#west texas truck accident

[creaturesofthelight]

If you've suffered a serious injury due to someone else's negligence, you need a law firm that is available around the clock to help you fight for justice. That's where the Odessa personal injury lawyers at Reyna Law Firm come in. With a team of experienced attorneys who are available 24/7/365, they are always ready to take on your case and help you get the compensation you deserve. After car accidents, truck accident, oilfield accidents, and other types of injury, Reyna Law Firm is always prepared to fight for the rights of the injured.

Call us today to learn more.

Reyna Law Firm

(432) 232-5183

[xtruss]

How Recent State Laws Are Making It Harder to Sue Trucking Companies After Crashes

— July 12, 2023 | By James O'Donnell | Frontline

The trucking industry is engaged in a concerted lobbying effort that critics say will make it harder for victims of crashes to sue the companies involved and limit the compensation plaintiffs can win. In the past three years alone, the industry has helped prompt new laws in seven states including Texas and Florida, which rank among the highest in the nation for fatal truck crashes.

The industry says those new laws will help curb frivolous lawsuits and excessive payouts, but safety advocates say they instead shield trucking companies from legitimate liability after crashes and disincentivize the companies from working to prevent crashes in the first place.

The new laws come as fatal truck crashes are on the rise. More than 5,000 people die each year in crashes with large trucks, up by more than 50% compared with a decade ago. FRONTLINE and ProPublica’s recent documentary, America’s Dangerous Trucks, examined one gruesome kind of truck accident — underride crashes — and why they keep happening.

After a crash, the best way a survivor can receive compensation for serious injuries or the loss of a loved one is to sue the trucking company and driver, according to Joe Fried, an attorney in Georgia with two decades of experience in truck crash litigation who spoke to FRONTLINE. That’s because most truckers carrying general freight across state lines are required by law to have $750,000 in liability insurance, but lifetime medical costs after serious crashes can quickly exhaust that amount. Carriers may be ordered to pay more than that figure, but if the company goes bankrupt or does not have the assets to pay, victims may never receive it. The $750,000 minimum was set by Congress in 1980 and, despite numerous efforts to increase it, has remained unchanged.

In late 2019, one of the trucking industry’s most vocal leaders, Chris Spear of American Trucking Associations, described crash lawsuits as an “all-out assault” on the industry in a radio interview. In a speech to ATA members around that time, Spear announced curbing crash lawsuits as a “tier-one priority” for the organization and vowed to work with state governments and state lobbying groups to pass new laws to do so. Since then, the ATA has also said that crash lawsuits are becoming more frequent and expensive, therefore raising insurance costs for carriers.

Mark Geistfeld, a professor of civil litigation at NYU Law and the author of five books on liability, told FRONTLINE he’s heard similar refrains about frivolous lawsuits from industry groups since the 1980s. That’s when industry lobbyists began trying to pass what they called tort reforms at the state level. Geistfeld has examined tort reform since then, noting that while the movement is less active now than it was in the 1980s, industries like trucking are ramping up their efforts.

“They call it reform, but historically most of the reforms have been about cutting back on liability,” Geistfeld said, referring to the industry groups.

He called the issue of meritless lawsuits a “bogeyman,” as the legal system has ways of sanctioning plaintiff lawyers if they knowingly bring frivolous cases. Industries campaigning for tort reform, he said, are typically more focused on reducing the amount they’ll be liable to pay if found responsible. They do so through campaigns for new state laws that change things like how trials are conducted, set caps on damages or redefine what evidence can be produced at trial.

Iowa, Montana, West Virginia, Louisiana and Missouri have also passed new tort reform laws supported by the trucking lobby. They take different forms in each state: Louisiana and West Virginia repealed rules which had prevented defense lawyers from bringing in evidence about whether the plaintiff had been wearing a seatbelt, and a law in Missouri raised the bar for ordering a trucking company to pay punitive damages. Jeremy Kirkpatrick, spokesperson for the ATA, said the state laws mark “initial successes in a long term campaign.”

While negligent trucking companies should be held accountable, he said, the new tort reform efforts the ATA is supporting aim to restore “balance and fairness” to the litigation system and are not about reducing liability. When a trucking company’s insurance premiums go up after large verdicts and settlements, according to Kirkpatrick, leadership may cut costs by lowering wages, which can mean hiring less experienced drivers and can have a negative impact on safety.

“The trucking industry has become a target for plaintiff-attorney profiteering,” he said. “This is about reforming specific rules and practices that enable plaintiffs’ attorneys to inflate damages and engineer nuclear and disproportionate verdicts and settlements.”

Texas: Limits on Company Liability and Evidence

Texas, which ranked first in the nation for truck-related fatalities in 2020 with 643 deaths, passed a law in 2021 that says trucking companies cannot be sued for their role in a crash unless the driver has first been found liable by a court — a process called a bifurcated trial. It passed with support from the Texas Trucking Association, a state lobbying group and ATA member, which said the law will protect trucking companies from “biased and unfair courtroom tactics.”

Previously, according to trucking lawyer Fried, plaintiff attorneys could bring in evidence about a trucking company’s broader practices — such as how many other accidents it was involved in — to convey to the jury that the crashes were a systemic problem. It’s a practice long-derided by truck lobbying groups, which refer to it as “reptile theory” and say it wrongfully aims to rile up the jury against trucking companies to encourage larger verdicts.

The new Texas law changed that. In the first phase of the trial that determines compensatory damages, attorneys are now more confined to the facts immediately surrounding the specific accident and whether the company was negligent in hiring or vehicle maintenance before the crash. Broader evidence about the company’s past is only allowed if the driver or company is proven at fault and the trial moves to a second phase. It’s a legal change Fried expects trucking groups will try to bring to other states.

“This passed in Texas because the politics were ripe for it there,” he said. “But it’s definitely being pursued elsewhere.”

Florida: Shrinking the Window to Sue

The trucking lobby also notched a win in Florida, which ranks third in the nation for truck-related fatalities, with a law passed in March that made a number of changes to civil litigation that are particularly relevant to trucking. Alix Miller — president and CEO of Florida Trucking Association, an ATA member — lobbied heavily for its passage.

“Florida is one of the worst when it comes to trucking litigation,” Miller told FRONTLINE, saying that the state’s new law and others like it aim to make the legal system more balanced for defendants. The Florida law changes how medical bills are presented at trial by only admitting the amount paid versus the amount initially billed. It also reduces the statute of limitations from four to two years for personal injury cases.

Safety advocates say that a shorter time frame in which one can sue becomes an obstacle to victims in their effort to pursue accountability after crashes.

“When you talk to victims who have been through this, they will tell you that the first two to three years are completely disorienting,” said Zach Cahalan, executive director of Truck Safety Coalition, a group that provides resources and support to people involved in truck crashes and advocates nationally for safety regulations. He noted that victims often have to deal with a deluge of paperwork, medical bills, physical therapy appointments and other demands as they process the crash.

“By the time they realize that ‘Hey, I might need to pursue a civil trial,’” he said, “sometimes the statute of limitations is over.”

Iowa: Caps on Damages

Another path these laws have taken is to cap the amount of noneconomic damages awarded to plaintiffs — compensation for losses that, unlike medical bills or wages, cannot be easily measured, such as the loss of a child.

The Iowa legislature passed a law in April, supported by the Iowa Motor Truck Association, an ATA member, that caps pain and suffering payments to $5 million in accidents involving commercial vehicles, though it includes exceptions for certain situations of extreme negligence, like if the driver was intoxicated.

Supporters of the law say that plaintiff lawyers profit too much off of crash litigation and that the cap will help fix this. But Cahalan of the Truck Safety Coalition opposes such limits on damages, and he said instead that juries should continue to have agency in determining how much should be paid after a crash.

“Your ability to be made whole following a crash should not be arbitrary,” he said.

Geistfeld, from NYU Law, said that whether in trucking or another industry, the outcomes of tort reform efforts decide who is responsible for paying for the cost of injuries. They also shape the incentives that businesses weigh when deciding how to conduct their operations safely, he said.

“The idea, ultimately, is if the businesses are forced to pay for the liabilities of their drivers, then the businesses are going to adopt safety measures to try to make sure that they can do as much as possible to keep drivers from getting into crashes,” he said. “And that’s obviously good for society.”

— “America’s Dangerous Trucks” is part of a collaborative investigation from FRONTLINE and ProPublica. The documentary premiered on June 13, 2023, and is available to stream in the PBS App and on FRONTLINE’s Website.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Hakai Magazine:

Francis “Bully” Mission Sr., president and founder of Mission Animal Control, is in a good mood when I meet him at a strip mall parking lot on the south side of the Hawaiian island of Kaua‘i. He and his son Levi have just found two “squeakers”—pigs no more than a few months old—in one of their traps, which means US $100 in their pockets and another satisfied customer. Property owners all over the island hire the duo to remove problem animals, and Bully has invited me to join him as he collects the new captives.

“We had a big mama yesterday and three juveniles,” he tells me as I climb into his pickup truck. “The population is unbelievable.”

Inside the cab, I notice what appears to be Old MacDonald’s entire farm glued to the dashboard: a plastic cat, a couple of horses, a cow, and three pigs. These are all species that humans have brought to the Hawaiian islands and that the Mission family is often hired to eliminate. Feral pigs, once denizens of the mountains with intermittent forays to lower elevations, have become regular raiders of lowland farms, upscale neighborhoods, and members-only golf courses. “Some of them look like you could put a saddle on them and ride them,” Bully says of the pigs he’s seen.

Pigs can now be found on six of Hawai‘i’s seven inhabited islands, and their impacts are especially profound on Kaua‘i, the lush “Garden Island,” which has so far retained much of its native character. Its mountains are home to 255 unique native plant species and 208 native birds, including 11 found nowhere else on Earth. As the pigs tear up vegetation, they encourage erosion and muddy the island’s drinking water supplies. Their wallows breed mosquitoes that spread avian malaria, contributing to 10 of Kaua‘i’s 16 native honeycreepers going extinct. They also spread the seeds of the strawberry guava tree in their dung, contributing to what one group of researchers has referred to as an “invasional meltdown.” The guava shades out native plants and smothers them in its leaves.

