Bird Feathers and Silenced Rigs…

You Don’t Know What You’ve Got Till It’s Gone...

Birds are dropping from the sky and no one but avian activists are noticing. Also disappearing without much fanfare—hard-working, self-employed, middle income men and women.

Case in point—the uncharacteristically quiet tractor trailer parked behind my RV. In previous visits with my friends on the outskirts of this western city, Bob, the rig’s owner, would take off on hauling jobs throughout this region. This past fall, faced with diminishing runs and escalating insurance costs (not due to violations or accidents), Bob and his wife Elaine decided to fold their trucking business.

Can we afford to lose small businesses upon which this country built its greatness?

Not a slacker, Bob aggressively sought work. For months he got the “kicked in the gut” feeling that as his work search hit desperation that only people who’ve been there would know, a willingness to take a $10 an hour job without benefits. He didn’t collect unemployment, leaving it for those who really need it. This Clint Eastwood look-alike, at 60, had been planning retirement activities with his wife, Elaine. That game plan dissolved as reality showed its ugly face.

His reputation and relentless determination to find work finally yielded results, working with a geo-thermal company, driving trucks on job sites. He’s had to leave home, moving their little camper to a friend’s ranch near his work, a couple hours away from the stately mountains where their modest home sits. His wife, who helps homeless kids get into school, heads out there on weekends where she drives a truck to lend a hand.

This isn’t the worst case of poverty by far. They both admit they’re not really suffering, although the decision to let the $120k paid-off rig collect dust in their driveway seems like a colossal waste. They have concerns about the future, knowing that they’ve already drained their savings and shattered their retirement plans. The possibility of disasters—with their children and grandchildren, health issues, wildfires—hang like storm clouds in the distance.

Sitting around talking the other night with another self-employed excavator friend of Bob and Elaine’s it was interesting to hear their perspectives. Things for them are not as bad as they could be. They agreed that Obama’s efforts seem to be showing signs of progress, and they expressed appreciation for what they have and a compassion for those who have-not.

I repeat my earlier question for the economic gurus and Congress: can we afford to lose small businesses upon which this country built its greatness? What’s with insurance companies who appear to be gouging customers and profiting obscenely? Who’s going to stand up for the small business owner, Clint Eastwood?

Seems to me it’s time to strengthen the threads of America’s fabric to preserve our unique tapestry of democracy. Creatively finding a way to utilize resources like Bob and his truck would do more for this country than enhancing the bank accounts of the few who led us into this mess.