Meanwhile in a Civil Servant Office of Quebec…

We have been polled on new increases of rates, we got some and we will be charged more in the future. The most hypocritical increase was the one of our driver’s permit. Not only the ones with the motorcycle class, I am talking about every driver’s permit.

Like many of us, I got my paiement notice in the mail, I then passed to the internet portal to get my dues paid, almost with my eyes closed. This is a ritual I do every two years and if I look at my little laminated card with my face on it, I had to do it this year. The amount was almost the same as last time since I had caught a speeding ticket with my car at the last renewal. What a surprise when I found out about a change on the bill! Our dear and costly SAAQ had changed the time frame. My permit was valid for one year instead of two! An increase of almost 100%! Is the SAAQ now a highway robber?

Some pressure groups such as “All Against the SAAQ” are making a lot of noise on the outrageous increases for the registrations and permits for motorcycles but, who is putting the pressure on the management of the SAAQ about the other increases? Is this government waiting a rebellion of the population?

Personally, this government has my number and hitting my nail from many directions. Revenue, SAAQ, RAMQ, only to name these.

Taxes, income taxes, hidden taxes, PST on basic services, on public services and service fees, this government has mastered the art of doing it. And us, what are we doing? PAY, PAY, PAY without a word…

I am fed up of working almost half on the year to feed that tax machine and this is without looking at surprise fees that comes along afterwards.

I hope that one day we will get really tired of dying like dummies…

Tolls on Our Roads? Good Idea!

Mostly that the current political party of opposition did raise it in the early 80’s on the Autoroutes we had at the time and due to unpopularity of the measure, they backed off so much that they removed them totally from the scenery of the highways 10-13-15-40. It wasn’t democratic to double the rate of the toll to help finance the maintenance of the highways. It was not mostly to the people of the greater Montreal area and the Eastern Townships to pay more for roads in Ungava.

What would be the price of the new tolls? If in the early 80’s the “wisemen” of the MTQ had estimated to 0.50$ the price to update the system, if we consider the cost of living increase, inflation, the rise in the price of asphalt products, the higher labour costs, the renewal of the work contracts for the civil servants, the price charged in Europe, they like to compare themselves to them, I think the wisemen of the MTQ are going to establish the rate at about 3.00$ for each 10Km travelled.

Again, it may be a PPP with a foreign partner that will manage this and install plate recognition systems so you will get another monthly bill by the mail. There are chips like the EZ-Pass but again, they may not be compatible to the rest of the systems here, distinct society, and it would make it easier on carriers. They may be compatible to the ones used on the Autobahn or on the Southern France Expressways.

My good friend Jacques Plante tells it to who wants to listen those simple vanity plates could help to refill the accounts of our government. If like our immediate western neighbours, Ontario, if these plates could be available event for small commercial vehicles, here in Quebec, the ones with an “F” plate, I would be asking some for my 3 pilot cars with the following message C-LARGE-1,2,3. But since our 3^rd eastern neighbour, France, has not given any thoughts on it, we may not see this here soon.

Jacques, it’s a very good idea. You should ask the Minister for a grant to study the project but she is already doing every thing possible to reduce the number of vehicles on the roads. If 12M$ of our tax dollars can go to study the possibility of subway extensions, you may only receive a Thank you note…

Back on Air!

I’m getting ready for a come back with my old patner Jacques Plante. If I talk about it, we had made the path for French Trucking Radio on satellite in 2006. To start we will be modest with format that will evolve as the listeners grow. We have the flexibility to adapt quickly. I still dream of a daily program listener driven with your comments and opinions on topics you care about.

Like in the past, I will comment on the latest news in our industry, follow issues I have followed for the pas months and share with you the highs and lows of trucking. If I have writen less recently, I still am aware of what is going on in Quebec, Canada and the USA.

Email me you topics and I will comment on them to you and share you concerns with others. There is still some equipments to get us started and some more will get on board as we go to make it a lively show with interaction from you.

To use the famous last 3 words of the National anthem at a NASCAR race: Start your engines!

Breaking News on Speed Limiters

How come Scott Mooney was one of the first Owner Operator to get a Speed Limiter compliance fine?
To know more follow Clik Here to watch the CTV News report

Right on Red, Dangerous

The original title of Sebastien Menard’s article in the Journal de Montreal of July 3^rd and on Canoe is “Virage à droite dangereux”. The picture is taken from the article and a link to it is at the bottom of the page. For those of you than can’t read French, the caption of the picture says that the lady saw the car closely while the driver was making a right on red. Look at the picture again. The lady wants to cross the street on the red light too!

