I would like to wish all of my American Readers a Very Happy Thanksgiving.
We have our own Thanksgiving back home in Canada, but like so many things my Maple Leaf associates copy from the US, it is but a pale imitation of the Real Deal, and took place back in October.
My family and I have four days worth of family meals and hanging out ahead of us, and I hope that you, likewise, enjoy this time of reflection and communal feasts. Or, if like me, you live in Deer Country, you go and get yourself some fresh venison backstrap.
In the meantime, I have some reading and listening suggestions for all of you.
Last week, I was a guest on the highly informative and interesting Odd Lots Podcast, where I discussed some of the issues about which this Substack is focused on - the pay and material conditions of America’s truckers.
You can listen here at Apple Podcasts -
Or on Spotify -
My preferred Podcast App is PodVerse, part of the Podcasting 2.0 movement, where the censorious mob have no power. Highly recommended, and hopefully, at some point, Substack will be kind enough to enable the open playing window option for them, too. Until then, here we are on Podverse.
Joe and Tracy run a tight ship, put out two great shows a week, and are absolutely worth your time for great discussions with interesting guests on the world of markets and business.
If you find yourself with some time to read, I would like to recommend a few of my fellow Substackers to you.
Those who follow my Twitter account will know that I have been paying very close attention to the proceedings of Canada’s ongoing Public Order Emergency Commission, which is a mandatory inquiry into the invocation of The Emergencies Act by Prime Minister Paul Bernardo, in response to The Freedom Convoy protests earlier this year. The central question of the POEC is to determine if the invocation was necessary at all; that is, did the ‘threat’ presented by the protests require legislation only previously used during war time, or a legitimate terrorist threat, where bombings and kidnappings took place.
If you are part of the vast majority of sensible people who understand basic civil liberties, this should be a no-brainer; unfortunately, brains are hard to come by amongst Canada’s Ruling Class in 2022, and Civil Rights Enjoyers have been forced to watch as this inquiry highlights the rogues gallery of absolute cretins who have driven Canada into the toilet, and doing so with having only won 32% of the vote in the most recent election, where only 58% of voters bothered to show up.
One of the best writers on this subject is freelance journalist and fellow Substacker Alex Brown. This missive here is a great example of Alex’s fine writing, and might serve as a primer for those who don’t know what’s really going on here.
If you want some more information on the aftermath of The Freedom Convoy, please check out this piece I wrote on it for Newsweek back in August.
Another fabulous writer I have come across here on Substack is UK based trucker Graham Brown, who goes by the name ‘The Lorryist’. He’s a real mensch - where I merely spout off and opine, this chap is a legitimate artist, diving deep into the issues of our time, both on and off the road, and with a clear philosophical bent which eludes me to transcribe.
Which brings me to some announcements.
I’ve been asked by many people, for reasons inexplicable, to start my own podcast.
Setting aside that my voice is hard for even me to handle listening to, being a cross between Tom Waits and a Canadian who stuffed a Kentucky Coal Mine’s worth of dust into his lungs, I’ve never considered myself much of a public speaker, even if my writing appeals to some.
That said, I do want to make something to give back to my fellow Road Warriors, who, it is mostly understood, are probably the highest consumers of the podcast medium.
I am also blessed with knowing some truly amazing people, met over many years, many miles, and many countries; a number of them are ‘Old Guys’ who are not online at all, whose own miles and years will make for some fascinating listening. If this project accomplishes only one thing, getting the life stories of these characters recorded for posterity will have been enough. There will also be interviews with academics, writers, friends, and many others I know. Though planned to be mostly ‘trucker facing’, depending on the response I get, other topics may be explored.
Thus far, I have three shows in the bag, and will be recording with ‘The Lorryist’ later this week.
Once I get a bit more practice on Audacity, and some mixing is sent my way from audio engineer friends who have graciously gifted me their assistance, I will launch them down the road; hopefully in time for the New Year.
In the meantime, I have some paid writing commissions requiring my attention, and you most likely will not see much posting here from me until Christmas Holidays.
Thanks again for reading and being a subscriber; if you know a trucker or other logistician in your life, or maybe a FreightNerd, do me a solid and send this their way.
Once again - Happy Thanksgiving!
Prime Minister Paul Bernardo.
Dying here.