We take the red pill on trucking’s “driver shortage” narrative. Tony goes underground with Dostoevsky and Orwell to ask why drivers accept equations that don’t add up—why 2+2 can feel like 5 in this industry. From bankruptcy to Key West to accounting classes in Minnesota, this is a story about cages we call freedom, laments we call songs, and the splinter you’ve felt your whole career.

👤 Guest: Mike Ritzema (Superior Trucking Payroll Service) brings receipts on payroll, per diem, and what the numbers actually say in 2023–2025. If there’s really a shortage, why haven’t wages kept pace—while operating costs keep climbing?

📣 Bulletin Board: an all-pro rideshare driver named Angela; voices you’ll hear throughout the series (TJ Graff, Will Cook, Gord Magill); and PBS’s Driver (POV) featuring Desiree Wood / Real Women in Trucking.

🎬 Bonus: Morpheus does the scene better than I ever could → https://youtu.be/DRnr3MiGWmo?si=6OkVsOYLOGFD1wan

Stay for the 💰 Money Line and the 🧭 Post-Trip: Morpheus, Metallica, and modern math.

👥 Guest

Mike Ritzema — Superior Trucking Payroll Service → https://truckingpayroll.com

🎙️ Podcast: Driven for Success

🔗 Sponsors & Friends of the Show

💰 Trucker’s Wealth — Financial tools for truckers → https://truckers-wealth.com

📝 Trans Carolina Permits — Compliance, IFTA, mileage & permits → https://transcarolinapermits.com

📊 True TMS — Cloud-based transportation management system → https://truetms.com

✍️ Deb LaBree → https://awomantrucker.com

🚨 Upcoming Truck Shows

🚚 Louisiana Truck Show — Oct 24–25, Rayne, LA → https://louisianatruckshows.com

🎪 American Truckers Jubilee — Oct, Searcy, AR (Lee Owens) → https://www.facebook.com/groups/912050416849260

🗓️ Full schedule → https://thetruckshowlist.com

🎵 Music Referenced

Metallica — “Bleeding Me” • Audioslave — “I Am the Highway,” “Set It Off”

📚 Resources

🎬 Driver.film — PBS Documentary → https://driver.film/index.html

👥 Real Women in Trucking → https://www.facebook.com/REALWomeninTrucking

⭐ Star Behaviors (TJ Graff) → https://starbehaviors.com

✍️ Will Cook — A Driver’s Perspective → https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570019885862

📰 Gord Magill — Substack → https://autonomoustruckers.substack.com

📬 Connect

✉️ Email: inbox@channel19experience.com

🌐 Website: https://channel19experience.com

🎤 Book a Guest Spot: https://channel19experience.com/be-a-guest

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 — Intro: Adding spice to the “shortage”

04:00 — Quote of the Week: Morpheus & the splinter

09:00 — Bulletin Board: Angela, the precision driver

11:00 — Voices in the Series: TJ Graff, Will Cook, Gord Magill

15:00 — PBS film Driver & safety in trucking

18:00 — Pre-Trip: Trucking as battleground

22:00 — Money Line: Going underground with Dostoevsky

29:00 — Learning the math: Why 2+2=5 in trucking

33:00 — Interview: Mike Ritzema — the payroll perspective

1:13:00 — Post-Trip: Healthcare & Orwell’s ghost

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