Truckers Protest Record High Gas Prices

Truck Drivers Gather In Washington To Blast Horns, Rally At Capitol

(AP)  Horns blaring in a deafening fanfare, a convoy of truck drivers traveled to Washington on Monday to protest record fuel prices.

Members of Truckers and Citizens United circled the National Mall before parking their rigs at RFK Stadium. From there, about 100 protesters marched and took shuttles to the Capitol, where an afternoon rally was held.

"The high price for oil is hurting our economy," organizer Mark Kirsch said. "It's hurting middle class people."

The national average price of a gallon of regular gasoline is a record $3.51, according to a recent survey of stations by AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. The price for diesel - used to transport most food, industrial and commercial goods - is $4.20 a gallon.

Independent trucker Dave Gares of Lebanon, Pa., is among those reeling from the soaring prices. He said it costs up to $1,400 to fill up his tractor-trailer rig with 220 gallons of diesel fuel.

To bring relief, the truckers are urging Congress to stop subsidizing big oil companies, release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserves, and end exports of oil from Alaska, among other things.

Many of the truckers drove to Washington from Harrisburg, Pa., and other areas to the north. One passenger circling the Mall held a sign that read "Enough is Enough," and a driver used a bullhorn to yell at Congress as he passed by.

William Lockridge of the Washington Metropolitan Area Truckers Association said independent truckers are barely breaking even. "If the truck stops, the economy stops," he said.

Nathan and Tara Horn of Normal, Ill., said they were visiting museums and other sites, but came to the Capitol to see the truckers' protest.

"Just knowing the influence that our citizens have to talk to our congressmen and senators ... This is awesome," said Nathan Horn, stopping to watch the trucks pass in the rain."

Tara Horn said she works at a food bank where more people are seeking assistance because of rising food prices. The price of fuel has made transporting goods across the U.S. more expensive.

Traffic was not significantly affected by the convoy of vehicles, though a few truckers drove through red lights as they honked their horns.

[ontheleft]

''a few truckers drove through red lights as they honked their horns''

Bush said they need to be arrested and thrown in prison. Possibly tortured. They might be terrorists.

[shanev137]

Like everyone else in the transportation industry, all you truckers need to raise your prices so you don''t go under. You have us by the balls anyway, and we will pay whatever you charge us to keep shipping all the things we need.

[gce65]

Driving through Washington, blaring their horns? NOBODY''S HOME! Certainly not at the White House.

[gce65]

The Bush/Cheney Admin will never release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserves...because they have nothing to fall back on after that. Keeping oil in them gives the ILLUSION they still have some control over the market.

[slokipoki]

Only the truckers can help us. If the trucks stop congress wil have to listen. How will people be able to aford to get to work?

[lemonskink]

Bush heard all the commotion and gazed out the window through glassy eyes. What''s all the noise, he grunted. Oh, I didn''t know gas was that high, did you Dickie boy?

Yeah, I did, said Cheney. SO!

[michellem99-2009]

I saw them on the news..thank ye..honk and send the message for all us..

[thelambs4]

When George heard those truckers protesting the high price of fuel, George was heard to have said, "Mission Accomplished"!

[ermengarde11]

It''s about time SOMEBODY raised hell! What is wrong with the general public, why are there not protests at every gas station? At every city hall? At the US Capitol every day? NOBODY is addressing this issue, and Bush and his cronies are laughing all the way to their bank vaults. I wonder if there will even be a response to this protest, it seems Washington is pretending there''s no issue here.

Hooray for the truckers, and why is diesel now MORE expensive than gas, when it used to be cheaper? It seems there''s an agenda to price people out of groceries and everything else that''s trucked to its destination.

The food banks that I have to depend on have at least doubled their clients in the past year. And we get less of the more useful canned goods like meats -- even tuna and such are a rarity now.

God help us all. Bush sure isn''t going to, he''s only helping himself.

[ermengarde11]

shanev, you''ve got a point. And why aren''t truckers getting subsidies instead of farming conglomerates, the recipients of this money sometimes have never planted a seed on their land. They are profitting from every possible aspect of owning farmland they don''t even use or if they do, they are getting away with murder.