The pigs’ presence in the populated lowlands has grown over the last couple of decades. Sally Rizzo, who was running an organic farm during my visit, told me that the pigs broke through her fence this year and “shit all over our baby greens.” On the roads, drivers frequently have to swerve to avoid pigs, leading to several hundred accidents every year. Beaches aren’t safe either. Three years ago, a tusked boar made headlines when it went for a swim and thrashed a surfer in the lineup off Oahu, another island. On oceanside bluffs, meanwhile, the pigs are preying on the chicks of migratory seabirds, so completely trashing their burrow nests that the birds never return to them again.

Despite the damage that feral pigs are causing, you can’t just shoot them on sight as you can in many other US states. In Texas, home to more than one-third of the seven million feral pigs in the United States, hunters and landowners target them from helicopters or with poison baits. On Hawai‘i, however, pigs occupy a more complicated position, as their populations are managed for both recreation and subsistence. Along with West Virginia, Hawai‘i is one of two states with bag limits on public land. This means that while conservationists are trying to reduce or eliminate pig populations inside protected areas, the Hawai‘i Division of Forestry and Wildlife manages the animal as a limited resource just about everywhere else.

[paulward]

Challenges of Heavy Equipment Hauling in Odessa and How to Overcome Them

Odessa, TX, a major hub for oil and gas, construction, and infrastructure development, relies heavily on the transportation of large machinery and equipment. Heavy equipment hauling is a critical part of operations in these industries, but it comes with significant challenges that can affect the efficiency, safety, and cost-effectiveness of projects. Hauling oversized loads like drilling rigs, construction machinery, or industrial equipment across Odessa’s varied terrain and under changing weather conditions requires careful planning, expertise, and the right resources.

In this article, we’ll discuss the major challenges of heavy equipment hauling in Odessa and explore strategies to overcome them.

1. Navigating Permits and Regulations

One of the primary challenges of Heavy equipment hauling in Odessais navigating the complex web of permits and regulations. Transporting oversized or overweight loads requires specific permits from state and local authorities. These permits are necessary to ensure that the load is legally compliant with the roadways' capacity and does not cause damage to infrastructure like bridges and highways.

In Odessa, where many roads are used by both commercial and private vehicles, obtaining the right permits and understanding the regulations is crucial to avoiding fines, project delays, or even the shutdown of operations. Additionally, some roads may have restrictions on the time of day that oversized loads can travel, further complicating scheduling.

How to Overcome:

Plan ahead: Start the permit application process well in advance to avoid delays. In Odessa, the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV) issues permits for oversized loads, and it’s essential to stay up to date on the specific requirements.

Work with professionals: Hiring a logistics company with experience in securing permits and navigating regulations in West Texas can save time and reduce the risk of non-compliance.

Stay updated on regulations: Heavy hauling regulations are subject to change. Staying informed about any updates in local or state laws is key to ensuring smooth transport.

2. Managing Odessa’s Challenging Terrain and Weather Conditions

Odessa’s terrain presents unique challenges for heavy equipment hauling. The area is known for its flat, arid landscape, but rural roads may be unpaved, uneven, or not well-maintained, making it difficult for trucks carrying large loads to navigate safely. Additionally, Odessa’s weather can be unpredictable, with dust storms, high winds, and extreme heat, all of which can affect hauling operations.

Heavy equipment such as cranes, bulldozers, or oilfield machinery must be transported carefully to prevent equipment damage or accidents. Wind gusts, in particular, can pose a hazard to trucks carrying high-profile loads, while heat can affect vehicle performance.

How to Overcome:

Route planning: Careful route planning is essential to avoid roads that are unsuitable for heavy loads. Opt for highways and major roads that are designed to handle large vehicles and loads. Using specialized mapping software can help identify the best routes.

Monitor weather conditions: Before setting out, always check the weather forecast. If high winds or dust storms are expected, consider postponing the haul to avoid potential accidents.

Invest in the right equipment: Ensure that your hauling trucks are equipped with high-quality tires, cooling systems, and other modifications to handle Odessa’s challenging conditions. Additionally, use trailers designed for heavy or oversized loads to ensure safe transport.

3. Overcoming Weight and Size Restrictions

Transporting heavy equipment often involves oversized loads that exceed the standard weight and size limits for roadways. This is particularly true in Odessa, where equipment like drilling rigs, generators, and construction machinery can weigh several tons. Exceeding weight limits can result in fines, damage to roads and bridges, and increased risk of accidents.

Moreover, some roads and bridges may have weight or size restrictions that prevent heavy equipment from passing through certain areas. Ignoring these restrictions can lead to unsafe conditions and legal consequences.

How to Overcome:

Use specialized trailers: Lowboy trailers, flatbeds, and extendable trailers are designed to handle oversized and overweight loads. Using the right trailer ensures that the load is distributed evenly and complies with size and weight restrictions.

Weigh equipment in advance: Before transport, weigh the equipment and calculate the dimensions to ensure that it complies with road restrictions. If the equipment exceeds legal limits, apply for the necessary permits.

Plan alternative routes: Identify alternative routes that avoid roads and bridges with size or weight restrictions. Specialized route planning software can help identify the safest and most efficient paths for oversized loads.

4. Ensuring Load Security

Securing heavy equipment for transport is critical to ensuring both the safety of the load and the safety of other drivers on the road. Improperly secured equipment can shift during transport, leading to accidents, equipment damage, or even fatal incidents. Given the size and weight of the machinery being hauled in Odessa, securement becomes even more crucial.

Hauling heavy equipment like excavators, bulldozers, or cranes requires the use of specialized tie-downs, chains, and rigging equipment to keep the load stable throughout the journey. However, securing these massive loads can be challenging, especially if the terrain is uneven or the equipment has an unusual shape.

How to Overcome:

Use the right tie-downs: Ensure that the equipment is secured with heavy-duty chains, straps, and binders that are rated for the load being carried. For particularly heavy loads, use multiple tie-down points to distribute the weight evenly.

Inspect securement points: Before starting the haul, inspect all securement points to ensure they are in good condition and properly fastened. Regular checks during transport can prevent shifting or loosening of the load.

Follow industry guidelines: Adhere to industry standards and federal guidelines for load securement, such as those outlined by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

5. Dealing with Traffic and Urban Hauling in Odessa

While much of Odessa is rural, heavy equipment hauls often need to pass through urban areas where traffic congestion and narrow streets can pose challenges. Navigating heavy machinery through tight city streets, intersections, and construction zones can slow down the haul and increase the risk of accidents.

In Odessa’s growing urban areas, managing traffic while hauling large equipment can be difficult, especially during peak hours or road construction projects. In addition, local roadworks or detours can complicate the transportation process, leading to delays.

How to Overcome:

Schedule hauls during off-peak hours: If possible, schedule heavy equipment hauling during times when traffic is lighter, such as early mornings, late evenings, or weekends.

Coordinate with local authorities: In some cases, it may be necessary to work with local authorities to manage traffic or secure police escorts for oversized loads, particularly when traveling through congested areas.

Use pilot cars: For extremely large loads, consider using pilot cars to guide the truck through urban areas and ensure that the load stays within legal boundaries on the road.

6. Minimizing Environmental Impact

Odessa’s oil and gas industry is sensitive to environmental concerns, and heavy equipment hauling can contribute to wear and tear on roads, air pollution from diesel trucks, and potential damage to natural areas. Moreover, dust and debris from construction zones can accumulate on the equipment during transport, leading to environmental and safety concerns.

How to Overcome:

Use eco-friendly trucks: If possible, invest in fuel-efficient or alternative fuel trucks to reduce emissions during transport. Regular maintenance of hauling vehicles can also improve fuel efficiency and reduce environmental impact.

Clean equipment before transport: Ensure that equipment is clean before being hauled to avoid spreading dust or debris along the road, which can impact the environment and create hazards for other drivers.

Monitor road conditions: Avoid transporting equipment through environmentally sensitive areas, and use well-maintained roads that are designed for heavy loads to minimize damage to infrastructure.

Conclusion

Heavy equipment hauling in Odessa presents a unique set of challenges, from navigating complex regulations and permits to managing Odessa’s terrain and weather conditions. However, with careful planning, the right equipment, and a focus on safety and compliance, these challenges can be effectively managed. By overcoming obstacles related to weight limits, load security, traffic, and environmental impact, companies in Odessa can ensure the successful and safe transportation of their valuable machinery.

Investing in professional hauling services and staying informed about local regulations will help businesses maintain operational efficiency while minimizing risks and delays, keeping Odessa’s industries moving forward.

[savefilescomng12]

On This Day, April 26: 16 killed in German school shooting

1 of 5 | On April 26, 2002, a German youth who had been expelled from the Gutenberg school in Erfurt, Germany, returned to the school and shot 16 people to death. File Photo by ASK/Wikimedia April 26 (UPI) -- On this day in history: In 1607, the first British colonists to establish a permanent settlement in America landed at Cape Henry, Va. In 1933, Nazi Germany's secret police, better known as the Gestapo, is formed by Hermann Goering. The Allies declared the Gestapo a criminal organization during the Nuremberg trials and sentenced Goering to die. In 1937, during the Spanish Civil War, German-made planes destroyed the Basque town of Guernica, Spain. In 1964, Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged, forming the country of Tanzania. In 1982, Argentina surrendered to British forces on South Georgia Island amid a dispute over the Falkland Islands. In 1986, a fire and explosion at the Soviet Union's Chernobyl nuclear reactor north of Kiev, Ukraine, resulted in the world's worst civilian nuclear disaster. About 30 deaths were reported in the days following the accident. It is believed that hundreds of people eventually died from high doses of radiation from the plant and that thousands of cases of cancer could be linked to the crisis.

File Photo by Sergey Starostenko/UPI In 1993, Indian Airlines Flight 491 slammed into a parked truck during takeoff and crashed minutes later near the western Indian city of Aurangabad, killing 56 people. In 1994, South Africans began going to the polls in the country's first election that was open to all. Four days of voting would elect Nelson Mandela president. In 2002, a German youth who had been expelled from the Gutenberg school in Erfurt, Germany, returned to the school and shot 16 people to death. In 2005, the last of Syria's troops left Lebanon, ending a 29-year military presence. In 2010, longtime Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir, sought by the International Criminal Court in connection with reputed crimes against humanity in the Darfur section of western Sudan, was re-elected president in a controversial vote.