This came out as a report was issued showing a rise of the accidents involving pedestrians in Quebec at intersections where right on red is permitted. The law that allows the manoeuvre is clear stating that the pedestrian has the right of way when in the cross-walk on the green light. I presume it is the one crossing the path of the driver. The only exception I can understand, with the little common sense my government leaves me, is when there is a pedestrian light to allow priority crossing in the same way I am going. The culture of “Yield to Pedestrians” is not yet part of our driving habits here in Quebec. Are we more stupid then the rest of North America because we were the last ones to adopt the right on red? I hope to believe that Montreal’s administration do not think of their citizens as the dumber of the continent or it was to cut in the cost of posting signs at the thousands of intersections that they banned the right on red on all the island. Surely it was cheaper to put those signs only on the access roads.

Some members of my family are living in Halifax. One day my brother-in-law was telling that a Halifax pedestrian would only live a few minutes in the Montreal traffic. When a pedestrian sets foot in a cross walk, the automobile must yield right of way. Our government has set penalties for the faulty drivers. Can we have proper enforcement of the laws before doing any modifications to them again?

The easy answer from the authorities is that the man-power is not available enough only to do that. Anyway, not too many drivers are going to break the law when a police cruiser is in sight. However, in Montreal, when it comes to cell phone use without a hands free gadget, they are the provincial record holder of citations and there are enough cops available for that.

Mrs, Minister, if you are really so worried on the situation, why not send one of your staffers to contact a staffer of the Minister of Public Safety and make another round table on applying the laws to the drivers.

The link to Sebastien Menard’s article on Canoe

http://fr.canoe.ca/infos/quebeccanada/archives/2009/07/20090703-053800.html

July 1st, Canada Day

And to mark the event, since Midnight, the United Socialist State of Quebec and the future Socialist State of Ontario are in “Hard Enforcement” mode on speed limiter law for your trucks.

I thought that Canada, even if in Quebec we try to make us believe we are a Nation, individual freedoms are part of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. If I think correctly, we are free to do what we want and operate a small business until we have a stick put in our spokes. We are free to do it within the laws and if there is no law yet, there is surely a pressure group to have one written.

Yes I am frustrated today. Not because we have celebrated the 142^nd Anniversary of our country but against the Provincial governments that are closing the vice on the population to restrict the wealth, the well being and common sense.

With another obligation to put up with in trucking, one that is ridiculous, it’s the small business trucker’s wallet that is being emptied again. This limits the possibilities for the owner-operator to make a better income by putting more time to do west coast loads and also provoke less income tax, less road and fuel taxes. In order to compensate, there is now new fines for the outlaw truckers.

The well being is also affected. The small business trucker will have to put more time to make the same income or a better one. This will leave less time for the families. Coming back home is still a priority for most drivers.

Finally, common sense. This is the ultimate weapon for the citizen and it must be banned from our arsenal. A little sarcastic but, with the current rates in trucking, the rising costs of replacing or maintaining the equipments, the roller-coaster fuel prices, I don’t know any small business owner that is going to run over the speed limits or the flow of traffic just for the pleasure of it and increase the cost of operations.

The activation of the speed limiter is a business decision of a trucking company. This choice must stay this way and not be a government mandate. If you still have some courage left to stand for your rights and freedoms, contest these ridiculous laws.

The « Fête Nationale du Québec »

When a preceding Government of Quebec changed, probably to get rid of some old clergy relic, the name of “Fête de la Saint-Jean-Baptiste” to “Fête Nationale du Québec”, that government didn’t think (does that happen?) that Quebeckers who speaks another mother tongue then French would also like to celebrate their belonging to Quebec’s territory.

