanta, Ga. to Portland,Or. in 70 hours and not break any laws. Sorry you train is so slow. But once again you have no idea what you are talking about. Have you ever heard of a J.I.T. load? that is something that you don’t deal in. That stands for Just In Time. They are booked with just enough time to get them there hence the name JIT.
Your railroad can’t guarantee that they will get the load there because they don’t want to have to worry about it. I have delt with the rail road and every one of them has told me the same thing. They wont guarantee they can get it there on time. But a trucking company will.
The problem with the claim of the rail road being able to haul a ton of freight 436 miles on a gallon of fuel is that they don’t use all the numbers. The problem with the rail roads claim is that it isn’t figuring the numbers honestly. THey are taking the total tonnage of the train multiplied by the miles and then devide it by the fuel to get that number. The problem with that is the total tonnage isn’t just freight so you have to take out the weight of the train and the cars to make the number right. Sorry their claim is wrong. Now you want to tell me the total cargo that they carry and the amount of fuel they burn to go so many miles then we will figure out the fuel burn until then their claim isn’t right.
Outlaw284 says:
It isnt my fault you are a moron. Our company guaranteest to UPS the same way your truck does that is if they DONT make it there is compensation and yeah we have the same kind of contract but what your original STUPID claim was this
And the biggest problem with trains is that you will never be able to compete with trucks because you CAN NOT provide the level of service demanded by today’s just-in-time inventory systems.
And yet OUR biggest costumer is UPS which is EXACTLY that kind of intime service and every train we have for UPS gets rid of between 80 and a 130 trucks on average. As to that extra day you are just ignorant. We get to DOWNTOWN LA and unload directly to the trucks which can get to their destination in an hour or so not a day you moron. Another of our biggest customers is JB Hunt. A trucking INDUSTRY GIANT. So wish away about how we cant compete with trucks you ignoramus but we ARE competing and doing very well. And getting back to the original point MORE FUEL EFFICIENTLY. We go 70 mph rain shine blizzard fog, through cities where WE dont hit traffic what and wherever. We might not be QUITE as fast as a truck but its not exactly slow
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:02 amOutlaw284 says:
Yeah you SAY their claim isnt right when they GIVE the numbers and it is the AVERAGE. So what you mean is you WISH they werent right. Also I have had single loads of well over 300 tons. Tell me the truck YOU can carry THAT load on over the highways
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:05 am.
This is like Verizon claiming that they weren’t breaking the Law when they cooperated with the Bush Administration’s “REQUEST” for the ability to …
… WARRANTLESSLY SPY ON THEIR CUSTOMER BASE.
“CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?”
.
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:12 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:30 amHate to tell you but all the freight that UPS, JB Hunt, Swift, CR England, Central Freight, and other companies that put their trailers on the train is not JIT loads. They have plenty of time on them to get to where they need to be that is why you are getting them. The Rail Road will not put a load on their train that has to be there in less then a week. I have had to haul a lot of trailers to the rail and every one of them was the same thing. And the contracts that were signed with the rail road all stated that they would not guarantee them to be there before a week. Sorry you lose again. As to your claim about going to down town L.A. that is a lie because the rail yards are not in down town they are in Glendale and Long Beach which depending on when they pick the trailers up will take them more then an hour to get to their destination. You lose again.
As to your claim about being able to use less fuel. Here is the problem with the rail roads numbers. If they can move 1 ton of freight 436 miles on one gallon of fuel then that means you should be able to go from Chicago to LA with 11,000,000 tons and only burn 4.58 gallons. Isn’t going to happen sorry. That is using your numbers. Now you want to tell me what you actually burn for fuel going that far.
The last time I delivered to UPS or FedEx I don’t recall having seen a rail yard, so how can you promise it will be on time? Also lets say you rail car with load is 140 ton you have to take about 30 tons off that so you are only carrying 110 ton per car x 100 cars = 11,000,000 tons, if you can go 436 miles one gallon of fuel then your telling me it only takes 4.5871559 gallons to go 2000 miles or use 0.0000396 gallons per mile, or your get 436mpg
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:30 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:31 amHate to tell you a truck can carry pretty much any load you can if it is set up right. Want to try again
Outlaw284 says:
You are either stupid or a flat out LIAR. I KNOW the company I work for and you are WRONG. Our contract with UPS is for time sensative loads and we guarantee their time. Also you MORON. Hobart Yard IS in downtown LA on Olympic BLV. Less than half a mile from McArthur Park. We ALSO have a yard in Long Beach that would be Watson yard. We dont have one in Glendale I think that is SP. I have WORKED PERSONALLY in those yards so once again you are spewing stupid when you dont know what you are talking about. Do you just spout out whatever floats to the top of your head that you WISH were true? Ever been to Union Station? That is DOWNTOWN LA and we used to end our shif there it is a stones throw from Hobart Yard
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:36 amOutlaw284 says:
I keep seeing those weight stations when I drive down the highways. Now I am not claiming I know that much about trucks so you tell ME. If you went through one of those with the load I had two years ago of 326 tons would it be ok with them? I am not sure. Then again I am not claiming I do like your blatant stupidity about us not having a yard in downtown LA.
