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I think its time to stop the long distance routes
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by Chucky: [QB] Polarbearucla, Of course you'd like to see more investment in CA: You live there. I live in New Mexico. I think shoring up the Southwest Chief would be a good idea. Have you ever even climbed aboard the Southwest Chief, my friend? Could you sleep at night knowing you were instrumental in its demise? I wish you would explain to me what you mean by "sound investment?" I don't have a clue what you mean by that combination of words. I know you boys out in California have your heart set on high speed rail. Do you call that a sound investment and if so, why? Let me tell you what I consider a sound investment: Off the top of my head, I think the long hauls cost the taxpayer a few hundred million dollars. Now then, what do we get for that money? I know what I get: I get to Chicago and Los Angeles for practically nothing whenever I please. What do you get for that investment? Maybe *you* get nothing now, but someday, in the future, you get the option of turning those routes into something really awesome. It might be high speed rail, it might be maglev, who knows? Boy, if you let those routes slip through your fingers, you may never get them back again. Those freight lines might just decide not to let you have them again for passenger rail. And why should they? In the world of business, you don't have to be a nice guy. From what I understand, Amtrak is a bit of a thorn in the side of the freight companies. Life would be so much easier for them if those passenger trains weren't in the way all the time. Furthermore, the liability of having to rent out lines that transport humans is somewhat of a nuisance. I assume you are a young man. I am getting on in years. It's your world and you have to decide if you want to plan for the short term or the long term. Right now you've got a railroad network that crisscrosses the United States. Why give it up for the price of a few intelligent weapons? I do apologize if I offended your political sensibilities. As it stands, Congress likes Amtrak. If they didn't it would have died long ago. I agree that in a way, it really doesn't matter who is elected President. It's like Tolstoy said in War and Peace, if Napoleon didn't exist, we would have created him. The extraordinary thing about our times is that we the people did not create George Bush. He, for all practical purposes lost the election. Along these lines, the people, as represented by Congress, really do want a national railroad. If the President was actually exercising some leadership, he would recognize this and support the will of the people. All this will change in November. [/QB][/QUOTE]
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