File Photo by Abderaouf Ubgadar/UPI In 2012, a U.N.-backed court convicted former Liberian President Charles Taylor of war crimes, including murder, acts of terrorism, rape, sexual slavery and use of child soldiers, for aiding rebels in neighboring Sierra Leone. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison. In 2018, a Pennsylvania jury found actor Bill Cosby guilty on charges he drugged and sexually assaulted Andrea Constand in 2004. He was sentenced to three to 10 years in prison. In 2020, the 23rd victim of the Aug. 3, 2019, shooting at an El Paso, Texas, Walmart died from his injuries. In 2021, Kanye West's Nike Air Yeezy 1 Prototype shoes sold for a record-breaking $1.8 million through a private sale facilitated by Sotheby's. It was the first recorded sneaker sale for more than $1 million.

File Photo by Richard Ellis/UPI Source link Read the full article

[mystlnewsonline]

Department of Labor Finds 242 Violations in Mines - June 2023

Department of Labor found 242 violations in June 2023 during inspections at 18 mines in 12 states, many with a history of repeated safety and health issues. Identifies 71 significant & substantial violations, including 4 unwarrantable failure findings WASHINGTON, DC (STL.News) The U.S. Department of Labor announced Monday that impact inspections completed by its Mine Safety and Health Administration at 18 mines in 12 states in June 2023 led the agency to issue 242 violations.  The agency began impact inspections after the deaths of 29 miners in an explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine in April 2010, one of the deadliest in U.S. history. To date, MSHA’s impact inspections in 2023 have identified 1,435 violations, including 411 significant and substantial and 22 unwarrantable failure findings.  An S&S violation is reasonably likely to cause a reasonably serious injury or illness.  Violations designated as unwarrantable failures occur when an inspector finds aggravated conduct that constitutes more than ordinary negligence. The agency conducts impact inspections at mines that merit increased agency attention and enforcement due to poor compliance history; previous accidents, injuries, and illnesses; and other compliance concerns.  Among the 242 violations MSHA issued in June, the agency evaluated 71 as S&S and found four to have unwarrantable failure findings.  The inspections included mines in Alabama, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming. “The Mine Safety and Health Administration remains troubled by the fact that our impact inspections continue to discover the same hazards we’ve identified as root causes for fatal accidents and that we know can cause serious occupational illnesses,” said Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health Chris Williamson.  “Mine operators are responsible for providing a safe and healthy work environment; this includes controlling miners’ exposure to health hazards like silica, preventing safety hazards such as unsafe electrical equipment and potential slips, trips, and falls, and ensuring adequate workplace examinations and training.” Two of the inspections in June provide examples of some of the hazards miners face. On June 6, MSHA conducted an impact inspection at Kentucky Fuel Corp.’s WV-3 Surface Mine in Logan County, West Virginia, due to enforcement history and receiving hazardous condition complaints.  MSHA issued 42 violations to the mine operator, including 17 S&S and 3 unwarrantable failure findings, including an unwarrantable failure order for aggravated conduct for failing to maintain effective dust-control measures on a drill. Drill operators face a heightened risk of exposure to respirable crystalline silica, a carcinogen far more toxic than coal dust alone.  Exposure to unhealthy levels of silica can lead to debilitating and deadly work-related illnesses such as silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and progressive massive fibrosis.  On June 30, 2023, MSHA announced proposed amendments to current federal standards to better protect the nation’s miners from health hazards related to exposure to silica dust, and in June 2022, began a silica enforcement initiative. MSHA also issued unwarrantable failure orders for safety defects found on haul equipment, including defective emergency steering, damaged tires, significant oil leaks, and a defective backup alarm.  Inspectors learned several of these items were recorded and reported to the mine’s management for days on pre-operational examinations. Historically, accidents involving powered haulage in the mining industry have been a leading cause of fatal workplace injuries.  By law, operators must correct these conditions on haul trucks before the equipment is used.  MSHA has cited Kentucky Fuel Corp. 13 times in the last two years for similar violations. At the Superior Silica Sands LLC mine in San Antonio, Texas, MSHA conducted an inspection on June 21 and issued 31 violations, 10 of which were found to be S&S.  The citations included violations for the following: Unsafe electrical equipment and cables, inadequate workplace examinations, exposed moving machine parts, slip, trip, and fall hazards, and inadequate training. Allowing truck drivers to operate vehicles near high-voltage power lines.  Three industry workers suffered fatal injuries in 2023 when their mobile equipment made contact with overhead power lines, leading MSHA to issue electrical safety alerts to raise awareness. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor Read the full article

[yhwhrulz]

Worthy Brief - December 29, 2022

it's never as bad as it seems!

Psalm 27:4-5 One thing I have desired of the Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.

The world these days is full of bad news, with the aftershocks of Covid, an ongoing war in Ukraine, tensions throughout the Middle East, and the natural disasters that continue to take place. It's a time of trouble all right, and for us believers, it may sometimes be hard to believe – but it never is as bad as it seems. Let me illustrate with a joke I like to share with my messages.

Way out west (in America, of course), a cowboy is driving down a road, his dog riding in the back of his pickup truck, his faithful horse in the trailer behind. As he takes a curve on the highway he suddenly loses control of the vehicle and has a terrible accident.

Sometime later, a State Police officer comes on the scene. A great lover of animals, the officer's attention is first drawn to the horse. Realizing the serious nature of its injuries, he draws his service revolver and puts the animal out of its misery. Then walking around the accident he finds the dog, also critically wounded, and whining miserably in pain. This grips his heart and he quickly ends the dog's suffering as well.

Finally, the police officer locates the cowboy, who has suffered multiple fractures and can barely breathe. “Hey, are you okay?”, he says.

The cowboy takes one look at the smoking gun in the trooper's hand and quickly replies, with unexpected energy, “Never felt better!”

We are pilgrims in this dangerous world, which will wound us at times so badly it will seem unbearable – yet we have this promise from God, “in the time of trouble He will hide me”. Our true life for us as believers is hidden in Him. So when the world approaches us with a smoking gun, ready to put us out of our misery, perhaps we can find a supernatural strength, and simply say, "I never felt better!"

Your family in the Lord with much agape love,

George, Baht Rivka, Obadiah and Elianna (Going to Christian College in Dallas, Texas) Dallas, Texas

Join us on an epic, life changing journey through Israel, - https://worthynews.us12.list-manage.com/track/click?u=b94ae97bb66e693a4850359ec&id=5d8b919db7&e=3d3c649f0e through the eyes of those who are well acquainted with the culture, the people and the Land. This is not your average Israel tour— bring your family, bring your friends, and experience the REAL ISRAEL with George and Baht Rivka as your personal hosts.

[noybusiness]

A great review, thanks for keeping these up!

These vampires *are* fun-looking. And the stunt they pull to get the truck to pull over is similar to the vampires in "Dead Man's Blood" and one of the episodes of Angel Season 4, i.e. taking advantage of their lack of a pulse to pretend to be accident victims. I take it that Carlos saying bank-heisting vampires would make such an awesome movie was an intentional shout out to From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money.

With all the artifact-groping, these kids would make lousy archaeologists.

Really fascinating stuff about the Ursitoare of Romanian mythology. I'm a buff on various mythologies (Greek, Norse, Egyptian, Japanese, Hindu, Mesopotamian, with knowledge of some Chinese, Finnish, West African, Aboriginal Australian and Native American) but Romanian isn't one of them. One can see the similarity to both the Greek Fates and the fairies (fata) whose name derives from the Fates, especially their role in the Sleeping Beauty tale.

I think John was already clinically dead (as he said to Millie, "if I'm already dead when he feeds on me") and it just took a moment for the dead man's blood to kick in. The real question is how the Vampire Leader (the credits say his name is Nikolas, but I'm just going to call him that, like the Mutant Leader who was called that outright on Gotham Knights - although the Mutant Gang aren't even mutants) missed the fact that John was lying on the floor not conscious when he began feeding on him. Dude was really in that much of a rush to fulfill fate that he didn't go "Hmm, how did this happen? Something's wrong with this picture." John was all vulnerable looking whenever he was around the Vampire Leader.

Random vamp cults were also a thing in Buffy and Angel. One even started out as a Spanish/Italian/Maltese? dueling society (El Eliminati) before centering itself around the demon Balthazar, best described as an angry tub of lard.

Millie and John had serious Sarah Connor and John Connor from Terminator energy in this episode, with the "no fate but what you make" mantra. Which reminds me, The Sarah Connor Chronicles should never have been cut short after Season 2.

I want to see one of Carlos and Anton's dates. Now I just had this image of Anton droning on about rare monster specimens that crossed his desk while Carlos just stares dreamily into his eyes, nodding without really listening. I agree that Carlos probably is non-binary like Jojo Fleites and only goes by "he" because they haven't been formally introduced to the concept yet in 1972.

Looking forward to "Suspicious Minds"!

Been a looong while but I'm back with a new episode commentary. 1x09 here we go!

The instant recall to finale of spn s 1 is just as delicious and jarring this time around. Find it very very interesting that it's the vampires that mimic the Winchesters here and do so in order to learn their fate and fulfil it. I'd definitely call this a dark mirror to begin with.

I also adore these vamps, they're sooo fun looking.

John and Mary really came out of that near death experience losing no time in getting together.

The appreciation of Dean being paralleled to the appreciation of Baby is just... sooo funny considering the sheer amount of connections there.

Soo Kyle is instantly suspish here. Not even hiding it, damn. You can tell the shift in personality just based off his demeanor. I also think the little hand gesture he does as he walk away is interesting, it's almost like he's saying "im washing my hands off this bullshit". It subble enough that you could think it's jealousy.

The little hints at Lata and John friendship! My beloved!. Also Lata is suuuch a gossip I love her!