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:38 amJust in case you want to know and ratcheting down the hostility. Hobart yard, which trust me IS in downtown LA, is 100% intermodal. That is only trailers and containers. About 10 miles east in Pico Rivera is another yard not as large where all the loads we call manifest that is boxcars tankers, and the like get taken to industries. Now THOSE loads are slow movers and we never guarantee their time. They are taken to the industries from that yard but Hobart is all intermodal and the trucks leave from there to their destinations all over LA 24/7
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:47 amdebs– your wrong bout Olympic BLVD, the rail yard is off E Washington, it cuts it right in half, or you can get to it off bandini. Olympic is just a bit north, i pick up there all the time, and normaly have to wait several hours because the have to get my trl off the train or they just flat can’t find it.
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:49 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:52 amTo start with the LA yard isn’t on Olympic BLV. Olympic BLV is north of the rail yard. E. Washington goes right throught the middle of it and Bandini goes along the south of it. Olympic BLV is more then a block away. So WRONG AGAIN. And I am suppose to believe you work there. Oh and the “LA” rail yard is closer to City of Commerce and Maywood then it is to LA.
As to timed freight you have shown that the rail can’t get it there as fast as a truck. SO AGAIN you lose. Once it get to the rail yard they have to unload it and then put a truck under it and get it out of the rail. And I hate to tell you but it takes more then an hour to do that so your claim about getting it there in an hour after the train gets there is a LIE.
Now as to a truck crossing the scales with that kind of weight. They don’t cross the scales when they have that much weight on because there isn’t a scale around that is rated for that kind of weight.
i aint you says:
OK. It has been a decade since I worked, Perhaps it is Washington I remember it was just a few blocks off the 710 which is how I would drive there but it DOESNT cut the yard in half. The west half is Hobart for the BNSF the other side of the road is the UP yard. In many places UP and BNSF have yards right next to each other. Our yards abut in New Orleans too. HOwever while I might have been wrong about the street which I could be wrong about IF you have picked up in Hobart then you KNOW it is in FACT in downtown LA
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:54 amThat should be a decade since I worked THERE. I work in Northern Arizona now. Going from Winslow AZ to Belen NM
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:54 amto start with you have to have a shipping number and the trailer then they have to have the trailer off the train. Then you have to have the right bill of laden number before you can get out of the yard. I have never been able to get out of a rail yard in an hour and I have hauled a lot of loads out of rail yards. Then you have the drive timme to get to where it is going. So your claim about getting it there and out of the yard in an hours is a lie.
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:56 amOutlaw284 says:
OK it has been a decade since I worked in Hobart but I didnt SAY it took an hour from the time they stopped. However it only takes about an hour for the Strattlebuggy cranes to unload a whole train and only another hour or so to get to their destination which was my claim. Obviously you DO know where Hobart yard is however it does NOT cut it in half. Which shows you DONT know the railroad. The other side of the street is the UP yard. We would stay at the Bonadventure Hotel and that was only about ten blocks away. I never LIVED in LA but that looked pretty much like downtown LA to me.
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:58 amOutlaw284 says:
OK I will give you that. I dont know how long it takes YOU GUYS to get out of the yard. I see the guys drive up and take no time at all to attach and leave. If it takes longer I was wrong. However you are STILL right there in LA. I have to admit that I also dont know how long it takes to drive around LA but that would be the same if you drove in from Chicago or from Hobart. Look I would never claim the trains could take the place of trucks. They are necessary. All the loads that get anywhere go on a truck at some point. The trains however also have their place and they ARE more fuel efficient.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:02 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:04 amUnless they are going to drop it within 1 or 2 miles of the rail yard they are not going to get it to where it is going in an hour. As to Washington cutting the rail yard in half. It goes right through the middle of all the tracks. I don’t pay attention to who is on what side because i don’t go down to the tracks to get the trailer. As to them getting a train unloaded in an hour. I have never seen it I have always ended up spending more then an hour there waiting to get a trailer.
Outlaw284 says:
Now about this I am interested. So you can carry a load that weighs more than 300 tons and you just dont have to wiegh it? That is interesting. I always assumed you just couldnt but if you say you can then I will take your word for it. They just wave you through or what?
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:05 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:07 amThe Rail is not in LA. It is in City of Commerce if you want to get right down to it.