Google "Cowboy Starter Kit" and see what nonsense is going on. This money should go to real farmers and truckers and food banks etc. etc. It seems this admininstration is bent on doing every possible thing to cause more stress on everyone. Are they absolutely insane? Can we have them psychoanalyzed to see if they are fit for employment in the federal government? If not, WHY not???

[michellem99-2009]

It is time congress live on the same as the poor. Yep..that goes for bush..I love bell pepper..Vince came home with one..I had to pry the cost out of him $i.60 for one..I realise every thing is trucked and it is us below the poverity line that suffer..congress need to stop living like they are rich..they are not..Vince told me he heard talk years ago that the govt will one day force every one into the street to kill each other..

[infinitii-2009]

If the trucking industry organized a strike for 24 hours, they would paralyze the United States. The states would lose on toll road money as well as boycotting gas. My husband is an independent cross country truck driver and the fuel to fill his tanks is over $1200 per fill up. Diesel fuel is currently $4.59 and up depending on the area. Alot of independent driver have gone out of business because of this and our government isn''t helping at all and this has caused some drivers and companies to declare bankrupt. I''m afraid there is going to be a state-wide bankrupt filing among drivers because of this. Still some trucking companies have gone out of business, on the brink of going out of business and filing bankrupt. The trucking companies are afraid to go on strike, in fear that they will lose their contracts. The way I see it is, they need to lose the contracts if they can''t get paid a much higher rate to haul the freight. It is really aweful. The reality of it all is that the trucking industry can put us all in fear if they shut down, everyone will lose.

[element51]

If the highways are the arteries of the nation the truckers are the oxygen. They carry the things that we need to stay alive. Without them we simply cannot survive. Big oil knows this but still they continue to raise prices higher and higher knowing full well that they are killing us. NOW is when we desperately need some leadership. But we have NONE. It is obvious that we, the citizens, are going to have to take things into our own hands. I think the place to start is with the trucking industry. But we can''t ask these guys to stick their necks out and then remain silent. We have to support them and stand by their side. The last time I took to the streets was during the Viet Nam war but I am ready to do it again. Come on America, get your heads out of your arses and wake up. Let''s find a LEADER who has the guts to stand up and say ENOUGH. I''M MAD AS H*LL AND I''M NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE!

[timdgrim]

Good for the truckers! I''d like to see about 10,000 of those trucks surrounding the White House all blowing their horns every day. Of course Bush would call them terrorrrisstsss and call out the National Guard...oops..they''re all in Iraq!

[sjc_1]

We should do more truck/rail freight, where a truck takes the load to a rail yard and it goes long distance by rail. It is much more fuel efficient to haul freight by rail than it is to haul it by diesel truck.

[cbsusercbs]

Trucker Dave Gares said it costs up to $1,400 to fill up his rig with 220 gallons of diesel fuel. That calculates out to $6.36 a gallon. If I were him I certainly would be upset since the average diesel price is more like $4.20 a gallon. He would wise up a find a place that sells at a lower price he would feel better about it by not getting ripped off.

Fact of the matter is that other modes of transportation like rail and water use much less energy. It is inevitable in our world of high energy use and especially the U.S. that the days of cheap energy are over. It''s too bad our government and big business has had a policy of cheap energy not paying the true price. Europe has been taxing petroleum products at a high rate and now we see the much better position they are in with their network or rail and canals. Our country has allowed rail and canals developed a century ago to be abandoned instead of improving them.

[jimfinster]

The title should read high DIESEL prices. Not gas.

[pensacola88]

This sounds and looks like a retread of the 1979 Jimmy Carter Days when inflation was 13.2% and gas prices were soaring. Truckers were angry and making protests just like this one! We were tied up in the Mideast with Iran and some extremist fundamentalist (Khomeni) had our economy wrapped around his little finger. It required an 71 year old actor (Ronald Reagan) to charm the public into a honeymoon that didn''t last too long. He got oil prices down by opening up our economy to Arab investors and since our economy was down, they bough in a low market and reaped the profits when the economy improved. They still got rich at our expense.