I once more am asking John Winchester to stop trying to be subtle, it aint his strong suit. But alternatively, I sorta get it? Like I can understand why it would be confusing if u don't get where Mary is coming from, since she has no problem letting strangers (and exs) on the street see them together, but not their close friends? But I also completely get Mary as well, she's actually lived as a hunter her whole life which means bagage already, then the fact that their relationship is new and fragile. Plus both her parents and his haven't had the easiest time with relationships. Cautious makes sense.

Ah yes, "fate is what u make it". Dean hearing it from John who heard it from Millie. All of them have their very personal reasons for that saying to apply, but also... Dean saying he didn't expect where things got when he "pushed that first domino" reminds me of Cas and him talking after the 1st Apocalypse that wasn't and about how free will sometimes means things aren't really gonna go the way you like them.to or expect them to (peace or freedom?). It's sorta funny then (read:ironic) that in both John's life (SPN!John) and Dean and Cas after Swan Song the outcome was actually quite tragic over all, John's life literally going out in flames with the rest of it being a living nightmare and in Dean and Cas' case Sam is dead and Heaven is starting a Civil War. This episode then does something really nice in subverting that expectation by setting up the tragedy (John is to die, can't change that) and allowing him to survive and not just that but ending it with him getting exactly what he'd wanted here in the beginning of the episode, getting to freely be with Mary.

I adore how Carlos calms down the driver, showing once again the full range of their skill as hunter and empathy as person. Love them so so much!

Couldn't get a hold of John, says Mary, being more suspicious then if she and John had shown up together... I find that hilarious!

Also also, love that this clarified that fangs are still teeth aka u can identify people (vampires here) based on them. I love love love that!

Uuuù Betty is suspish about Mary.

God! Dean had to have loved the vampire robbers. Vobbers? Rompires? Vambbers?

Oh noooo John! Don't be ur children! Don't just pick up random amulets like a moron! (At least we know who they got it from?)

Carlos is almost just as bad, my God! You see ur friend drop it like it hot and you just bend to.pick it urself?! Ah, Carlos, the range you got babe.

John dying by vamps begins my headache of the night because it is 1000% a callback to Dean's death in 15x20. And I wish that wasnt the case.

Ok let's talk Ursitoare (Uhr- see-too-ah-reh) a sec. So this is Romanian myth. To give an overview of it, the myth largely relates to the Ursitoare (or Fates you could say) blessing or cursing a new born after they've been born. Usually the legend states that the mother or midwife would have to leave out gifts (generally food like bread or water or salt etc) to basically appease them and make sure the baby gets a good destiny foretold. It's also states that those who eavesdrop on them as they tell the childs destiny shall die. They are also said to be quick to anger if spurned. Another interesting think tho about the myth is that (while there can sometimes be 7 or 9) the 3 ursitoare are generally known as Ursitoarea, Soarta si Moartea (aka the One who Wishes your fortune, Fate and Death) again the Greak Fates work very well and there's def overlap between the myths here. But importantly, Ursitoarea is the oldest and Death the Youngest (or othewise simply stated as the 3rd).

Now based on this we have a few things to keep in mind, mainly our vampires. They esentially eavesdrop on John's fate here and get exactly what the legend states - killed. In other news, the Ursitoare are very much neutral beings generally. They can be plied with offerings sure, but overall they just spin the thread as it goes. Its only ever an active role when wishing the newborns destiny. Now John's our newborn here, new to hunting at least, reborn once already after the war and a second time after confrunting everything he has since hunting became his life. More importantly, in some versions of the myth, the ursitoare give either the mother or the midwife dreams the night after the baby is born that need to be carefully interpreted afterwards - exactly what the Gem does here.

To wrap this part up a bit, I am.endlessly happy about the way they tackled this myth. SPN had sadly a bad bad record with Romanian mythology and lore - 1st with the witches in s7 which I'd argue was ... 'inspired' by rromani mythology rather than Romanian which is its own culture and as such its own racist connotation to that whole mess. And 2nd with the Imaginary Friends in s 11 aka Zanna .... which has absolutely nothing to do with Romanian mythology beyond slapping a horrendous mispronunciation of Zână onto a piece of lore that doesnt exist in Romanian mythos - we don't have any imaginary friend stuff, its literally all imported from the US. So this lore here? This is fucking aces! It actually makes sense, is actually a Romanian myth that is still being invoked nowadays - especially in the countryside as tradition of baptising/birth and it works very well in the context of the episode. Now, it would've been perfect if they didnt add that shh sound in Ursitoare making ir Urshitoare... Like its funny a bit cuz I constantly think of bears (urşi - ursh is plural for bear in Romanian) but its ok since its just that. I can live with a minor mispronunciation. I will say the Gem itself is fully made up tho for TW.

To answer Carlos tho, the Ursitoare themselves tell u 2 things: the future and also a future they are willing to bless or curse you with. It's essentially both. They show u the future, ur life as it's meant to be exactly, no deviation, but only in pieces or really a piece as a dream and, importantly the sorta end result of ur life which they wish upon u as newborn. How u get to that wish is up to you. The Gem.appears to have merged these two.

I also love love love the show of community that hunters have, that a hunters network is important to getting the job done. It makes me strangle SPN!John worse because he actively isolated himself aaand his kids. Ffs!

Awwwweee I like Betty! I mean shes a cop soo... not great but shes nice and cares so much and is worried :((

Millie does a good job here I think. She's not dismissive of Bettys concerns, but shes also careful to dispel them if possible. She shows once more how good she is at manipulating people, tho admitedly this time it isnt anything malicious or even generally negative.

I also gotta say that Betty (and id say John by extension) is very naive to think that war could in any way shape or form help with the issues John had had. Like he had trauma from his fathers abandonment and his mothers general treatment afterwards, had trauma from the disfunctional relationship the two had before Henry died/left, which all was underscored by deep-seated guilt that he let out as rage. Like all war would do is make it far far worse. It shows just how young Betty is truly and how she really hasn't lived through too much yet. And i said John too because Im fairly sure he also thought going to war would help in a similar manner.

I also headcanon that Betty was very inspired by Millie... but thats just me.

Carlos continues to be a dumb dumb about Anton... unsurprising, but omg.

I forgot the stone was carved from the Ursitoare's ribs... is it just me who though of the birth of Eve here??? Also yes, Il Soarta is def Italian I realize now. Do i question why an Italian cult was obsessed with Romanian myth.. absolutely not.

Im think that the 'most times not'part of what destiny the Gem shows u is due to essentially the stone acting as ... well... an eavesdropper. Literally. It was given to specific people to use by the Ursitoare as recompense for their worship - so good fate; but then as time went on it became a useful artifact for the benefit of Il Soarta so it became a way to eavesdrop on destiny so said destiny changed in them because that worship became.in name only. As mentioned, the Ursitoare arent patient and dont take well to being spurned or used in this case.

God the drip on the vamps, love them so much!

I would also argue that fate ultimately doesn't care about anyone if the whole universe is in jeopardy and uve a bigger destiny like John Winchester does.

I agree with Mary calling Millie here. Especially since she actually.knows what it's like to just ... lose someone like that. John does too, but he's also the one in the middle of it.

Ironic that Mary says "even if i have to kill every vampire in the tri-state area " ... a version of her actually does do that... for her kids. And simultaneously, its ironic also that another version of John will tell their kids that vampires are extinct (which could get them killed fyi).

Millie and Dean would be horrible together... all theyd do is work in the garage and shittalk research... and I kind love that for them.

I also like that Millie does in fact tell John bout Betty and also basically tells him.to not bullshit a bullshitter. This convo between Millie and John might be the 1st truly empathetic one we've had for them. Like yes, John's defenses go up instantly and he immediately assumes that Millie agrees with Betty and is judging him, but Millie, this time, doesnt do that. She just wants to check-in on how he's doing. And does so softly. And believes him more importantly.

And of course, back to the tried and true Winchester feelings avoidance after we've just had a helluva emotionally vulnerable talk.

I live for Carlos being disappointed in the vamps housing choices. I too would judge that. (So would Dean tbh)

Aaaaand Carlos once more gives us the biggest puzzle piece to where the vamps are.

While Lata is once more absolutely delighted by the magic lockpick like the wonderful nerd she is.

Millie to John "Dont do what u always do, not today" --> leads him directly to the room hes gonna die in. Irony at its finest.

A lot of irony in this episode, i realize now...

God I adore Carlos v vampires fight scene, its soo good. And its followed by the equally as fantastic Mary v vampires. Ahhh, I love them all so much.

Ppl really shouldn't fuck with Mary Campbell when shes pissed and worried.

I will miss the vamps tho... i really liked them :(

Ah yes, Winchester ingenuity at its finest... 🙈

I like what this ep says about how dead mans blood works? It implies that vampires literally drain the life force through the blood because the dead mans blood only came into effect once John did actually die - a few moments after he got bit thus implying a certain supernatural link between the blood just ingested and John's lifeforce. I vibe with that.

Ah yes... the full context - still drives me.mad. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN ROBBIE?! Especially with all the parallels TW has to SPN.

I appreciate the CPR not stopping until only after they think he really did die for good. U DONT stop CRP for dramatic pause ( advice to othee shows/movies or in ro aviz amatorilor)

Antoooooonnnnnn!

Anton and Carlos!!! 💓💓💓 yay!

And they're using their words! They're communicating guys 😭 im so proud

Damn... Mary and John are being cute too 🥲

Dun dun dun!

Betty and Kyle and Kyle is Akrida! 😱

Sorry, i dont got anything revealing or deep to say about the ending here 🤣🤣🤣 its all plot and relationships.

Aand so we reach the end of another episode, 4 more to go!

I will say time and distance made this episode easier to watch for me. 15x20 had fucked me up before and made it very hard to watch without refering back to it. It has several parallels to Dean and dying specifically. The main one ofc being death adjacent to vampires. But it also has John killing himself for the sake of the hunt which sadly doesn't bode well either because it reminds me of a really bad couple of weeks back in 2017 when i had the realization that Dean has literally been shown as suicidal every single season (and i can name the ep, its so clear) and then Advanced Thanatology hit the Tv screens on nov 9th 2017... not a fun realization and def not a fun series of events afterwards. Sorry to bring this up here, but well... its relevant sadly.