To ear on radio and read on news web sites the comments of Gilles Rhéaume on the “Autre Saint-Jean”, a gathering to be held in Montreal on the 23^rd with mostly non-french party music, I kind of hear a tone similar to some KKK’s leaders. If theirs views are towards “White Power”, Rhéaume’s sounds like “French Power”. If the target of the name change was to appropriate June 24^th for the French speaking “Quebecois”, why was it not called “The National Holiday for the French Speaking Quebeckers that have many generations of roots” …

This writer is proud of his French roots but also recognizes that there is an ethnic diversity caused by immigration. People, like our ancestors, that have chosen a better place to live in and that are also “Québécois”. I think I’ll go and listen to some Beau Bommage or baladi music. I prefer that to the loop of the same three bass notes of rap.

By the way, I’m wondering if Loco Locass that wants to be liberated of the liberals, (cheaply translated title of their song “Libérez nous des Liberaux”) are happy to get paid by a liberal government to sing (?) on June 24^th? (I still don’t know if I should call it St-Jean-Baptiste or Fête Nationale du Québec, so I will only state the date)

Drive safely during these times of celebrations

To translate some words from the show “Les Parlementeries”

SAAQ is the agency that allows you to drive

SAQ is the agency that allows you to drink

SQ is the agency that takes your drivers licence if you drink and drive

Turcot Interchange, Quebec Government Taken Hostage

On that issue, the Quebec Government is taken hostage by many pressure groups. What brought us to this point? The current government is not the only one to blamed but all previous administrations, paid by our taxes. All the Commissions, Public hearings, the weigh of the administration in general when it comes to do road infrastructures.

This interchange may not have been is such a bad shape if a beltway around Montreal, A-30, would have been done when initially planned. It would be outdated today but at least, it would have saved many years of wear on the road infrastructures of Montreal. It took the Natives Crisis in 1990 to have the loop made around the Kanawake Reservation. This is not counting the cost of the law enforcement to protect the perimeter of the reserve, about $30M.

The Turcot interchange is today’s result of the complacency of the Government towards the population. Preferring the citizen that barely uses this infrastructure to the profits, or should I say loses, of the one making the economy go forward. For the trucking and the intermodal industries, the Turcot Interchange is one of the most important road links in the Province. It’s the link to all major container rail yards to the Montreal Harbour and the link between the Atlantic Provinces to the rest of Canada.

Will we have to go trough another tragedy like the overpass of “de la Concorde” to do something? If this happens during the rush hours, it’s by the dozens we will count the fatalities this time. Just like for that overpass that collapsed, an emergency repair plan is going to be made, the work done and nobody will have a say on it.

Other then the A-30, there is many road infrastructure plans that have been put on hold for so long. The day the first vehicle will roll on it, it will be outdated

The Ville Marie Autoroute is another nice example I can comment on with facts. My father was a store owner selling office furniture on Notre Dame Street at the corner of Valois. In early 1972 the business was expropriated to make place for this Autoroute. Today, 37 years later, it is still Notre Dame Street. In 1985, I was a citizen of Laval. We were promised that the A-25 Bridge would be running by the turn of the century. The access roads have been under construction since last year. Nose around and you may find plenty of these.

Let’s all get together and say a big thank you to all these Naysayer groups that opposes anything the government proposes. Issues that can restart the economy here, create jobs and all of that for the sake of their belly buttons or their NIMBY Syndrome (Not In My Back Yard).

Picture LaPresse Archives

Thank You Ministers

I would like to thank the Ministers of transport and of environement of Québec for the announcement today of a $45M budget aimed towards helping all the transport industry to acquire GHG reducing equipments. All the detail are not currently available on the web site of the ministry, the server is off-line.

I can not comment on the ways the funds are going to be distributed but, what is annexed to the press release a $4M part of these budgets is going to the maritime and rail transportation. This leaves a $41M part for the trucking industry. These allowances can go towards the purchases, installations, modifications or replacements of certain devices that will insure a better energy consumption. Among them, on board generators, climate control units, on board computers or aerodynamics improvement devices. When OBAC did its presentation at the National Assembly of Quebec to the Commission of Transport and Environment, on the speed limiter issue, we had made the suggestion to help the small business trucker to purchase these kind of equipments. I see that the idea didn’t stay on a shelve.

In the current state of the economy, these incentives are welcomed. Looked at it from the small business trucker’s seat, it is a wish that it will be evenly distributed among all trucking companies, big or small. Many large carriers have already invested big sums of money to get these devices but the small businesses are still in a struggle. The one more in need are the 5 trucks and less trucking operators.

This arrives at a good time. The price of a barrel of crude is on the rise. This will help one of the most important aspects of the trucking industry and make the difference in passing through the current crisis and going broke to save on fuel.

