The Observation Deck

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Teamsters to try to block Mexican trucks

WASHINGTON - The Teamsters Union said Wednesday it will ask a federal appeals courts to block the Bush administration's plan to begin allowing Mexican trucks to carry cargo anywhere in the United States.

While I do agree with the letting of Mexican trucks come into the U.S. Keep in mind that the pilot program also has a section for U.S. Trucks to enter Mexico. I do agree that we need to make sure tease trucks are safe. Trucks today are held to a very high safety standard. If they check out with U.S. Inspectors( I might want to revise that giving he current faith level in U.S. Inspection tactics) then bring them on.

Jim DeVito wrote:While I do agree with the letting of Mexican trucks come into the U.S. Keep in mind that the pilot program also has a section for U.S. Trucks to enter Mexico. I do agree that we need to make sure tease trucks are safe. Trucks today are held to a very high safety standard. If they check out with U.S. Inspectors( I might want to revise that giving he current faith level in U.S. Inspection tactics) then bring them on.

Pre 9-11, I would have agreed with you... I do not believe that every truck can be inspected properly or will be inspected. A proper back ground check on drivers crossing the border cannot be done. This is going to create a security problems for both countries. Also what if a driver is not bi-lingual? Why cannot we just create a huge terminal area where goods can be exchanged so US drivers can benefit from this new highway? The US trucking industry has made leaps when it comes to embracing techology. Why would we settle for second best on our roads?

The teamsters are right. the teamsters are on the right track.

We need about 95 percent less trade with Mexico. It is ok. Unrestricted Free trade isn't compatible with sound natural resource management policies and domestic development patterns. It is ok.

ryan costa wrote:The teamsters are right. the teamsters are on the right track.

We need about 95 percent less trade with Mexico. It is ok. Unrestricted Free trade isn't compatible with sound natural resource management policies and domestic development patterns. It is ok.

How much less trade do you propose with China or even Canada?

Jim DeVito wrote:

ryan costa wrote:The teamsters are right. the teamsters are on the right track.

We need about 95 percent less trade with Mexico. It is ok. Unrestricted Free trade isn't compatible with sound natural resource management policies and domestic development patterns. It is ok.

How much less trade do you propose with China or even Canada?

The shelves at Wal-Mart will be empty

And that's a bad thing?

The other problem, besides vehicle safety, with the Mexican truck drivers is the standards the drivers are held to.

In the US you must have a CDL to operate a big truck. In order to obtain that CDL you must take a written test and pass a physical.

Also, after a certain number of points on a CDL license, it will be suspended.

That creates all sorts of safety issues for those operating big trucks in the US. It also would give a very unfair advantage to foreign drivers, we could not make them be accountable to our system.

Trucking safety has come a long way in the last 30 years, this would mitigate the standards.

Jim DeVito wrote:

ryan costa wrote:The teamsters are right. the teamsters are on the right track.

We need about 95 percent less trade with Mexico. It is ok. Unrestricted Free trade isn't compatible with sound natural resource management policies and domestic development patterns. It is ok.

How much less trade do you propose with China or even Canada?

China has had enough trade to develop itself. At this point most of our trade with China should consist of capital goods, information and science, tourism, shitty cartoons and movies, and diplomacy. There should be virtually no commodities or mass produced or perishable food goods inter-continental trade. There should probably be no intercontinental trade of raw lumber or timber. In Chinas case all I can say is that we hold Cuba to much higher standards than China, yet most Cubans are probably better off than most Chinese.

Another angle with the Mexican trucking laws is that it will allow American firms to buy up Mexican trucking firms and then send those truckers further afield. This influx of capital would generally lower the wages of Mexican truckers as well as American truckers.

Considering how much Americans consume(or waste) the argument that freer trade raises all boats isn't valid in the context of all our oil wars or regime changes. Considering what this rising tide has done to most American cities and towns(actual cities), there is no longer justification for unrestricted international trade.

ryan costa wrote:

Jim DeVito wrote:

ryan costa wrote:The teamsters are right. the teamsters are on the right track.

We need about 95 percent less trade with Mexico. It is ok. Unrestricted Free trade isn't compatible with sound natural resource management policies and domestic development patterns. It is ok.

How much less trade do you propose with China or even Canada?

China has had enough trade to develop itself. At this point most of our trade with China should consist of capital goods, information and science, tourism, shitty cartoons and movies, and diplomacy. There should be virtually no commodities or mass produced or perishable food goods inter-continental trade. There should probably be no intercontinental trade of raw lumber or timber. In Chinas case all I can say is that we hold Cuba to much higher standards than China, yet most Cubans are probably better off than most Chinese.

Another angle with the Mexican trucking laws is that it will allow American firms to buy up Mexican trucking firms and then send those truckers further afield. This influx of capital would generally lower the wages of Mexican truckers as well as American truckers.
Considering how much Americans consume(or waste) the argument that freer trade raises all boats isn't valid in the context of all our oil wars or regime changes. Considering what this rising tide has done to most American cities and towns(actual cities), there is no longer justification for unrestricted international trade.

lol I take it that you know less about trucking then you do current events. Yeah, every American trucking company could afford to buy Transportes de Easo. lol

I haven't been monitoring the state of trucking in Mexico since about 2002, when I first became aware of this issue. The articles I researched described U.S. firms buying smaller Mexican trucking firms, then preparing to send the truckers there up here on long haul gigs.

ryan costa wrote:I haven't been monitoring the state of trucking in Mexico since about 2002, when I first became aware of this issue. The articles I researched described U.S. firms buying smaller Mexican trucking firms, then preparing to send the truckers there up here on long haul gigs.

Swift did buy 50% Trans Mex... I am missing any other big acquisitions or a lot of small ones? I deal with trucking companies everyday. Most of these companies that I deal with would not buy assets in Mexico. But we are getting more request for testing of GPS in Mexico. What is really f'd up is that only 15 US trucking companies had permission to enter Mexico as of May of this year. While the US had approved 30 Mexican trucking companies by May of this year (800 had applied) and I am sure that number of approved Mexican truck companies has increased since May. Nice of Bush and our government to look out for the working guy...

Senate votes to block Mexican trucks test

it appear to be over (clicky)