You attempt to portray this as Madsen stating what is happening is solely to his operation, but an easy read through the lines says otherwise.
The down side of publishing anything is that every reader gets to read your words however one pleases. Everything gets interpreted and it is the interpreter who determines the end result. Read through the lines, between the lines, into the lines or around the lines all you wish. There is nothing I can do about what you conclude.
Whether he attempts to elicit sympathy for his 'plight', or puts seeds of doubt in other TVAL (or any FDCC) contractor, by statements like, "It's as if someone is sitting at headquarters, intentionally thinking up more and more ways to encourage contractors to leave" , he is inviting others into the fray. You see others, myself included, piping up to point out that things are not as bad as one sole contractor team reports.
Fair enough. Things got bad enough for Diane and me to motivate us to leave. Things were not as bad for some other contractors and they did not leave. People representing both points of view said their piece.
When others jumped in to praise the company or state their positive circumstances, I never questioned them, called them liars or read more into it. I said what I said, they said what they said, end of story.
That is, except for the people who dearly love to spend time talking and talking and talking about what I say. They complain about the influence my posts supposedly have (something that is vastly overplayed, I believe), and then they draw attention to them again and again and again by quoting them across threads and blowing them up to big issues.
(I see nothing wrong with people quoting anything across threads. My point here is about people drawing attention to my posts and then complaining about how my posts get attention.)
I did not start the "
Phil made the jump" thread. If you look at my
departure post, you will see that I made no grand announcement or long speeches about why. I simply said we were leaving and asked Dreamer to remove my access to the FedEx Custom Critical forum. No longer being at stake for what goes on at that company, I had nothing more to say.
Thinking it would soon fade away, I did not participate in the "Phil made the jump" thread at all until it went three pages deep and I felt the need to put up post #39 to defend FedEx against the developing and false (I believe) view that they would terminate someone for being outspoken on EO.
You are the one, not me, bringing the "sitting at headquarters" quote back to the fore. It was a rant. I forgot about it soon after I wrote it. Why can't you?
For someone who purports to write, here and elsewhere, at great length for the benefit of others, a look back at his recent posts are counterproductive to that end.
That depends on your point of view, does it not? While lots of folks may be delighted to be with FedEx Custom Critical, and while they freely and frequently post on EO, there are others with an alternative point of view. How would readers benefit more, from hearing one view or hearing many?
While I don't wish anyone ill will or bad business, his recent ravings should be a lesson in inflexibility.
Actually, the exact opposite is true. I stand as a shining example of flexibility. For many years people criticized me for being too proud, too supportive, and too positively vocal of FedEx Custom Critical. The FedEx critics criticized me, sometimes fiercely.
You want flexibility? Look at someone like me who saw the company change and in turn changed his mind, spoke about the changes and moved on. A staunch defender of FedEx for many years proved flexible enough to react to company developments, not by defending the company but by seeking out other opportunities.
IMHO, he attempted to attract flies with vinegar. Like you, I wish them success at their new carrier. The LEAM folks (except Greg) seem to be a quiet bunch...and maybe for good reason.
They are certainly quiet about their freight and their runs and the company. I have not figured out why yet but being brand new I'm not inclined to talk either.
While I'm distinctly aware that folks in Green monitor these boards (and yes, I'm sure Madsen posted most of them for effect....not sure if the result was what he expected), it will be interesting to see if the LEAM people tolerate his 'perceived' dirty laundry the way FDCC has.
Some companies have more dirty laundry than others.
I did not know he had left FedEx Custom Critical for Landstar a few weeks before Diane and me, but a former FDCC contractor who Diane and I knew when we were there heard that we moved and called to welcome us aboard. He told me how impressed he was that he had yet to hear another Landstar driver knock the company. He said that he had been checking, trying to draw people out in that way but to no avail.
He has only been there a short time but is delighted so far. I gathered that his attempt to draw negative comments out from other Landstar contractors was his way of reassuring himself that it is OK and safe to feel delighted about the company. It is very reassuring to him to hear again and again from drivers (BCOs) who are happy.
I have not tried to draw negative comments out of others but have had the opportunity to sit in the drivers lounge at a company training center as Landstar drivers come and go. They did not know me from Adam and I simply sat and listened.
When they gather, Landstar BCOs have a profoundly different kind of conversation than the the conversation that typically develops when FedEx Custom Critical contractors gather. The company structures, cultures and contractor attitudes truly differ.
