Re fuel price strikes:

In the US, industry reports are that for the past two months approximately 700 trucking companies per month have been forced to "cease operations" because cost of operations exceed what they're paid to move your food.

In one specific case, creditors got a "stop payment" order on the company credit cards, which are the only way drivers can purchase fuel, leaving about 1,000 drivers effectively stranded, up to 1,500 miles from home, with no way to get to delivery points or even to get back home.

So I'd guess one could say those thousand drivers are "on strike?"

In the US, trucking is the only way that schedules permit getting "fresh foods" to market. It cannot be done by rail with our existing systems/facilities.

Diesel fuel has been above $4.50/gallon for several months now everywhere in the US, while "consumers" p*ss & moan about $3.50 (+ a little in some places) gasoline. (That's about a 50% increase for diesel, versus around 20% increase for gasoline, over the past year. For diesel it's everywhere. There's a lot more variation in gasoline prices.)

At my last trip to the supermarket, I found several empty bins where the lettuce and brocolli had been, briefly. The "strike" is already working, but there may not be anyone to go back to work even if changes are made, with the way it's working for most here.

[I assume that personal opinions are about as random as anything that can be traced.]

John