Speed Limiter Rescind? Possibly!

That is what declared MPP Frank Klees to Land Line’s David Tanner. Klees is also running for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party in Ontario. The other good news, he is not alone to have that view. MPP Randy Hillier has it too!

I’ll let my good friend David tell you more about it. Just follow the link below to his fine report on OOIDA’s Land Line Magazine web site

http://www.landlinemag.com/Special_Reports/2009/May09/052809_ll_exclusive.htm

Is there a light at the end of the tunnel? Looks like someone turned it on!

Class 1, Class 6, Two Different Classes of Citizens in Quebec

Here in the “Distinct Society” of Quebec, this is the way our drivers licences are rated. A “Class 1” is the equivalent of Ontario’s A-Z or the U.S. CDL. Let’s go back in history to make sense of the title. In the late 1990’s, many owner-operators had started a protest movement in many places around the province. High priced fuel, low rates, no contracts regulations were the main griefs. Bloquing roads, ports, refineries and just plain parking of the rigs had, within a few days some regions with empty store shelves, empty gas tanks and citizens complaining. The answer came from the National Assembly of Quebec very fast.

That answer from the elected Parti Québecois was a modification to the Highway Safety Code (Code de la sécurité routière) with Bill 130 that stopped in it’s tracks any form of roadside demonstrations. After all, we are only making our livings by hauling freight and as long as the freight is there, nobody really cares what happens to the professional driver.

About 20 years ago, the SAAQ modified the driver’s permit to different classes and sub classes. Class 1, as said previously is for commercial drivers, 2 busses, 3 straight trucks, 4 working vehicles, 5 automobiles-campers, 6 motorcycles. There is a few others for snowmobiles, scooters and farm tractors. Trying to balance their budgets and manage the risks, three years ago the SAAQ announced that motorcyclists, being a higher risk of bodily injuries, will pay more for their plates, already overpriced, and drivers permits, if on the permit. For some racer type bike with an engine over 401cc, the total cost of registration with the mandatory insurance is now at $1030.00 for this year.

All bikers, including myself, are outraged by a raise of 300% of the licencing fee. So, there is a few that decided to organise some protests by rolling on the major highways of the province at minimum legal speeds. This creates a line of bikes for kilometres. I agree with the protests, being a motorcyclist. But, being also a trucker, I am wondering when our government is going to slam to them a special law like they did to us in the late 90’s.

Don’t get me wrong, I do not send my complaints to the groups of motorcyclists, I am aiming at the government that is creating, again, two classes of citizens.

LCV’s, Does it ring a bell?

“LCV” is the short for “Long Combination Vehicle” or as more commonly called Road Trains.

On June 24^th of 2007, if you go and look at the archive of this blog, I was writing about it and leaving you to think about the subject. Last week the Government of Ontario by the voice of the Transportation Minister announced the start of a pilot program. About one hundred special permits to haul LCV’s will be issued to carriers making the demand. The OTA and the PMTC will overlook the distribution of these permits during the pilot program.

To obtain an LCV permit, a carrier must

-Have an exemplary safety record

-Be a member of either association

The permits will be given by lottery and up to fifty carriers can apply for them. A limit of two permits by carrier. Nothing is said if less carriers line up demands how many permits they can get.

The web site of the MTO talks about SPIF for “Safe and Productive Infrastructure Friendly”.

What do I think about it?

Some of my comments I shall keep for myself. The reasons given by all parties involved are an increase of productivity, less fuel and, here again, less GHG’s, fewer trucks on the road, reduced transport costs.

The average Joe Roaduser reading the paper will be happy to read that 2800 trucks are going to be removed from the roadways but, nowhere is it explain to him that the trucks replacing them are going to be over 125 foot or 38 meters long. Me, as a truck driver, I see 2800 less jobs. The carriers could take advantage to increase their profit but again, this may happen on the back of the one driving the rigs.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not opposed to LCV’s, I am against the idea to have double responsibility, having a greater fuel expense, if you are an owner operator leased to a carrier, and not getting a fair and equitable rate. Do a simple math. If accordingly to the OTA in the press release (http://ontruck.org/news/releases/2009/prel_2009_04_17_073049_r.php3), a LCV runs at 30% less fuel then two trucks, a fair and equitable rate should be a 70% premium of you r regular rate for hauling an LCV before fuel surcharge. For company drivers I have only one comment, Negotiate a wage worth the extra responsibility.

