I agree Pro1, I came into driving when it was good to be a driver, shortly after I started, it went down hill, at least I got in on the tail end of it and got to experience some of the good stuff!
yeah, like truck drivers actually WAITING for you to fully finish backing into your parking spot at the truck stop. i can remember that when we were fully backed in and if at night, we would shut off or lights and flashers, as a way to say...."i am done backing, thanks"...
it turned out to be nowadays, as you are backing up, some ace would fly by in front of you, all because he is in such a hurry to get on the road, to make up for all the lost time, he spent inside the truck stop, playing video games. (or whatever insipid reason(s) he had).
also, you could pull into a truck stop, find a place to park, and lo and behold, guys would more often than not, actually park IN BETWEEN the lines....!! only rarely did i ever see someone park haphazardly.
so many more other comparisons from years ago, to today's inept fools that are calling themselves truck drivers.
every stinking time the economy tanks, and people become unemployed, they get into trucking....
like trucking is stable in economic bad times. some types of trucking "may" do well in an economic downturn, but when factories close, those are far fewer loads that are available, leading to far fewer drivers needed.