Thankfully tho, this episode works well to deconstruct that and to subvert the spn finale by allowing John to live and to fully embrace his realtionship with Mary.

In other news, next ep will anger me a bit... for.multiple reason, some having already been discussed by people better equiped to talk about it then me. But rest assured, ive shit to say outside of that too, so see y'all for ep 10. Im aiming to have that up by the end of the week.

And thanks to @noybusiness and @shallowseeker for encouranging me to continue this.

[911bts]

What We Know: 5B Edition

5x11: "Outside Looking In"

Writer(s): Bob Goodman

Director: Shauna Duggins

Air Date: March 21, 2022

Production Code: 511

Synopsis: "Athena, Bobby and the 118 ‘speed’ to the rescue to save a family whose pick-up truck has been rigged with a pipe bomb which will detonate if the vehicle slows under 55 miles an hour. Meanwhile, Eddie has a rough transition into his new job, Buck makes an impulsive relationship decision and Hen is reluctant to accept her new partner in Chimney's absence."

Guest Cast: Arielle Kebbel as Lucy Donato; Brad Durfee as Jonah Greenway; Anirudh Pisharody as Ravi; Megan West as Taylor Kelly

Stills: here

5x12: "Boston"

Writer(s): Lyndsey Beaulieu

Director: Dwight Little

Air Date: March 28, 2022

Production Code: 515

Synopsis: "Chimney is determined to find a missing Maddie amongst the chaos of St. Patrick's Day."

Guest Cast: not listed

Stills: here

5x13: "Fear-O-Phobia"

Writer(s): Andrew Meyers and Juan Carlos Coto

Director: Marcus Stokes

Air Date: April 11, 2022

Production Code: 512

Synopsis: "Athena investigates a robbery at a gas station that takes an unexpected turn when the would-be victim turns the tables on her assailant. Meanwhile, Bobby and the 118 race to rescue a novice diver who panics while in a shark cage, and a house sitter terrified of spiders. Then, Eddie reaches his breaking point, Chimney returns to the 118 and Maddie shares some news with Buck, who realizes he has to come clean with Taylor."

Guest Cast: Megan West as Taylor; Arielle Kebbel as Lucy Donato; Bryce Durfee as Jonah Greenway

Stills: here

5x14: "Dumb Luck"

Writer(s): Taylor Wong

Director: John J Gray

Airing Date: April 18th, 2022

Production Code: 513

Synopsis: "The members of the 118 race into action when a women falls over her penthouse balcony. Meanwhile, Athena investigates when a bike rider is impaled on a stop sign, Eddie begins his therapy for his PTSD and survivor's guilt and Maddie fears the worst when Jee-Yun falls ill."

Guest Cast: Tracie Thoms as Karen Wilson; Arielle Kebbel as Lucy Donato; Bryce Durfee as Jonah Greenway

Stills: here

5x15: "Fomo"

Writer(s): Nicole Barraza Keim

Director: Marita Grabiak

Airing Date: April 25, 2022

Production Code: 514

Synopsis: "The members of the 118 race to the rescue of a social media influencer when she has an accident in a sauna, then to an emergency at a reality show wedding, and finally a tragedy when a mother and her daughter go hiking. Meanwhile, Maddie worries she has missed too many firsts with Jee-Yun, May questions Athena's career path and Hen and Karen attempt to recapture the fun in their relationship."

Guest Cast: Tracie Thoms as Karen; Arielle Kebbel as Lucy Donato

Stills: here

5x16: "May Day"

Writer(s): Juan Carlos Coto

Director: Juan Carlos Coto

Airing Date: May 2, 2022

Production Code: 516

Synopsis: "The 118 races to the rescue when the 9-1-1 Call Center goes up in flames. Then, Bobby risks his life to save a trapped May and Claudette, Buck and Eddie work together to help an injured electrician and Chimney and his brother team up as firefighters for the first time."

Guest Cast: Tracie Thoms as Karen Wilson; John Harlan Kim as Albert; Arielle Kebbel as Lucy Donato; Brad Durfee as Jonah Greenway; Megan West as Taylor Kelly; Vanessa E. Williams as Claudette Collins; Bryan Safi as Josh Russo; Debra Christofferson as Sue Blevins; Chiquita Fuller as Linda Bates; Alex Loynaz as Terry Flores; Nick Cafero as Carson Hayes; Donny Carrington as Antoine Banks; Samantha Smith as Capt. Pamela Shore

Stills: here and here

5x17: "Hero Complex"

Writer(s): tbd

Director: Marita Grabiak

Airing Date: May 9, 2022

Production Code: 517

Synopsis: "After a mysterious death, Hen and Chimney put their lives in danger when they suspect that someone is playing God to make themselves look like a hero. Meanwhile, Eddie visits Texas, where he attempts to reconcile with his father"

Guest Cast: Tracie Thoms as Karen Wilson; Arielle Kebbel as Lucy Donato; Anirudh Pisharody as Ravi Panikkar; Megan West as Taylor Kelly; Brad Durfee as Jonah Greenway; Debra Christofferson as Sue Blevins; Chiquita Fuller as Linda Bates; Declan Pratt as Denny Wilson; George DelHoyo as Ramon Diaz; Paula Marshall as Helena Diaz; Ana Mercedes as Isabel Diaz; Terri Hoyos as Josefina

Stills: here

5x18: "Starting Over"

(Season Finale)

Writer(s): Kristen Reidel

Director: Kristen Reidel

Airing Date: May 16, 2022

Production Code: 518

Synopsis: "Another day in the life of the 118, as its members race to rescue a cliffside wellness retreat guru after his followers turn on him. Then, they respond to an emergency call at an upscale hair salon. Meanwhile, Maddie contemplates returning to work, Eddie and May make decisions on their future, as do Buck and Taylor, and the 118 gathers for a surprise wedding."

Guest Cast: Tracie Thoms as Karen Wilson; Marsha Warfield as Antonia ‘Toni’ Wilson; Arielle Kebbel as Lucy Donato; Anirudh Pisharody as Ravi Panikkar; Megan West as Taylor Kelly; Debra Christofferson as Sue Blevins; Chiquita Fuller as Linda Bates; Declan Pratt as Denny Wilson;

Stills: here

[antoine-roquentin]

Twenty-four-year-old Lauren Mestas was already having a bad day when she noticed a cop car tailing her northbound on Interstate 35, headed into downtown Austin. She wasn’t overly concerned at first, as she wasn’t breaking any laws, but the patrol vehicle remained on her tail as she exited onto Riverside Drive, headed west. She started to suspect that it might have something to do with the slogans soaped all over the windows of her 2001 Toyota 4Runner. In addition to “BROWN PRIDE” and “BLACK LIVES MATTER,” written across the rear window were the words “FUCK THESE RACIST POLICE.”

Two days earlier and not even a mile away, a few blocks south of the Texas Capitol in the center of Austin, Mestas had witnessed an off-duty Army sergeant named Daniel Perry shoot and kill an Air Force veteran named Garrett Foster, who had been at a BLM protest with an AK-47 slung across his chest, pushing his quadruple-amputee fiancée in a wheelchair. At the sound of gunfire, Mestas and two other young women had fled across Congress Avenue, the main downtown boulevard, and hidden behind a column of the Frost Bank Tower. In the process, she had accidentally lost her cell phone, as well as the remote control to open the gates of her apartment complex.

That night, on arriving home, she’d parked in an ungated portion of the sprawling, 42-building apartment complex, located in far South Austin. Badly shaken by the shooting, she must have confused the spot, because when she went out the next morning, a Sunday, she couldn’t seem to find the 4Runner anywhere. “I was not in a good headspace,” she told me. “I thought somebody had stolen my car.”

She called the city’s non-emergency line to report the suspected theft. Eight hours later, she stumbled across the 4Runner while walking her dog, a chihuahua named Optimus Prime, and redialed 311 to retract the stolen vehicle report. The operator, Mestas told me, assured her that the 4Runner’s vehicle identification number and license plate number would be removed from the police department’s stolen vehicle list, and gave her a confirmation number for verification, should she happen to get pulled over.

Monday morning, she went to her job at Planet K, the longtime Austin smoke shop where she was employed as a shift lead. She had yet to recover, emotionally, from witnessing Foster’s murder. “I spent two hours on my shift sobbing,” she told me. “I had just seen somebody get shot and killed. I was pretty much catatonic.” A little after 10 a.m., her manager sent her to the bank to break $200 into small bills and coins. She took Optimus Prime with her for company.

It was on the way to the bank that the cop car picked up her tail. The officer, a state trooper from the Texas Department of Public Safety, or DPS, later filed an incident report which made clear that his reason for running a license plate check was that, in his words, “the vehicle had anti law enforcement rhetoric scribble [sic] all over the outside.” He followed her for a mile on Riverside Drive along the south shore of Ladybird Lake, and waited a full five minutes to hit the siren and lights.

“Oh my God,” Mestas thought, surmising what must have happened. “They think I stole my car.”

She panicked, and instead of pulling over, she came to a dead stop in the middle of the First Street Bridge, blocking the inside lane. The spot where she braked to a halt might well have been the precise geographic center of Austin, with Ladybird Lake flowing beneath her toward Longhorn Dam, Auditorium Shores and all of South Austin to her rear, and City Hall directly in front of her. It was 10:40 on a weekday morning, and normally the bridge would have been packed with traffic, but four months into the pandemic, there were hardly any other cars.

The state trooper, Garrett Ray, was joined by a second DPS officer, Jason Melson. Instead of approaching the 4Runner, they drew their service weapons and took cover behind the open doors of their patrol vehicles. According to Ray’s incident report, it was an “HRS,” or high-risk stop, also known as a felony stop: a procedure employed when an officer believes that someone in the car has committed a serious crime and could be dangerous.

The tactical terminology is worth noting because earlier that very same morning, the Austin Police Department had released damning dashcam footage of officers shooting and killing an unarmed man named Michael Ramos in a high-risk or felony stop that, like this one, had been based on faulty dispatch information. A 911 caller reported that Ramos and a woman had been using drugs in a parked car, and that he was holding a gun. Ramos had been spooked by the sight of eight armed officers pointing weapons and screaming at him to get his hands up. When he tried to flee, one of the officers opened fire with an assault rifle. APD later confirmed there was no gun in Ramos’s possession.