I’ll leave you on these thoughts…

Unmarked DOT’s Patrol Trucks in Quebec

The first time I saw that dark grey F250 or 350 with LED lights in the front and rear windows, it was between Cacouna and Riviere du Loup, on A-20. Last week coming back from Port-Cartier, I saw it again getting off the Tadoussac ferry boat.

I don’t know about you, but, I have my concerns stopping my truck, if I was asked by an unmarked pick-up truck with only red flashing lights and tinted windows. With all that is going on in the industry, how many drivers ended up in the bunk, tied-up and some with injuries because thieves had eyes on their loads.

The S.A.A.Q. is part of Quebec Ministry of Transport. Maybe we should let know Minister Boulet about this as a safety issue for drivers. Why does the S.A.A.Q. feels the need to intercept trucks for inspections with unmarked vehicles? That the Society has unmarked vehicles are not an issue for inspectors traveling to companies. Even, it would leave more interceptors available for road side inspections.

I don’t want to give any ideas to nobody but, it would be easy to have a truck stopped by whoever molest the driver and leave with the load. Most professional drivers knows here in Quebec that unmarked police interceptors have red and blue lights, and are Ford Crown Vic’s, Chargers or Impalas.

Why not let know to the Minister what you think about this by using this link

http://www.mtq.gouv.qc.ca/portal/page/portal/accueil_en/courrier/formulaire_ministre

By regular mail

700, boul. René-Lévesque Est,
29^e étage
Québec (Québec) G1R 5H1

By phone : 418 643-6980

Or by fax 418 643-2033

All together, we can make changes

Miscellaneous Safety Issues

Recently, pressure has been put on the administration of the State of Ohio by the Ohio Trucking Association to increase at 65mph the speed limit of heavy trucks on the interstate roads of the state. Already the Ohio Turnpike did so to bring back the trucks that had deserted the toll road, mostly because of the increases of the cost to use it. This had showed no significant increase in accidents involving heavy trucks. The OTA, not the one of Ontario but of Ohio, is pushing this issue with safety concerns of reducing rear end collision of trucks by lighter vehicles. This is an argument I have heard of before but not by a trucking association but by two truckers associations.

On the topic of speed limits, this brings me to speed limiters. Accordingly to our politicians north of the border, this is a safety and an environment measure. At a presentation to the Subcommittee on Transport and Transit, Chairman Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, was not in harmony with ATA’s Vice-Chairman Tommy Hodges on the issue. The proposal to return to a federally mandated maximum speed of 65mph across the country and to mandate the use of the speed limiter on all trucks at the same speed was not welcomed. Chairman DeFazio event commented on the ATA’s testimony that it was the weakest leg of the measure they proposed to reduce GHG’s in the U.S. of A. by the ATA.

I’m starting to like democrats more…

Let’s come back closer to home. For the last year or so, I travelled a lot more in the “Belle Province” and I noticed the poor state of the lines on the roadways. I remember in the past a former government of the USSQ* had modified the width and the length of the solid and dotted lines on the roads. This was to save millions of our hard worked tax dollars. In the same piece of legislation, the level of reflective particles was reduced also. This brought to me the thought, and I hope someone at the “Table de la Sécurité Routière” will read this and at least give me the credit for it…

If accident and lost of control happens more in the evening, at night or in poor weather, may the lack of reflection or poor visibility of the line be a factor in these accidents?

I do understand that a coat of grime by calcium can cause a lost of reflection by the lights on the lines, as on the sides or rears of commercial trucks with the reflective tapes, but when it rains, it is almost impossible to see the edge or the center lines. This has no sense. I noticed that more one late evening coming back thru Vermont on I-91. The same vehicle, the same weather, the same headlights and when I told the Customs agent I had nothing to declare, I could barely see where I was going. Either the cycles of repainting or the quality of the paint has to be revised as soon as possible and we could see clearly if our roads would become safer.

*Union of the Socialist State of Quebec

Welcome Mister President Obama!