Outlaw284 says:
They unload them in Hobart pretty efficiently. The Strattlebuggy cranes pull them right off then little mike trucks sweep them away. I assumed they went to a place you guys could get them easily. I dont know about that part. What I DO know is about the paperwork. Especially the haz mat paperwork. I can see where that could take time
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:08 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:08 amThe reason they wont weigh it is because that most scales aren’t rated for much more then about 200,000 pounds. If they drive a load like that on it then they will be replacing the scale.
Outlaw284 says:
EugeneDebs
The Rail is not in LA. It is in City of Commerce if you want to get right down to it.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<
If you say so. It is RIGHT THERE. As I said it was no more than a five minute ride to the Bonadventure where they put us up and that is just blocks from MacArthur park. It is certainly in downtown greater LA. Where the city limits are I wouldnt know. I never lived there. It is so close to the Union Station by rail I assumed it was downtown LA. I admit I could be wrong about it being in LA proper instead of greater LA. I should have specified greater LA
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:11 amthe only thing that they will have with a load like that is they will have pilot cars to shut off all bridges and overpasses so that they are the only one on them. And with loads like that they will have pushers and pullers
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:12 amthe worst thing bout loads like that is they want to see your permits and such, then they break out the old ruler and make sure you have the proper amount of axles the right distance apart, this gets to be fun because different states have different laws, so we have to know the laws for all the states and Canada
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:15 ami aint you
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:17 amWe don’t need to start getting him all mixed up with bridge laws and length limits and all the other things that we need to worry about
Outlaw284 says:
Interesting. I have never seen it. When we carry loads like that we usuall get limited to 35 or 45 mph. I once took a Nuclear Transformer to San Onofre. That was more than a hundred tons. The Edison guys screwed up. The car bent in the middle so it could go around the curve to its spot. I told them it wasnt done right and the load was unbalanced. They demanded I take it anyway. I told them to shove it. The trainmaster came and told them we would move it but it was their problem if it fell over. They said move it and it fell right over.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:17 amOutlaw284 says:
True. I wouldnt know about them. We have OUR rules and laws and length to wieght rules. We take a rules test every other year and our rulebook is like a lawschool book. I find it confusing enough
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:20 amnot good — did you get the blame for it?
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:21 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:22 amOnce they get to that size they end up with police leading them and following them and pilot cars generally 2 in front and 2 in back and they are limited to certain hours and certain speeds.
As to normal over size loads the most that I have been limited to in speed is around 55 but that is only in a few states the rest let you go the normal speed limit. But some states still limit the times you can travel.
i aint you says:
not good — did you get the blame for it?
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Nope, never heard about it after that day. Had I listened to them and just done it BEORE the trainmaster was able to put the responsibility on them I would have been fired for sure
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:24 amEugeneDebs
well one good thing about the rail —– you don’t have to stop and chain up when it snows
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:24 amOutlaw284 says
With loads like that we will have special rules for bridges. Different rules for different bridges and sometimes lower speed on curves and they are usually speed restricted
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:25 amAt least you only have one book to worry about. We have to worry about all 48 states and the rules for them. All the Federal laws. The rules for Canada and if you go into Mexico their rules and laws. Then all the stuff that we have to do for paperwork. Tests we have to take for our license and endorsments. We generally need a sec. to keep up with all the paperwork. That doesn’t count the fuel tax heavey truck tax. insurance, repairs, and the like
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:25 ami aint you says:
Nah the snow is no problem down HERE. Up where it gets deep enough it is feet above the rail I dont know but here as long as we can see the signals its full speed ahead
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:26 amNo our bridge law is the distance between the different groups of tires. You are only allowed so much weight on different lengths that is our bridge laws that I was talking about.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:27 amOutlaw284 says:
True every Railroad west of the Mississippi uses the same Rule book. So we are good with that. Going across state lines means nothing to us.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:28 amOutlaw — don’t forget we also need a lawyer to interpit the laws
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:29 amOutlaw284 says:
I see. Well we have a lot of different bridges. Some are old wood bridges some are new steel bridges some are concrete so we have to check each division timetable and know the different rules for the different bridges, weight restrictions basically
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:30 amWe have any problems with the law we call an offical and its HIS problem
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:31 amwe have that problem to. Not only do we have to worry about how much weight we have on different groups of tires and over all lengths we also have to worry about how much bridges and overpasses are rated for. And what Interstates overpasses are built to on clearence. What state and local highways we can go down and what ones have low clearences and if they are rated for the weight we have on.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:33 amEugeneDebs says:
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i aint you says:
Nah the snow is no problem down HERE. Up where it gets deep enough it is feet above the rail I dont know but here as long as we can see the signals its full speed ahead
we have a few drivers out here that think like that and they are the one you see on the 6 o clock news scratching their head woundering why they are up side down in ditch
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:34 amI wish I could do that. The only one that we can call is ourselves. It is our fault end of story.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:35 ami aint you says:
Yeah. I live in Flagstaff and drive to Winslow to go to work and I see trucks in the ditch and flipped every winter as I drive to work. We all make a good living contributing to society doing basically the same thing. I know that I dont know much about trucking but its part of the same industry and I respect it isnt easy. I have always liked my job but I WILL be glad to retire. I have been doing it for 32 years now. Its been good to me but I have done it long enough
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:38 amEugeneDebs
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:41 amI don’t see me quiting any time soon. I have been out here doing this for the last 21 years. I am still amazed at some of the things that people do around a truck. They have no idea of what 80,000 pounds will do to them. They have no idea how long it takes to stop one of these. And not a one of them has a clue that the front axle of one of these weighs more then their car. They still want to try and put their 2000 pound car against that 12000 pound front end though
Outlaw284 says:
Yeah. I can see that. Think about the guys who run crossings as my train comes by. I have hit three people in cars. Luckily I havent killed anyone yet.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:42 amYeah but they teach people not to try and race a train. They don’t say a thing about trucks and how long it takes to stop one or what it will do to you when they hit you or what they weigh. Non of that. People just think that they have 18 wheels so they have 18 breaks and they can stop as fast as they can. I wish they would start telling people more about trucks then there might not be as many accedents.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:46 amThe sad part about all of it is that they always blame the truck and more often then not it was the four wheeler that caused the problem to begin with
I can see that. Well good chat. Argue with you guys later.
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:48 amI am sure that we will. Have a good one. lol
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:48 amthe woest thing i’ve done is make a honda accord into a Honda Gold wing when he tried to pass me while i was making a left hand lane change– he got pinched between me and a atlas truck. come to find out he ws on the cell phone
September 3rd, 2009 at 2:49 ami have been waiting for a good excuse to drop verizon after years and years of paying big bucks for the fricking phone…
September 3rd, 2009 at 5:25 amanyone that does biz with insHannity and Hank the skank can kiss my a__!
“let’s get ready to rumble”!
“Merchants have no country. The mere spot they stand on does not constitute so strong an attachment as that from which they draw their gains. I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country.”
- Thomas Jefferson
I think we should adopt Jefferson’s view that, when you get down to it, capitalists are basically traitors–though his comment should probably be updated to read “Merchants have no planet…”
September 3rd, 2009 at 6:55 amI would love to see some standards established before any corporation, organization, or other entity can call themselves “green”. The term is currently exploited by everyone who wants to court green-conscious consumers, with absolutely no accountability or oversight. There’s nothing to stop the most polluting companies from calling themselves “green” in their advertisements merely to improve their PR.
It’s a pity you can’t copyright a color or a generically used word. Perhaps we need something that CAN be trademarked — kind of like “Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval”, that will eventually be recognized by the public as a genuine mark of “green-ness” — complete with standards that have to be achieved to get the designation.
September 3rd, 2009 at 7:47 ammisscoleopteramolly says:
I would love to see some standards established before any corporation, organization, or other entity can call themselves “green”. The term is currently exploited by everyone who wants to court green-conscious consumers, with absolutely no accountability or oversight. There’s nothing to stop the most polluting companies from calling themselves “green” in their advertisements merely to improve their PR.
September 3rd, 2009 at 7:47 am
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Agreed, though it’s much easier said than done. Every industry has different environmental impacts, so it’s difficult to institute one fair standard to apply to all of them. How does a green food producer compare with a green concrete manufacturer or a green football stadium?
Sure, there might be some basic baseline standards – do their offices use recycled paper and compact florescents? Do they purchase power from renewable sources? Do they use high-mileage vehicles for official business? Etc…
September 3rd, 2009 at 8:11 amI think we should adopt Jefferson’s view that, when you get down to it, capitalists are basically traitors–though his comment should probably be updated to read “Merchants have no planet…”
I’ve been espousing the same thing for years.
Capitalists are opportunists with a global agenda. They have NO love for ANY country beyond their ability to make money. The U.S., to them, is nothing more than a “market to exploit”, which has NOTHING to do with patriotism.
Therefore, they are nothing if not traitors.
September 3rd, 2009 at 9:47 amDespite $118 million in coal-mining annual income, ….
And don’t forget that coal mining is extremely dirty and hazardous work. The underground miners may get paid a lot, but at the expense of their health and possible loss of life.
September 3rd, 2009 at 11:16 amGlad I do not have Verizon!
September 3rd, 2009 at 3:35 pmyou for your sharing.!
September 7th, 2009 at 9:45 am