[Renegade.Rivers]

Years ago, decisions were made that has handicapped our country ever since. Thousands of miles of rail track were taken off the routes, and because of that the demand for trucks to deliver goods increased immensely because of the loss of the rail system. It wasn''t so many decades ago that even small cities had rail access, and local passenger runs. Before that most cities had trolley cars that covered the city. Then big oil saw a chance to expand their market. Oil companies and auto makers bought out many of the rail lines, and trolley car lines, and encouraged everyone to buy cars, and trucks. After all, if every car used as much gas as one trolley car, and one truck used as much fuel to haul a load as a train carrying 250 or more loads, it was a boon to their bottom line. What a waste of energy and money this has all been, and as always, it has been the middle class who has footed the bill. I too, am "as mad as he11," and I just don''t see how we can keep on taking it.

[djberson]

renrivers, you are totally correct. We need to go back to the rails.

[rudy654-2009]

To bring relief, the truckers are urging Congress to stop subsidizing big oil companies, release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserves, and end exports of oil from Alaska, among other things.
*************

Wow! Hooray for the truckers! They have it right! Stop the bloody subsidizing of these bastaards and stop the exports. It''s like we are paying them through our taxes and then again at the pump, and they go HO Ho HO we have great profits this year! Nananana!

[rudy654-2009]

While Europe and other developed nations have a rail system that facilitates transportation everywhere, we here in the US are stuck with a highway and freeway system that is in severe need of repair. With NAFTA''s allowance of truckers coming down these freeways and highways, it is like one humongous traffic jam from state to state.

[michellem99-2009]

I am pissed and if we start to protest this. bush will have protesters gunned down..He will turn the military on Americans. Oh yes..Sure I feel as ye..Yhe oil will run out..Why are they not using the rails are they falling aparat as well.

[rudy654-2009]

Why are they not using the rails are they falling aparat as well.


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Posted by MichelleM99 at 02:17 AM

In my area, the government had the rails removed. They had been there nearly a hundred years and then they removed them. They called it "rails to trails"

[incog-nito]

If the truckers can barely get by right now, wait until oil gets to $200 a barrel. That''s when the real fun begins.

[brianbwb-2009]

"Trucker Dave Gares said it costs up to $1,400 to fill up his rig with 220 gallons of diesel fuel. That calculates out to $6.36 a gallon. If I were him I certainly would be upset since the average diesel price is more like $4.20 a gallon. He would wise up a find a place that sells at a lower price he would feel better about it by not getting ripped off." Posted by cbsusercbs

Understanding what you read is just as impoprtant as reading. The average price is $4.20, that means some places lower, some places higher.

If diesel is 4.20 a gallon in say, New Jersey, what good does that do Mr. Gares if he is in say, San Diego, where fuel prices tend to be the highest in the nation? Can he drive on an empty tank to Jersey to fill up? Can someone bring him a full tank from Jersey?

C''mon, think while you read.

[michellem99-2009]

I told my friend a barrel will hit 150..Vinve said to me a gallion of gas will be 5.00 dallors to fill up yer car..Rudy that figgars the govt..I walk but they don''t need them trails when the rails are needed..There are places to walk. It sounds to me they did not want to maintain the rails- a dumb move..I lived in small towns and we heard the trains run. I learnt to never try to beat them on foot. In the 70s they had long trains and I used to count the cars and there were over 100 cars. They had the carboost back then. I use the bus as do my friend.
They are putting in light rail to move people in Seattle. People use to walk on the tracks and when I first met my friend he would..I told him that was not smart. Like the big rigs they can''t stop on a dime..We need to use the truck,rail.

[nonayabiness]

I have an idea. If the truckers delivering to the white house stop doing so and take on other contracts for a period of time, then, I think the white house will finally pay attention. Anyone else?

[michellem99-2009]

I like that and bush he whine fast..He is the reason that gas is sky high..Dear he has a well stocked of every thing..''member he comes first...aint right.

[nonayabiness]

FloydZepp

I''d like to know where you get your statistics. Most working-class people tend to vote Democratic. Perhaps your just venting because you voted for Bush twice. I didn''t vote for him either time, personally.

[jjp735i]

The truckers starting to protest is good, but not enough. We are sitting here gripping, but how many canceled vacations, cut back on driving or cut back on big ticket items? Not enough to make Congress sit up and notice. Summer driving is coming up. Unless people stay home in large numbers this year Congress will ignore the problems. Bush, well he is deaf no matter how large a crowd crys out. Stay home this summer or they win.