One hour after Mestas was pulled over, at 11:40 a.m., I happened to come across the scene by accident. I was riding my bike around Ladybird Lake, and I counted at least 40 DPS vehicles blocking the south end of the First Street Bridge. There had to be 80 cops on scene by that time, if not 100. The emergency vehicles included a fire truck, an ambulance, and two BearCat armored personnel carriers.

Every minute or so, a mechanical RoboCop-like voice repeated, “Driver, exit the vehicle with your hands up.” The dystopian intonation sounded over Auditorium Shores, where a crowd of people who had been exercising or playing with their dogs had gathered on the sidewalk to watch the spectacle unfold.

[truckattorneylaw]

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Address : 180 Broadway #1810

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Phone     :   (619) 830-5464

Website :   https://www.truckaccidentattorneylaw.com/

"Representing victims of truck crashes requires specific knowledge of the laws and regulations that apply to the trucking business and knowledge of the industry standards and practices that apply to drivers and others in the trucking business.

Steve Hoffman is one of the few trial attorneys in the country who not only holds a Commercial Driver’s License, but who has spent thousands of hours behind the wheel, driving big rigs. As the co-founder and owner of a trucking company for over ten years, Steve also managed the maintenance and safety programs following Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations, and spent a lot of time in the garage, inspecting, maintaining and repairing the fleet of Class 8 tractor trailers. It’s his prior experience in the trucking industry that gives Steve an edge over most other lawyers.

Before college, Steve worked as a forklift operator in a lumber yard before taking off to West Texas to work as a roughneck on oil rigs for two years. He also worked as a blasthole driller, worked in construction as a framer, as a mason and as a heavy equipment operator before going back to college and then law school. Steve applies the work ethic he learned in those years to his law practice today.

Steve earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Miami, then obtained his law degree from Pepperdine University School of Law in 1992. He clerked for United States Magistrate Judge James E. Kenkel in the District of Maryland and interned with the Federal Defender of Maryland.

Steve opened the Law Office of Steve Hoffman in 2005 and focuses his practice on trucking accidents, car and motorcycle accidents and constitutional law. He is admitted to practice in all state courts in California, the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Central Districts of California, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veteran Claims. He is a member of the Consumer Attorneys of San Diego and the San Diego County Bar Association."

Keywords :   truck accident  Injury Attorney At San Diego, CA .  Law at San Diego, CA . Lawyer At San Diego, CA . Legal at San Diego, CA

Hour :   Mon-Fri: 8:00AM-6:00PM

[nova-rogue]

If you’re unaware, there was a 100-car pile-up on Interstate 35 West today in Fort Worth, Texas. There had been freezing rain very early in the day and this particular stretch of interstate was covered with quite the long ice slick. Around 6:30 am, in the dark, after a semi-truck jackknifed on the ice, cars kept piling up behind it, because they not only had trouble seeing, but also had absolutely no grip.

The city of Fort Worth has claimed that there is “not enough” icy weather to warrant things like salt and sand trucks, but every single year there are dozens of accidents involving ice that frequently injure and sometimes even kill. The narrative of there being “not enough” is complete and utter hogwash, the truth is that the city does not want to spend the money that it takes to get a few trucks that can salt and sand roads in order to prevent massive emergencies from happening.

All it took was once for an unusually large stretch of ice to occur naturally for over 100 people to become trapped in a massive crash that is still being cleaned up and cleared out nearly 11 hours later.

People have taken to Twitter and disgustingly replying with how “stupid” Texans are when it comes to driving, one even citing the incident as “Darwinism at work”. This is deplorable. Yes, living here for the past 3 winters I can say that people down here are not good drivers, they over-drive road conditions and speed erratically, but this is not just a case of bad driving. The truck driver that caused the crash was over-driving road conditions. He was speeding at nearly 80 MPH on a stretch of ice. But the fact of the matter is the city of Fort Worth should be properly equipped with salt and sand trucks to ensure the safety of their citizens, and schools and employers should not be expecting anyone to have to drive on unsafe road conditions to get to their destinations.

This problem is not the result of a bad driver. It goes far deeper than that, to a systematic problem in which a city purposefully refuses to aid its citizens in order to prevent death and injury.

This is abhorrent and the city of Fort Worth should be held accountable.

[buydriver1]

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Reyna Law Firm

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[meditationsfromthethirdrail]

Credentials and Credibility

I’ve written about polarization and about empathy, rights and responsibilities in the last couple of blog posts.  I have a long list of interrelated topics to cover before the November elections and I plan to keep plowing through them.  But I’m well aware that my voice is a candle in the wind, to borrow the phrase used by T.H. White in the title of his tale about King Arthur’s dream of a more egalitarian and peaceful society.  The number of readers of my blog thus far may barely run into double digits and that may never change.  We are all drowning in information (and misinformation) unless we are either so socioeconomically disadvantaged as to be denied access or are actively disengaged from media.  People in either category aren’t reading this.

With all the competition for the attention of readers and listeners, if someone wants to be heard above the din, he or she either has to have a forceful personality and a good platform, or actually have something important to say.  I may not have either of those.  Readers will judge for themselves.  But it occurred to me that I ought to at least provide a little background about myself, which may or may not compel you to hear me.  So here it is.

My story is not one of hard knocks and resentment - it’s a success story.  There are a lot of ways to define success but I feel like I’ve grabbed a nice assortment of brass rings during my almost-seven decades on the planet.  I’ve had a long and happy marriage to an incredible woman; I’ve traveled extensively (six continents and all fifty states) and lived for substantial periods in many states; I have three degrees from a major college; I attained a modestly high position in a large, global professional services firm and was financially well rewarded for my efforts; and I have many hobbies and interests that make it easy for me to stay fully occupied in retirement.  Most importantly, I’m happy and at peace with myself and others.  One could argue that these successes may have caused me to be out of touch with those who’ve enjoyed fewer of them, but I don’t think that’s entirely true, and I’ll try to suggest why.

My parents were the son and daughter of a sharecropper and a truck farmer/itinerant salesman, respectively, in rural Mississippi.  They grew up during the Great Depression. They were married and gave life to my older brother when they were still in their teens.  My dad dropped out of high school to sign up for the Army and served in the European theater in WWII.  After the war he got a G.E.D. and served as a tractor mechanic for a while.  Around the time I was born he was hired by a prominent agricultural implement manufacturing company, which led to him being transferred from Mississippi to Maryland to Ohio to Idaho to Oregon and to Iowa in order to earn promotions, and with family in tow.  Later he also transferred to Texas, Missouri and Georgia, after I was left behind to attend college in Iowa.  In those days it was possible to rise pretty high in the ranks of a business like my dad’s, without a glittery collegiate resume, if you worked hard and were willing to uproot yourself and your family whenever it was called for.  So my dad eventually did rise fairly high in the ranks, and in the meantime my mom scrambled her way to a B.A., then taught high school English for a short time.

All’s well that ends well, as Shakespeare once said.  My parents came a long way from the dusty fields where they picked cotton for 50 cents a day.  My own road to success was much easier than theirs.  During most of my childhood our family was financially situated about in the dead center of what was then considered middle class.  My parents were not rich, although they accumulated modest wealth later in life, and they were always frugal, so I grew up with very few toys and a mostly empty closet.  My parents were not the type to devote much time attending to my personal pursuits, other than to quietly demand that I get good grades in school.  So I wouldn’t say I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth, but I understand that’s a relative thing.  I certainly wasn't lavished with material things as a child, but I never went hungry or worried about having a roof over my head.

Aside from a base level of financial and emotional support and protection, the best thing my parents gave me was a solid education in a robust public school system.  This was a pre Betty Devos era.  Fortunately I had just enough innate ambition (or willingness to succumb to my parents’ expectations) and intelligence to perform in the upper tier, academically.  I could have done better but I often didn’t “apply myself,” as they say.  In retrospect I realize I had ADHD but few people understood or cared about that back then.

My college record was spotty at first, but ultimately pretty good.  I had almost no grasp of what I wanted to do with my life.   As a result, I had an abnormally extended adolescence, to roughly age 27.  Maybe I was a trendsetter; I see a lot more of that happening with young people today.  In any case I considered, at various times and among other things, becoming a Baptist minister (I was licensed and briefly attended seminary), an English professor (I have an M.A. in English and instructed freshman writing courses for three years), a novelist and poet (insufficient talent and discipline derailed that plan), and a hotel manager (nah).   A happy accident of my wandering and indecision was that I acquired a lot of knowledge that later paid off in surprising ways I’ll come back to later.  I was financially very poor the entire time, which gave me considerable perspective on what it means to be concerned about affording basics such as food and transportation.

I vividly remember the catalysts for my decision to enter the social mainstream. One was the fallout from a poker game I got into with some friends.  One of my “friends” was a notoriously unethical character who, one late evening when I was especially unlucky and perhaps too full of beer, lured me into some bad bets that resulted in a $700 debt to him.  At that time, when I was working several crummy part-time jobs to afford food and my $50 share of the rent on a slum-quality house we shared with two other guys, $700 dollars seemed like a million dollars.  I didn't realize and no one told me that on the very next evening the same group of friends gathered for another poker game as I was licking my wounds and trying to form a plan.  I was not present to witness the scene in which the guy whom I was newly indebted to suffered an equally humiliating loss - a loss that was forgiven by the victor on the condition that the loser would also forgive my loss.  My friends assumed that Bart (not his real name, or is it?) would inform me that I was off the hook.  He did not.

For the first time in my life, I devised a budget in order to determine how I could repay Bart the debt that didn’t actually exist, because that’s the kind of guy I am.  I believed, and I still do, that a person is morally and ethically responsible for meeting whatever commitments he or she enters into.  So  I scrambled for more hours working as a church janitor, a tutor and a library assistant; I ate Kraft macaroni and cheese almost every day (30 cents a box, if I recall); I stayed in my room as if I had contracted the then-undreamt-of coronavirus; and I turned over every penny that didn’t go for rent and minimal food to Bart in three monthly installments until I was finally clear.  I was six feet tall but my weight fell to about 140 pounds.  On the day I forked over the last $200, Bart skipped town, just as the news finally arrived that I wasn’t supposed to have owed that debt.

