Obama: 8 Billion For High-Speed Rail, 0 for NASA & JSC

sorry, multitasking, on a conference call and trying to track the iPad announcement. I meant to say "meaningful number of jobs," not that the jobs themselves weren't meaningful.

I'm intimately familiar w/ the $60 cab ride from OAK to the Harbor Court, and I know there are other options, BART, car rental, shuttle bus, etc. but after a 6 hour flight, i simply don't want to schlep my bags from the plane to the train, and then figure out how to get from the bart station to the hotel on the other end. far easier to just take a cab.

and ease of access was my point. however small SF itself may be, its still a major transportation center, and a hum for business, etc. if we're to entice people out of their cars, or off of airplanes, we've got to make it simple for them to get to their final destinations.

just taking California as an example, two typical trips might be Sacramento--> SF, which people normally drive. and LA-->SF, a daily air route for many. if the train from Sacramento stops across the bay, how convenient is that really for someone who has a meeting in downtown SF, or further down the peninsula? ditto with the trip from LA. IIRC, the proposed route is significantly east of LA proper, and stops somewhere out near rancho cucamanga (i may be wrong about this). the trip then takes you up to oakland, and again, you've got to find your way to the city, or points further south. it's just not that convenient.

compare europe, where you can travel from central london to central paris in a few hours.

i applaud the $8B, honestly, i do. but i think it's silly to assume this is going to create anything like a real high-speed rail network, even a regional one, and it's certainly not going to create a significant number of jobs.

 

Jonathan Swift approves this message!

 

it is mr. meowgi. welcome back, what do i win

 

Fair enough but as someone who has worked on transit projects I can tell you that there will be a meaningful number of jobs for us in the planning and design field if this passes.

You live in NYC correct?

I can tell you it takes me as long or longer to get from La Guardia and/or JFK to downtown Manhattan as it does to go from Oakland Airport to SF. From Newark. FUGGETABOUTIT!

 

yep, but it takes 5 minutes to go from penn station to my apt.

 

Look, Meowgi, that dog don't hunt.

There's no Obama allegiance here, unless basso has somehow become a koolaid drinker in your mind. **** Obama. This spending is a good idea and a good prioritization.

I owe NASA, personally, a great deal. Still am a vociferous backer of unmanned missions. Have even been involved in related research projects. But...

when a center has lost most of its innovative personnel, its best leadership, and it has become a top-heavy bureaucracy full of people waiting to retire, what does it have in common with the agency we all knew and loved? Nothing but an address. This isn't sports where you keep wearing someone's jersey and it doesn't really matter. This is taxpayer money.

 

Yeah, the Astros are all about trains now. Not an astronaut helmet in sight.

Damn liberal Drayton.

(damn, I could not find an image of the original 1962 parking lot attendants decked out in their space suits complete with helmets)

 

i'm a cognac drinker, and Obama still blows. just want to make sure we're clear on that.

Spoiler

 

Ah yes, so you're all about pork barrel spending. Spending is OK as long as it benefits your city, right - never mind if it's actually a good idea or not. Good, highly responsible governing strategy.

 

You don't think private aeronautics companies would want to locate in Houston? Why is it only government jobs that count?

 

I have faith that private industry can do it better. Why don't you? Just because the oil companies in Houston are privately rather than government run doesn't mean Houston isn't an oil town. Do you think that private aerospace firms will leave Texas? If so, why?

 

ShovelFace is a socialist that only believes in government spending.

 

so i'm confused by the article then. i thought Obama was announcing new funding. is that not correct?

 

From the original article:

There is a ton of money that is about to be spent from the original stimulus. Remember how everyone was upset that the "shovel ready" projects weren't instantaneous? Now they are going into effect.

 

Has it ever occurred to you that I might have been in favor of privatizing NASA long before Obama? Lord you leap to some amazing conclusions.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgin_Galactic

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