Happy New Year

By John McLaurin, President

It has been a tough year. COVID-19 has impacted and disrupted everyone around the world. Millions have died. And while the hope of vaccines is just now being realized, infections will continue to grow exponentially for several more months.

In addition to the impacts of COVID-19 from a health standpoint, the disease has also negatively affected businesses – leaving millions without jobs, without shelter, without food. It has exposed weaknesses in our healthcare system and our safety networks. Food insecurity, a nice phrase for hunger, has spread across the country with equal speed and ease as has the virus.

In the United States, we also witnessed a divisive election, and a post-election reaction from the President that borders on bizarre and surreal. The very concept of democracy has often been questioned and at times seemed in doubt. We also suffer from a Congress that is impotent, more concerned about maintaining individual power than with solving problems – especially ones of a humanitarian nature.

On top of all that, it seemed that this year personal loss and tragedies were occurring more frequently. We lost some folks in our industry this year who had fought cancer for years, teaching us important lessons about grace while undergoing countless surgeries and treatments, and we suddenly lost others who simply were out walking their dog.

But there is hope. The season of Christmas, Hanukkah and the start of a New Year are upon us. A time for reflection and optimism.

A COVID-19 vaccine is now being distributed. More vaccines are on the way. Our health care workers and first responders have taught all of us the meaning of words like courage, dedication, public service, perseverance – and most importantly love. We owe them much, if not our very survival.

From an industry standpoint, it has been a seesaw year – plunging volumes followed by record imports. The surge in volume has brought its own challenges. I would argue the biggest challenge is found in ourselves – in the constant finger-pointing, that it is always the other person’s fault. Like our national politics, anecdotal stories told by those who shout the loudest draw the most attention, offering little in the way realistic solutions.

Our challenge for 2021 will be for everyone to take a hard look in the mirror, accept responsibility for one’s own actions and work to bring about change. But it will also require everyone to be willing to change, perhaps of a transformative nature, and not simply demand that it’s somebody else’s fault or responsibility.

Record amounts of cargo have been moved and compressed in the final months of this year. All of this is happening in the middle of a pandemic, where people’s lives are at risk for simply showing up for work – something conveniently or selfishly ignored by some.

The entire supply chain is at capacity. Utilization is at 100%. There are no more containers available to stuff; no more ships available to sail or space to load them; no more room on marine terminals; no more chassis to use; no more warehouses to deliver. We can’t violate the laws of physics and create more space. This isn’t a complaint, it’s simply a fact. It isn’t a problem, it’s a challenge. But the challenge is not in the volume of cargo, it is within all of us to ask whether we can honestly develop real solutions that work for all. If not, we are just shouting at the rain.

Happy New Year.

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