That sordid chapter concluded with me taking a job, out of sheer desperation, in a factory where I was paid a below-minimum wage to operate a machine which applied mailing labels to printed advertisements.  It was mind-numbing.  There were perhaps another 100 workers in that factory doing the same thing I was doing.  The output of each worker was measured daily by the factory management.  By the end of the first week I was the most productive mailing label attacher in the factory.  To keep myself from going insane, I approached my task as if it were a game and challenged myself each shift to beat my previous day’s output, which I always did.  During my brief lunch breaks I used to surreptitiously glance around at the other workers and I understood exactly what Thoreau meant when he opined that the mass of men live lives of quiet desperation.  I don’t know if he was right about “the mass of men,” but he certainly could have been describing that crew at the factory.

In my second week at the factory I met another newly-hired college guy whose wife and he were trying to save enough money to move to Los Angeles so he could take a shot at professional acting - this was his second job.  Chatting with him during lunch breaks, i was inspired by his desire to fulfill a dream and the difficult steps he was taking to do it.  I listened to him, I looked around at the hollow-eyed, middle-aged folks who had worked for years operating labeling machines, and I squirmed as I considered what a sap I was for racking up a poker debt and falling victim to a con man.  i abruptly abandoned the factory but I felt so discombobulated that I enlisted my good buddy John to drive out to Idaho with me so I could visit my brother and try to get my shit together.  By the end of that brief sojourn out west, the best job offer I could manage was from Roto-Rooter . . . to work in the field, as it were.  Wake up call!

If you’ve read this far you must be wondering how any of this supports the notion that I’m qualified to write about sociopolitical matters.  It doesn’t, except to demonstrate that I have at least a small measure of “street cred.”  But the best is yet to come.  When I returned to Iowa I found a better job in a hotel.   Initially I was a night auditor, which is a position that involves being a desk clerk part of the time and an accountant the rest of the time.  Only a small step forward, financially, but it gave me a taste for something I had never previously thought about doing for even one minute.  Accounting, I quickly learned, was something I had a natural aptitude for, and in some quirky way I found it interesting.  Once again I viewed my duties as a sort of game, but this was a game that lit up my brain much more brightly than did operating a machine to perform an exceptionally repetitive task.  

My whole life is a series of lucky breaks at critical junctures.  In this instance the break was that I met a co-worker - a guy who shared the hotel night auditor position with me - who had previously worked for a large CPA firm.  He had taken the part-time hotel job because he was trying to become a full-time stock trader and that’s what he was doing during the day.  From him I learned what it is that CPAs in a big firm actually do.  Let me assure you I’m not going to get into that subject, in case you were already feeling the dread.  (Thank God for actuaries - the only people who make accountants seem slightly interesting.)  Suffice it to say that I figured out how I could minimize the additional schooling I would need to become qualified to be a CPA and I decided to take a stab at it.

I kept the hotel job but started carrying a heavy load of college classes - accounting, math, economics, law, etc.  It so happened that I met my future wife, who was just finishing her Interior Design degree at the same college, about the same time I took the first tentative steps down my new career path.  That was even more fortuitous - I give her lots of credit for helping me stay the course.  The two years in which I went to college in the day, worked at the hotel at night, and struggled to get our new romance off the ground, was “character-building,” to say the least.  I can barely remember anything about that period, it was such a blur.  To give you an idea of how much of a blur it was, the major highlight I remember was driving with my new spouse to Des Moines to dine at Spaghetti Works.  $5 for beer-and-cheese spaghetti, all-you-can-eat salad bar and a glass of swill.  Heaven!

When the two hellish years finally ended and I received my B.S. in Accounting, I had already lined up a job in Des Moines as an auditor with one of the Big 8 (at that time) accounting firms.  Not long afterward, I passed the CPA exam and my wife landed a spot with a local design firm, and we were on our way.

Ok, at last I’m where I possibly should have started. In the ensuring three decades I continued to work as a CPA, becoming a partner along the way (meaning that I became one of the owners), and developing a specialization working with clients in the financial services industry - investment management companies and banking and finance companies, primarily.  This is the good part, folks.  My career soon took me from Iowa to New York City, where my background in English earned me the privilege of being a key designer and the principal author of new practice guidance for our international firm, which was just merging with another large international firm.  That put me in the spotlight for a time and gave me a leg up for promotion.  After the merger we relocated to Los Angeles, where I worked with some of the most prominent investment management companies in the world, and numerous banks, mortgage banks and other financial institutions.  Finally we moved to southeast Pennsylvania and I split time engaged with clients there and in California, and with our national financial services practice in New York.

Late, late nights on Wall Street helping to prepare financial offerings with hundreds of millions of dollars on the line.  Late, late nights at client offices in L.A., San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, New York and Philadelphia, managing teams of young accountants to deal with complex accounting problems under tremendous pressure.  Board meetings, fee negotiations, staff meltdowns, discoveries of fraud and malfeasance, financial crises in which I was an inside observer.  A 60-hour work week felt almost like a vacation compared to many weeks with even longer hours.  It was enough to give me PTSD.  I don’t want to overstate it - it wasn’t like actual life or death combat PTSD - but I still have nightmares ten years and more after the fact.

That’s a very quick summary of the 30+ years in which I obtained hard-won knowledge about global finance and economics - a period in which I also had a lot of experiences with politics, charitable organizations and other components of society I didn’t have time to get into today.  I still spend a lot of time staying informed about subjects ranging from psychology and mythology to current events and hard science.  There’s a ton I still don’t know.  But as my all-time favorite singer Joni Mitchell famously said, I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now.

[gamsbo]

I ended up in a gang trunk with five men in Goldsmith, Texas as the first woman and, at that point in time, the only woman in the field for a major oil company. My son read a story I had written ( I am woman Hear Me Roar ) and said, “you should have written more and made it more like a story.” Well, I am not a writer, but he is right. Sadly, I do not know how to write that way.

Remembering the Oilfield – or The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

The good: I have to laugh because I cannot remember that much good. I remember some “okay.” I did not make any lifelong friendships. I remember faces, not names. The only good is I made a very good living and as a single mom (after 2 years in the field) that was very important. So I will tell you a few stories. Mainly they fall in the category of bad and ugly.

On the first day, there were three of us about the same age: a black man, a Hispanic man, and a white woman – quite a motley crew. I think we all went in with the feeling that this was a job, and once we got the hang of it everything would be all right. Boy were we wrong! For the men it was not so bad, but for the white woman it was different.

So let me tell you about a few of the accidents and some of the unkind behavior I was met with. I want to tell you, the oilfield was neither the safest place in the world to work, nor was it the friendliest. That is not to say working in an office is always safe or friendly.

My first introduction into the oilfield was that of a “roustabout.” It just means that you are going to ride around in a big truck with about six other people and you fix whatever needs fixing. I did this for six months.

I really lucked out that the gang pusher (boss) was the most unsafe person I had ever met in my life. We would drive up to a pump jack to fix whatever needed to be fixed (pump jacks have counter weights. If you are hit by one you are dead). It was his job to turn the pump jack off. Well, he did not always do his job. About the time you were ready to work, you would hear “click” and you knew it was coming on. You had one option: hit the dirt and roll. I did that a few times. In fact, in a safety meeting we were asked if there was anything the company could do to make things safer and we all pointed to him.

So here goes a few more stories of the good, the bad and the ugly.

The gang truck as a rule has five people (at least the one I worked in did), the driver, the pusher and three others all called “roustabouts.” As I was thinking about writing about the gang truck something funny came back: the smell inside the truck. I can tell you without a doubt it could have used extra-strength air refresher, and I am not sure that would have helped. I had very little trouble with the men in the truck, except one and some of the things he did to me border on just downright meanness.

There were three in the truck that had started with me. When I think of my days in the gang truck, three things come to mind. First, in West Texas it gets really hot in the summer time, the rattlesnakes come out, and we killed quite a few. One day we killed one and one of the men thought it would be funny to scare me with it. He knew that I had a book that I would work in as we went from job to job (I was taking API courses) and would lay it on the seat when we got out of the truck, so he took the dead snake, put it under the book knowing that when I got back in the truck I would reach for the book and come up with a hand full of rattlesnake. I did and it scared me so badly that I went over the front seat, knocked the pusher out of the truck, and the snake landed on him.

Second, we were working on a tank and the same man felt it would be neat to throw the hatch open as I stood over it. I was hit with H2S (Hydrogen sulfide – it kills – look up “Andrew, Texas and H2S” in the late 70s or early 80s. It killed a family of 13 from a leak of a wellhead near their home). I do not remember two hours of my life. I am told they just sat me to the side. All I know is I had headache for about two days, but he was not through with me.

Third, he was acting pusher and we had to clean up after an oil leak. This involved a lot of digging and shoveling. I ended up with a blister that covered the palm of my hand. He thought it was funny even when I asked if I could stop digging. This is not the only things he said or did to me but I remember these because I did not understand why a person would treat another person they way he was treating me.

I said that I lucked out and got the most unsafe gang pusher in the world. Well, I can tell the weather by the pain from my neck to my big toe. He did not cause all of it . He was okay, but he was just waiting for retirement.

I said my big toe and shoulder hurt. This is because of the gang pusher (boss). First the big toe: it was just he and I and we had to go level some counter weights. To do that you have this big box of tools and you put it on a big bolt and hit the end of it with a 16-pound sledge hammer. Someone had to make sure that the tool did not come off the bolt as the other person hits the end of the tool (which is about a foot and a half long) so Mr. gang pusher says, “Lynda, put your foot up on the tool so I can hit it and it doesn’t move”. It did not move, because he missed and hit my foot. It bent the steel (I had on steel toed boots) into my big toe. Let your mind go to the word PAIN! I was scared to take my boot off because he was telling me my toe most likely had been cut off and will be in my sock when I take my boot off, because this happened to someone else he knew. The toe was still attached, but that was not the end of him teaching me how to work in the oilfield.

