Posted on 03/11/2011 2:43:30 PM PST by La Lydia
George Will has noticed that liberals love trains so much, they will spend our last penny on them, regardless of whether anyone rides them.
Remarkably widespread derision has greeted the Obama administration's damn-the-arithmetic-full-speed-ahead proposal to spend $53 billion more (after the $8 billion in stimulus money and $2.4 billion in enticements to 23 states) in the next six years pursuant to the president's loopy goal of giving "80 percent of Americans access to high-speed rail."
Responsible governors like Rick Scott (R-FL), John Kasich (R-OH), and Scott Walker (R-WI) have turned down massive federal incentives to construct preposterous "high-speed" rail boondoggles. In Governor Moonbeam's California, however, Although prostrate from its own profligacy, it will sink tens of billions of its own taxpayers' money in the 616-mile San Francisco–to–San Diego line. Supposedly 39 million people will eagerly pay much more than an airfare in order to travel slower. Between 2008 and 2009, the projected cost increased from $33 billion to $42.6 billion.
Are moonbats pushing these monstrously wasteful rail projects during a deficit crisis as an act of economic sabotage, in hopes of bringing about a Cloward-Piven collapse all the sooner? At this point it would be naive to doubt it. But why rail in particular?
Because progressivism's aim is the modification of (other people's) behavior. Forever seeking Archimedean levers for prying the world in directions they prefer, progressives say they embrace high-speed rail for many reasons — to improve the climate, increase competitiveness, enhance national security, reduce congestion, and rationalize land use. The length of the list of reasons, and the flimsiness of each, points to this conclusion: the real reason for progressives' passion for trains is their goal of diminishing Americans' individualism in order to make them more amenable to collectivism.
To progressives, the best thing about railroads is that people riding them are not in automobiles, which are subversive of the deference on which progressivism depends. Automobiles go hither and yon, wherever and whenever the driver desires, without timetables. Automobiles encourage people to think they — unsupervised, untutored, and unscripted — are masters of their fates. The automobile encourages people in delusions of adequacy, which make them resistant to government by experts who know what choices people should make.
Will has found the key that unlocks the bewildering ideology our liberal rulers have been imposing. Liberalism = statism = the worship of coercion as the ultimate end in itself. Liberals like trains because the tracks force you to go wherever they have decided you will go.
Spot on. Automobiles, and especially off-road vehicles, offer people way too much freedom of movement, and therefore are the prime targets of collectivists. They want us all crammed into their 'Rat-invested cities, living in "green" apt. communities with thermostats controlled by the gov't, and relying on public transportation for any travel. Like all commies everywhere, they want total control of every aspect of our lives.
LOL!
I grew up, libs and Willie Green never do.
AMTRAK is heavily booked. Around holiday time it’s almost impossible to get a roomette. It’s a neat way to travel if you have the time. People are getting more and more fed up with our airlines and TSA.
Yes, part of the whole “smart growth” totalitarian plans our Overlords have in mind for us.
We have two SUVs, but I love choo-choo trains!
It will be interesting to see how deep the TSA gets their fingers into rail travel...
Couple of days ago the head of AMTRAK told TSA to stay away from his trains.
My nearest Amtrack station is a four hour drive from my home.
It's not an efficient use of my time.
BTW, I live in a city/town with one of the top 10 FBO’s in America.
(FBO = Fixed Base Operators: I.E. private aircraft (jet) servicers. To be in the top 10, you have to be great in service and have alot of customers). But Amtrack is just four hours away.
Gee. What a choice.
That’s ok as long as the Feds add a couple loop-de-loops to the track that carry The Zephyr from Chicago to Denver.
I think this high speed rail push is a boondoggle and a waste of taxpayer money.
That being said, I like railroading and locomotives. Being a conservative and a railfan are not mutually exclusive. I am glad private industry funds and makes money off of the rails.
Ask my long-suffering wife: She almost cries when we see a train in our travels because she knows I will pull over to check it out. ;)
Amtrak subsidies per thousand passenger miles were $237.53 versus -$1.01 for automobiles in 2006 (the latest year I have numbers for; probably higher now). Drivers more than pay their own way with federal fuel taxes. Not so for Amtrak.
I imagine with 4 trains missing in Japan today rail travel for the masses doesn’t sound so good.
Mmm, Okay but it’s an alternative way to travel. I wonder what the actual cost per passenger mile is and how that would impact fares. In a round about way taxpayers who use AMTRAK get some benefit from their taxes for it. On a long trip, from Seattle to Chicago, it’s a four day trip by car. Food, motel, gas, extras, it’s expensive. Anyway I think it would make a great impact on the traveling public if it were shut down.
I taped this at least a year if not more and played around with Studio 14 Ultimate. It was at the local model railroad club that has open nights every month:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VTobWJlKlQ
A lot of what is in the youtube clip and more that isn’t is up in stock footage where I sold a clip or two. I finally got an HD clip to pass evaluation. The model railroad stuff resides on various pages if anyone needs insomnia treatment.
http://footage.shutterstock.com/g/tysonneil
That’s a good post. I know for a fact that in 30 minutes or less I can be in the air flying at 550 mph towards my destination thanks to a very competent local FBO. And I have to drive right past my local Amtrak station to do so.
Hey, send the train here. Fifth largest city in the United Status and no passenger trains.
We’re close to Phoenix, but have to drive to Flagstaff. That’s a long way off.
But i’m workin’ on it...
Take out the aircraft aspect of it: four hours to drive to a train station...
Efficiency???
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