Thinking Of Packrat...

I’m now waiting to see what Brett has to say about all of this dumpster fire. My guess is that he is waiting until the fire dies down somewhat until he evaluates it all and puts things in perspective.

If you'll allow me, I'll explain a little about myself, my goals for Trucking Truth, and my outlook on these revelations.

As many of you know, I've always kept to myself. That's just who I am. I've always been a loner who did his own thing. The world has always fascinated me, and I'm into many things: trucking, sports, science, math, computer programming, raising animals, health and fitness, business, investing, homesteading and life in the mountains, music, movies, climbing, skiing, and many other things.

Although I've always had perfectly reasonable social skills, people were never my focus. Starting this website was the most people-focused thing I've ever done. I've never been married, and I have no children, though I now have a wonderful woman of many years, and we'll be together forever. I have a very tiny number of select friendships and even fewer enemies. I've always just wanted to be free to pursue the things I enjoy.

My goal for Trucking Truth is to build a community of professional drivers who enjoy sharing their lives and helping new drivers get their start in this career. I've always allowed anyone to join as long as they genuinely wanted to make this community better, pursue the betterment of themselves, and give helpful advice to new drivers.

We've always had some people with checkered pasts. My policy is simple: don't ask, don't tell, and let's work on this mission together. The past is the past. We're here to create a better version of ourselves, help new drivers start their careers, and create a better future for this industry.

Everything in this conversation was news to me - all of it. I don't dig into people's lives, and I haven't now, even after these revelations. So I was clueless about all of it.

I may not know many details about the people in our community, but I know the trucking industry, so I know if someone's advice is trustworthy and helpful. I also want a thriving community, and I know who is contributing in a positive way.

I will continue to pursue the same goals with Trucking Truth: build a thriving community of people who enjoy sharing their lives and helping those who need the help, mostly within trucking, but sometimes in ways far more profound than just a career.

I do not judge people by their past alone. My bigger concern is who you are now and who you intend to become. My aim is to lend a hand to people who've strayed from their moral compass so they can own up to their mistakes, turn their lives around, and help others at the same time. Everyone deserves a shot at redemption, and being a productive member of this community is one way they can do that. Just sharing a little piece of advice can affect hundreds or thousands of people's lives in a positive way. It really can be that simple.

It's never too late to make yourself a better person and contribute to the lives of those around you. The more you've messed up in your life, the more important it is to start immediately on a better path. It's never too late as long as you start right now.

I will not remove anyone from our community over these revelations. Further, I see no need to call anyone out or address any of the specifics, because I feel you folks have handled that already.

After the Civil War in this country, the North had the legal right, and some would argue the moral obligation to hold almost everyone living in the South accountable for treason. Instead, they allowed them to return to their former lives hoping to heal this nation and move forward.

I will continue to give folks the opportunity for redemption and help them better themselves. I think that would be more helpful than bringing down the hammer of judgment. If you have things in your past you're not proud of, then start by bettering yourself today. Raise your standards and look for ways to help the people around you. It really is that simple.

My forgiveness goes out to all of you, as many have forgiven me over the years, and you're all welcome here as long as you commit to making yourselves better and helping us with our mission.

Well done, Brett!

(RE: Bk's comments)

Yes, love the new Avatar!

On the heels of Brett's golden comments, I'd like to add that everyone here whether they can internally admit or not is guilty if not of bad deeds, habits, actions or at least bad thoughts and judgments. Not an excuse for hurting kids, lying about your age or medical history, committing felonies, being combative with dispatchers or other negative behaviors detailed in this thread.

Being just shy of my first year solo being complete while being blessed with my faith, family, and a network of friends within my company (both newer and tenured/top performing drivers) to keep me going out here, I can still see how people's minds can bend being alone out here and not be at their best. Let's give EVERYONE the benefit of the doubt and realize we are all flawed. There is so much value in here despite anyone's skeletons in the closet. Some of the best advice you can get in here may be from someone you may not "morally agree with".

While everyone feels the need to comment (me included), I feel like this thread needs to to start fading into the background so we can get back to the website's core mission of helping new drivers get their career of the ground and helping experienced drivers continue to advance their careers. Otherwise posts like this can snowball into a p*ssing pendulum similar to a family argument at the the Thanksgiving Dinner table. Just my 2 cents. Be safe all!

Hey all I don't mean to get the fire burning again, however I feel the need to apologize. I was wrong to post about another member who has positively contributed to this forum and helped many rookie drivers make it through their first year, along with training new drivers. I allowed my emotion as a parent to get the best of me and for that I apologize. As Brett mentioned we've had members here with a checkered past but we've still learned from each other and our past experiences help educate others that may be facing similar obstacles. Isn't the purpose of our legal system to make one right their wrongs and become a positive member to society? I hope we're able to move forward as a forum and get back to what really matters. I hope that anybody mentioned in this thread is willing to come back and leave all this drama behind. We may never consider each other friends but I hope our passion for getting more safe productive drivers on the road brings us together for a common cause.

Has anybody talked to Packrat? It isn't unreasonable to feel betrayed or upset learning that he lied to many of us. Has anybody taken the time to find out WHY? Is it possible there's more to this than the desire to be dishonest? I had the joy of meeting up with Packrat nearly 4 years ago and enjoyed our meet up. From our brief meeting, and interactions on the forum I don't understand it . It's no secret that our service members have seen and done things that they still struggle to process. There's a reason mental health is such a problem with our veterans. Is it possible that there's more than meets the eye and we could possibly help him see that something isn't right? Many of us have been around here several years. I'd hate to see everybody just write off a friend, or family member, because we may not fully understand what's going on. I would reach out to him, however I've changed phones a couple times and no longer have his number.

Honestly this whole thing is dumb. Who cares if Packrat is a chronic liar. It just really surprised a lot of us. I don’t dig into people’s personal lives on the forum so I didn’t see it coming but he got exactly the response he deserved.

If I spoke up today and told everyone I have 3 DUIs or I’m actually a couch potato who doesn’t work and I’ve been making everything up for the last 8 years, I don’t think that news would get a very positive reception either. I don’t know anyone who likes a chronic liar

Has anybody talked to Packrat?

He made it to VA Bch yesterday, unloaded his stuff and turned in his rental. He's applied to several companies.

If you have some specific questions, my contact info is in my bio.

Laura

Someone pointed out to me that PackRat changed his bio to resign from the forum. Not taking any responsibility, just a misunderstood man. Read it yourself in his bio.

I doubt we will ever hear from PackRat again. No great loss. A real man would have fessed up and apologized.

I've reached out to Packrat through email, and I expect he'll respond when he can.

No one has been removed from the forum, and no changes have been made behind the scenes to anyone's profile or access. I don't believe anyone said or did anything malicious, so I see no need to take action.

I want to ensure we fulfill our mission to help new drivers get a great start to this career, build a strong community of drivers, and promote a positive future for our industry. We're not a community of Gods and Saints; we're a community of real people with vastly different lives and personalities. We've done an incredible service to our industry and to everyone who has come to us for help and guidance, and we'll continue to do that for many years to come.