Yep, it was just the two of us again and we had to do some work on a pump jack (not one of the grasshoppers but just regular size). We needed something that would put us about five feet up to do the job. No ladder for him. There were some old boards lying around the site, so we built a scaffold. I kept telling him, “this is not going to hold us,” and he was laughing at me saying, “what’s the matter? You scared?” I was not scared because I thought five was not that far to fall straight down. We were up there doing the work and heard a loud crack. We knew we were going down, but the man who had been making fun of me climbed me like a pole, causing me to come down and hit the side of the pump jack and break my shoulder, but he was okay.

Asst. Water Plant Operator and Plant Operator

I left the gang truck to become assistant Water Plant Operator and later Plant Operator. Things got better in some ways and stayed the same in others. I had two really good bosses. The head supervisor was an old Navy man. If it walked, you saluted it. If it stayed still, you painted it. There are a few things that happened that I would not write about. I worked with Well Service hands – people who did not work for Gulf Oil – they could be, and were very crude. The man I had a problem with did work for Gulf. He was in his 50s, his mouth was unbelievable, and he called me every name in the book. Oh, but then it got funny. A friend invited me to go to church, and when I walked in, there he stood as the greeter. He also was the head Elder. When he saw me, he turned white. I thought he was going to pass out! I walked over and told him it was okay. I was not going to tell the people of the church what type of human being he really was. It was funny: most of the men who were so crude to me in the field were so different if I ran into them with their wives or families. My job at the water floor plant was to maintain six turbojet engines, a thousand HP engine, plus smaller pumps and charts.

There are two memories from the Water Plant that stand out: one I will not write about except to say it was the worst sexual harassment problem I had in the field. The second was a water leak. I stayed at work for four days (got a good paycheck out of it). What made it worse than most leaks is that the welders were fixing the leak in the hole where the water was. We were told to watch a gauge and if it went past 38 PSI, it could kill the welders in the hole. I had a young man working with me and we would take turns watching the gauge. It got to 38 PSI once and we both nearly killed ourselves getting to the pumps that needed to be shut off. It was a strange feeling to know that if you did not do your job you could cause someone’s death. I went home on the fourth day and I can tell you, I was tired, and I sure did not smell good.

You know, I am sitting here thinking of so many of the things that happened: like when I was changing the fuse in the electric box and the door would not stay up, so I let it rest on my head (I had my hard hat and gloves on). When I was putting the new fuse in, I touched the wrong wire and my head hurt for a week. I had a boss who really had a problem with a woman working for him. When I first met him, I knew it was not going to be good, because he said, “lady I did not want you but they said I had to take you.” He gave me every dirty job there was. One of the jobs was repairing and cleaning all the chemical pumps to the point where my hands were burnt. After awhile, I would sit after lunch with my pocket knife and cut the dead skin off.

There are so many things I could tell you about and so many things I will not tell you about. Some were funny: like the time my dad was in a coffee shop (as a rule ,there is one place most oilfield hands go for coffee before going to the field) and he could hear the man sitting behind him talking about the “lady” that was coming to Andrews as a lease operator (by this time I had left Gulf Oil and was now working for ARCO). The man was saying things that no father wants to hear said about his daughter; so my dad picked the man up out of his seat and was letting him have it. About that time the local state trooper walked in and told my dad, “Woody, you can put the man down or you can hit him. If you hit him it will cost you $167.” My dad went home that night and had to explain to my mom why he needed $167.

Lease Operator

As a lease operator I had 186 wells with tank batteries that I had to take care of each day. Most days, nothing special happened. You just did your job, but once in awhile the day was rough. On one of these rough days I had a well that was driving everyone crazy. We were going to need water to float the pump down, so we had a water truck on site at the cost of $50 an hour. We were waiting for the pump and the company kept telling us that it would be ready real soon. My boss told me to stay on top of it. At lunch time, there was still no pump, so the gang pushers said they were going to lunch and that I should also. I called the man one more time and he told me that he would not be there until after lunch, so I went to lunch. As I was eating, I heard a truck radio. It was my boss, and he was not talking very nicely. It seems he had been talking with the pump man and he had told him that I had called and told him not to bring the pump until after lunch, which was a lie. It got really funny. The old man drove up with the pump and as he was rolling down his window he was saying, “oh, Lynda I am sorry, I will tell Mack (my boss) that I lied about you.” I was so angry that I reached inside his half open window and started pulling him out. The gang pusher had to pull me off of him. We floated the pump down and everyone went about their business.

About two weeks later I needed another pump so I called and the old man was working that Sunday. He was scared of me, but he knew he had to bring me the pump so he asked, “is there anyone with you?” I told him, “no, just me.” He did not come by himself. He brought his son-law with him. As a woman you had to fight this type of stuff all the time.

Back to Roustabout in Mississippi

I have spoken about working in Mississippi. When I went to Mississippi, I had to start over. Although I was still working for Gulf (but for personal reasons I had asked for this transfer), I became a roustabout again: back to the gang truck. I remembered how bad it was, but it was not always the men in the field. Sometimes, it was the supervisors.

As it became evident that I could not work for these men, I would ask for a transfer. I would give the paper work to the man who was over me, he would look at me, rip the paper up and throw it into his trash can. This went on for a few months. I called and talked to the EEOC. They told me what I could and could not do. The odds did not seem to be in my favor.

It seemed to me that the best thing for me to do was to see what jobs were out there for me. I was lucky and I found more than one. Shell wanted me to go off shore but for me that was a NO-GO because I would not be allowed to have a lock on my door as I slept. I was offered other jobs, but because I wanted to move back to West Texas, I took the one with ARCO (I have already talked about working for ARCO), and looking back it was not the best choice. I have always had a bit of sadness about leaving Gulf – not leaving Mississippi – but leaving the company.

Production Supervisor

I left ARCO and went to work for Enserch as a Production Supervisor. Things were better there because I was the boss. It did not stop everything, but one of the things that happened, I can laugh at now. We had a well Service Crew and one of my jobs was to sign their time sheets. Day after day I would go into their dog house and on the walls were some of the most vulgar pictures of women I had ever seen. They thought they were being really cute, but they soon learned I was the company woman. I went to a well site one morning and heard, “come sign our paper work.” My answer was, “no.”

They asked me why and I told them when they took the pictures down I would sign their timesheets. They thought I was joking. This went on for a few days. They even went to the supervisor and asked him to sign. He said “no.” They were standing their ground. I knew who owned the company (he was the mayor of Odessa at the time) and knew at some point he was going ask why he was not getting time sheets. One day he came to the site (he knew me from some work I had done on his election). When he was through, there were no pictures on the walls of the dog house, and he had his signed work sheets. Did more pictures go back up? I’m sure they did, but they were very mild.

The other thing I remember on that job is when Halliburton fracked the well, they misread some of the directions. The request was for 20,000 pounds of round sand but they used 40,000 pounds of square sand. For the next few weeks they did everything they could to bring the well back in, but they became the proud parents of a well that only produced sand.

Eastern New Mexico University – Roswell

Around this time I had been offered a teaching position at Eastern New Mexico University Roswell, teaching Petroleum Technology. The money was not as good and I would not have a company car or an expense account. It was something I really had to think about until one day when I went to pick my son up at school. He was walking home. I noticed as I got closer to him that he had blood on his face. Like any mother, that shook me up. I picked him up and asked what had happened. He did not want to tell me. In time he did. It seems he had been defending me and my job in the oilfield. I do not know all that was said, but it did help me make up my mind.

I left working in the oilfield only to find so many of the same problems in the teaching of it! Oh, the joys of being a woman!

When I went to work at the Oilfield Training Center at ENMU-R, I was the first and only woman, but had a good relationship with the men who had been teaching there a few years. As with my first year at Gulf Oil, I became “show and tell.” My boss and the school had me speaking all the local clubs like the Lions Club, Association of Desk and Derrick Clubs, among others. When the women students began to have problems with some of the teachers, my boss put me over the women. They were allowed to come to me with their problems with the teachers. This did not make me popular with my peers.

I started “Women of the Oilfield Training Center.” I would bring speakers in from different companies. It’s funny. One day, I looked up, and there were two guys at the meeting. After that it was as many men as women. By doing this, I was able to get job interviews – and yes – jobs for a lot of the students. I did two other things that did not help my relationship with them. In a production class, I put the students in groups and they had to research and build on a board an Oilfield supply yard, pipes, pumpjacks, trucks, tools, and just anything that would be in a supply yard. The project counted as 50% of their grade. What made the men upset is they did not think of it and the project made the front page of the Roswell Newspaper. Working with the students we (me as their leader) arranged a brunch for the editor of a major petroleum magazine. Among those present: a Congressman’s wife, the Lt. Governor of New Mexico, the Mayor of Roswell, and other VIPs from the main campus and around the state. The male teachers not wanting to take part in this kind of took it out on me. It did not help that this also made the paper. I was becoming too successful. I was a threat – just like Gov. Palin is to her supposedly conservative colleagues in the Republican Party.

The bottom line was because I was show and tell, and did things with the students that made the paper…and I think the principal factor: the school was hiring the men I had encountered in the field. They just had different names and wore clean clothes.

KOSA Merit Award, Vocational Education Teacher of the Year.

ENMU-R gives the KOSA Merit award at the end of the spring term just before the summer session commences. The award comes in two versions: Academic and Vocational Education. The teacher’s peers and president of the student body vote on the who should be awarded. I was given the award as the Outstanding Vocational Education teacher. It was the first time that a first year teacher won the award, and the winner also received $500. A plaque listing the names of all the winners hangs in the ENMU-R library, and my name is listed there for the 1981 – 1982 term.

Closing Thoughts

I wrote this to talk about what happened to me, but I will say this:

the men and women who work in the oilfields all over the world so that we can have gas for our cars (this includes the ones working in the plants), heat our homes, and do so many other things that are petroleum based work hard and it is not always safe. I learned that you had to be aware of everything going on around you. Yes there is more, but it is buried too deep after all these years and it is still hard to talk about…

I lived through it and now I just take a lot of Ibuprofen…