I didn't figure that the story was being told to management.  I had my doubts anyway and had to speak it for myself.  So sitting there speaking to the dude that said he had talked to management - well I wasn't convinced.  Just happened that the store manager walked up. "So, did you know that the brakes on that trailer are inoperative?"  Pretty blunt, yes and to the point. But I didn't just stop there, I told him the story of picking up the trailer down south and testing the brakes right off the bat. 

It's a task I do every day before going anywhere in any semi - test the trailer brakes. First time in my life, actually, that I got the truck rolling, shifted into neutral and pulled that handle that puts on the trailer brakes only - to have NOTHING happen. He looks at me funny after that and says, well, Eugene says the brakes work a little. They don't work great but they work. NO, I rebutted, they do NOT work!  The man I was talking with finally backed me up.  Nope,and started to tell a story of another driver that had the trailer in Baton Rouge that had trouble getting the thing to slow down on "Rainbow Bridge"  - apparently a very high and very steep bridge over the Mississippi River.  

Well, I'm thinking after he tells this story, how the h*** long has this thing been like this? I then went into how unsafe that truck is, how much trouble whoever is driving it could get into, on and on.  Please, let's take CARE of this situation.

After that?  All hell breaks loose. How's come no-one said anything about this?  Give me a break. I am the new comer and I have to do all of this?  Those other drivers what, living in fear? I don't care! I am risking my career to drive a thing in that condition!  I GET THE TICKET, IT GOES ON MY RECORD, I HAVE TO PAY THE FINE!  And whatever other things may happen, such as a very dark spot on my truck records that are on a nationwide data base for employers to see that I was caught driving a truck in bad condition and unsafe to motoring public? BS!

Floodgate was opened after management said no, that truck isn't going anywhere tomorrow but the shop! Well h***, that thing isn't even safe to drive to the shop! But I didn't say that, I'll take that over nothing at all.  

I know, I gotta big mouth sometimes, but almost always it's to help a cause', in this case: MY cause!

ben