DO NOT TAKE THE Minnesota State Police Driver Fatigue survey

Mn has what? three scales? The I90 scale is the easiest scale in all lower 48 to bypass so you never have to go through it. (going east take exit 45 go south on highway 60 to highway 59 Take highway 59 south about 1 mile to corner where John Deere dealer is and turn east on MN county highway 35. Go east several miles to MN state highway 264 where you turn north till you get to exit 50 I90) The St Paul scale I can't talk much about cause I only go through it occasionally. I can't even remember where number three might be. Of course, ya got the temporary scale coming south out of Twin cities going to Iowa but I've never seen it open. MN is heaven compared to CO, SD, NE, and IL.

I'll take a ten hour break happily anytime MN wants to give me one cause if I'm in MN I'm probably driving illegally anyway no matter what my log books ( I mean my book of lies) says. With my ten hours off I'll finally have time to use the digital TV in my new $1300 HP laptop that spends all of its time hiding in the closet in my bunk next to the Mt Dew bottles full of pee that I save for return to get my Iowa 5 cent deposit back.

 

If i do take a quick nap i always pull into a rest area. I was not saying that i can't read signs. I don't park on ramps that say "no parking". If i feel the need to rest i either find the wayside or a gas station parking lot. I run Hwy 18 a lot from mason city to cedar rapids in Iowa and there aren't any rest stops on there, so thats where i use gas stations.

 

I think MN has 6 permenant sites and lots of pull off sites with no coop. Now this week they will probably use the pull off sites for the CVSA nationwide check. There is a pull off site just south of Forest Lake that they only use 1-2 times per year, but when they do its about 20-30 bears on each side. They do a lot of training for local officers on the CVSA 3 day roadcheck.

 

According to the Landline Now radio show: A state cannot be sued over this. There is some sort of federal law that prohibits that...However, OOIDA is suing the officers themselves that put the drivers out of service. Plus they are suing the officer's supervisors that knowingly allowed the use of this 'checklist'. It turns out that this is considered a form of law enforcement interrogation...thus forcing them to inform you of your Miranda rights...which wasn't done. It also violates the provision of the 'search and seizure' law that apply to trucks... Something about not informing the drivers of their rights, and a some sort of 'discovery declaration' wasn't given afterward. Enough of a stink has been caused by these lawsuits, that many of the states attempting this, are backing down a bit waiting to see if they will be next. Plus OOIDA is seeking a permanent federal injunction against such a checklist until they prove that there is science behind the reason for using this... Hence the reason the FMCSA hasn't started making such a 'checklist' mandatory - they knew they didn't have the proof, so it was never implemented.

If they want to see inside my truck, fine... I crush and save all my aluminum cans....'in an attempt to recycle'.(mostly because I need every penny I can lay my hands on during this recession) If put OOS, I'll get the EPA on their butt for impairing my ability to be 'green'.

***warning, if you are offended by the topic of masturbation, skip this next paragraph*****

Plus, some drivers were asked...how do I say this right --- I guess, pleasuring themselves would be best... As long as the driver wasn't doing it while driving (or pulling on the scales) what's the deal there. The last time I 'completed a transaction' of this sort, I got sleepy---thus promoting a better rest period... ' So I was doing my part to get a good night sleep officer.'

And if they ask if I snore...Nope...How do I know... I stayed up all night one time years ago, and never snored once.

Do I have marital stress at home....Duh...why do you think I'm out here instead of at home....

Do I have financial issues....again ' Duh, do I look like a millionaire, oh wait, maybe I can become a MN DOT officer, they hired you' ....uh officer, could you loosen these cuffs a bit....

 

Just wondering if anyone has actually been asked and if they refuse what happened next. were you DOT inspected and place OOS for another reason? Just curious.

 

I wasn't saying that. I was stating that they would be quick to put you out. With no sleeepr they couldn't check all of those boxes for TV's videos, no sheets on bunk etc.

 

It's correct that states have sovereign immunity, and enforcement officers can claim they are state actors(ie they can legally change a lawsuit against individual officers to a lawsuit against the state... OOIDA vs Officer John Doe...to...OOIDA vs Minnesota) which makes suing either party problematic at best.

Secondly, I doubt the OOIDA would announce their legal strategies in a public radio forum(or talk show).

With this said, I suspect the OOIDA's main legal focus is going to be the fact that the checklist was created/conceived by a law enforcement official. This is scary. Law enforcement is suppose to enforce laws, NOT have ANY envolvement in making them... period.

All the OOIDA has to do is show that the checklist can indeed put drivers out of service(under penalty of the law), and show that the list is the brainchild of a LEO.

 

What they, and all scale personel need to ask is only one and only one question:


Are you driving team?


If yes, then automatic out of service for 10 hours.

i would support this 100%.

Think about it.


Much more on this later.

 

let's be honest. that is how we are viewed by our gov't. As more and more states continue to operate "in the red", they are going to become increasingly less subtle in their attempts to extort money from the public at large. We drivers happen to be the target of oppurtunity this time, mainly b/c we are so vilified and demonized by everyone. Who will stand up for the rights of a bunch of deviant law-breakers with no regard for anyone or anything?

 

let's face it, to our gov't, we are just an atm on wheels. As more states continue to experience a shortfall in their budgets, their attempts to extort $$$ from the public will become increasingly less subtle.
Right now we drivers are just the easist target to steal from b/c we dont fight back,we just bend over the fuel tanks and take it! There is no one, except OOIDA, that even dares to challenge these and many other stupid regulations, and they have very little polictal clout. Who else wants to be the voice of what most of America views as a group of deviant lawbreakers who have no regard for anyone or anything? the public sees us, at best, as a nuisance. But mostly as a problem that needs to go away. Frankly, I am tired of the way our gov't treats us, even more tired of how the media portrays us! After 15 years of steady decline in pay, respect and the overall quality of life as a "professional" driver, I am ready to tell the entire system to kiss my butt! I wish I had the answer but it's getting harder and harder to care.