I try to keep to a minimum my political comments on this blog. For the last year I am more at home not being an OTR driver no more. At least, I’m not out for weeks at the time. I had my fair share of financial issues with customers that didn’t honour the terms of their billing. This had as a side effect to leave me more time to watch the main stream newscasts on TV and a little less radio because I had to let go my satellite radio momentarily.

In title, I was almost tempted to make a little bit of satire with the writing of the 44^th Presidents name by separating the O and adding an “h”. This is how I feel when I see and hear the comments of news readers and hosts on the main stream. I am very happy for my neighbours and for the entire world after the past eight years of the preceding administration that was more defence oriented then diplomacy inclined. Many analysts have compared G.W. to a warrior. A fact to consider, since September 11^th 2001, there has being no terror attacks on the American soil while in the Clinton years, at least 3 attacks, including the first attack to the WTC. That is not counting two majors plots that have been dismantled before happening.

Yes, I do have a political right incline rather then a left one. However, I also see many ideas for the new administration that are not from the hard core of lefties. What I also like about President Obama, he is issued from the people, not a hare of a long line of politicians that wears out the benches of parliaments or capitols around the world. Yes, this President represents the true American dream, a dream the makes anything possible for everyone willing to make effort in order to achieve this dream.

Well enough of politics, I am deeply happy to see this change but, I still wonder how the main stream will react when President Obama will have to take unpopular decisions. Will they shake the pedestal to a point of tumbling it? The people of America will tell us in 2012.

Happy(?) New Year 2009

I have not taken the time to write in the past few months. For the ones that have the habit of visiting once in a while, I am happy to see there is still some traffic and I owe you an apologie. I can not rely on the Medias to help to promote this blog, but only on the words that are passed by you and the search engines on the web.

Since this morning, here in Quebec and in Ontario, laws are in effect to mandate the activation of the speed limiter chip of the ECM on heavy trucks built since January 1995. The limitation of the speed has to be set at a speed no greater then 105Km/h (64.5mph). A soft enforcement of six months is planned for all to comply.

Since July 2005 I have been talking about the subject on many tribunes. I have talked about it on XM satellite radio when I was co-hosting with Jacques Plante “Entre les 2 lignes”, on TSQ when this program started up on the web, on this blog since almost 2 years. I have put online a petition, I have asked for your support, your conscience to join the associations that represents the right of truckers, not only owner-operators. What have you done?

When OBAC did call you to meet for discussions and get your ideas, it’s only a handful of persons that showed up. During the eleven months that I had the online petition, it didn’t even go over the 1000 signatures. Many of them where not even from people in the industry but persons that travel with us on the roads of America and that know the industry.

When Ontario revised the highway safety code, there was a proposal to raise the age to get a drivers licence. Within a few weeks, over 150,000 persons joined in to turn around the issue. You can say that we are not that many in the industry across Canada but, these are the ones who benefits of our hard work.

I must also bring up this point, very important in the debate. Never have I encouraged speeding of trucks or did the associations that I represented. We are pushing the “Run Compliant” message to all. Not only speed limits but all regulations we have to live with and obey by.

The laws on speed limiters have passed by many ways and reasons to be sold to the governments and to the motoring public. Safety and environment have been the two most popular. The true reason was to level the playing field as stated in the OTA’a press release http://ontruck.org/news/releases/2005/prel_2005_07_07_143206_r.php3

Ok it’s done, I spilled my marbles out this morning. Can we still do something about it? Yes I do think so but, it’s all together with a strong voice that we can, just like the large carriers do. Why don’t you make yourself a gift to start the year? A gift that is under $60 if you do it this way.

Join with over 160,000 other members of OOIDA to represent you on the US side of the border. It will cost you only $25.00USD if you give my member as a referral 557033. https://www.ooida.com/Secure/membership_form.htm

Then, you can join OBAC to have a representation on the Canadian side of the border http://www.obac.ca/Web/JoinOBAC/fullMembershipPg1.asp and by saying you are an OOIDA member, the membership is waived to $25.00CDN. The power is in the numbers. If the Canadian Trucking Alliance can say they represent the trucking industry, they only represent the interest of companies that have 6 trucks or more. We are more then them and we probably operate more trucks then they do but, our representation is not representative of that. Make your share to have a strong voice too!

Even if the current situation is tough, I wish that 2009 is a year of prosperity for all of you even if that means to restructure the company, streamline the expenses. But most importantly, make it a healthy one. Take care of it no one can do it for you.