[ohioflower]

Wait until the 5th of May when the truckers shut there motors off and refuse to haul, then we will all be pretty well screwed. Including us who live with the truckers, but then at least we have the fore warning to stock up on stuff ahead of time. All those who refuse to believe that it isn''t going to happen, will be the ones who suffer.

[ohioflower]

Wait until the 5th of May when the truckers shut there motors off and refuse to haul, then we will all be pretty well screwed. Including us who live with the truckers, but then atleast we have the fore warning to stock up on stuff ahead of time.

[ohioflower]

Wait until the 5th of May when the truckers shut there motors off and refuse to haul, then we will all be pretty well screwed. Including us who live with the truckers, but then atleast we have the fore warning to stock up on stuff ahead of time.

[ohioflower]

opps sorry about posting three times, it kept saying it wasn''t available,

[slim1h2o]

Posted by ohioflower at 06:21 AM : Apr 29, 2008

If they do shut down on the 5th, they''d be wise to publicise it. They will garner more support if we know it''s coming, so we too can stock up.

Otherwise,, we''ll be pis/sed if we run out of food, and all support will be lost.

[ahrats]

Not only truckers should drive by the white house and Congressional buildings blowing their horns but cars should join in too. the horn blowing should be continuned day and night, especiaaly at the white house so our beloved president can''t sleep. Since OPEC is threating to increase the price even higher I think the price they pay for food should be 10 times the average others pay, they can afford it. Since technally we are at war the government can set prices for comodities if they think it will help the war effort. Keep it up america in 7 months we can say it at the polls all those who are presently in office can be voted out.

[mcvet]

NOW we all know what Cheney''s Secret Energy Policy was folks!!

[Phone Kall]

They can protest all they want. The fact is 4 to 5 dollar a gallon gas is here to stay.

[dobbershome]

Oil prices reach a new record high today,tomorrow the next day and so on and so on etc. etc. What a joke.

[fstop100]

Time for a new Boston Tea Party.
With the record salaries, and record bonuses for oil company executives the profits still rise to. Don''t forget that American oil companies aren''t paying the record high prices for oil. They own their own oil wells.

[bohemianmob]

I quit smoking and drinking to make up the difference.

[advanceus]

Since the government is bailing out all the banks, it seems like they could do something to help the people haul products that all of us need. In the long run it would help everybody.

[slim1h2o]

I quit smoking and drinking to make up the difference.

Posted by BohemianMob at 07:45 AM : Apr 29, 2008

Me too, but for different reasons. But, I don''t have much more money either, than before I quit!

[bohemianmob]

I quit smoking and drinking to make up the difference.

Posted by BohemianMob at 07:45 AM : Apr 29, 2008

Me too, but for different reasons. But, I don''''t have much more money either, than before I quit!



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Posted by slim1h2o


I really quit because it was killing me, but it has helped me with the money situation.

[fedupredneck]

Here''s an idea- how about just having the FUEL tankers park it for a week and see what happens? No fuel and nobody goes anywhere.Just make sure they post armed guards around them.

[bohemianmob]

I keep waiting for more widespread reports of siphoning, I remember alot of that going on when I was a kid.

[watcher269-2009]

What it all boils down to for the guys at the top of the oil chain is -

BLAH BLAH BLAH - that is all they hear. They don''t care what anyone thinks of this - they don''t care that a few upset truckers are driving through Washington D.C. - they DON''T CARE WHAT YOU THINK!

The people at the top don''t care because they can still afford it.

This is Bush''s REAL secret alternative energy policy. Make it SOOOO Expensive that demand will fall off and that will reduce the U.S.''s need and dependency on foreign Oil. Wow, Maybe Bush is Smart. NAH!!!1

[mark46n]

It was reported on CNN this morning that Shell oil company is making record profits. What is it going to take for our useless worthless government to step in and do something about this.

[rwm2_2000]

Everybody needs to read FOOD RIOTS AND SPECULATORS on INFOWARS.COM to fully understand what is going on. It''s that simple! U can''t shut down the tankers because we all need certain emergency services but folks just need to read this story on INFOWARS.COM and then act accordingly...TALK TO UR CONGRESSMEN THEN AND GET THEM TO STOP PRINTING MORE AND MORE MONEY!