The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Already ahead of you. The stretch of railroad from Chicago to St. Louis is being upgraded to high-speed rail allowing 80+ MPH train travel.

80+? Meh. I do that already on rural ND county highways in the Jagua.... What's that? Don't admit it? Uh ... yeah, ...

Uh, OK, 80. Sounds good.

 

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Already ahead of you. The stretch of railroad from Chicago to St. Louis is being upgraded to high-speed rail allowing 80+ MPH train travel.


The big problem with providing high-speed passenger rail service is that the rail lines in the Midwest and West are all freight rails with Amtrak as a secondary service. Meaning your bullet train would need to yield to cross-country freight traffic.

Building new track specifically for bullet trains would require an astronomical cost for: land purchase, land easements, grade crossings, separated crossings, bridges, tunnels, track construction, subgrade improvements, station infrastructures, locomotives and cars, etc.

On top of the expenses, you need to offer a price point cheaper than flight or automobile travel.

There's a lot of hidden costs for automobile travel that people don't take into account. Add it all up and automobile's are massively expensive. If I could replan my life I would have tried my hardest to set myself up automobile free.

Airlines tend to lose money, and/or not reinvest in their business when they make money. They suck a lot of tax dollars.

Building new track is infrastructure. How long are we supposed to run trains on the same tracks we've had for decades? Roads have to be improved, so does track. Roads are way way way more expensive to put in and maintain.

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Building new track is infrastructure.

Roads, bridges, airports, power lines, dams. We take those for granted because they've been there for us. We forget the prior generations put them there. And, they need maintenance.

 

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Roads, bridges, airports, power lines, dams. We take those for granted because they've been there for us. We forget the prior generations put them there. And, they need maintenance.

This. And it drives me crazy.

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Get your popcorn ready! The circus starts at 2 pm Central.

That's the "mandatory evacuation" time as set by the Governor of ND a month ago. The Army Corps want the DAPL camp empty so the site can be cleaned up. The Army Corp requested State law enforcement to remove "trespassers" from their property.

Before you ask, State of North Dakota Buying Hotel Rooms and Bus Tickets Home for #NoDAPL Protesters

What'll it take to clean it up? North Dakota Cops Get Hazmat Training

C'mon. It can't be that bad. The folk there were out to protect the environment and the water.

Oh, and there was an additional unintended consequence of the DAPL protest camp. Revenues at the Standing Rock Casino are down. Most of the folks that frequent that casino drive down from Bismarck-Mandan and that road is the one the protester camp shut down (see the big red advisory dot south of Bismarck on this map). I wonder if that isn't part of the reason why Chairman Archambault asked the protesters to go home back in December. It was bad for business. They knew they were going to lose the lucrative holiday season at the casino.


LATE ADD: Here's the latest from Forum Communications (via GF Herald). Some Dakota Access Pipeline opponents move to higher ground as camp closure looms. The photo slide show in here is good ... or bad.

 

[joecct]

This. And it drives me crazy.

That. If I have $100 in my budget, do I feed a hungry person, educate a person, or repair the infrastructure? There's not enough Benjamins to adequately fund all 3. Roads, bridges and rails don't vote.

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

That. If I have $100 in my budget, do I feed a hungry person, educate a person, or repair the infrastructure? There's not enough Benjamins to adequately fund all 3. Roads, bridges and rails don't vote.

Now put yourself in the position where you have fiduciary responsibility for a quarter billion dollars of (private but still key infrastructure, power distribution) assets. Raises? Health insurance costs? New equipment? Training? Replace 20 miles of failing underground? Replace 600 rotting poles?

 

[joecct]

Now put yourself in the position where you have fiduciary responsibility for a quarter billion dollars of (private but still key infrastructure, power distribution) assets. Raises? Health insurance costs? New equipment? Training? Replace 20 miles of failing underground? Replace 600 rotting poles?

I know! I know! But our political masters have failed the infrastructure only fixing what's broken.

Building something is one thing. Maintaining it is something that is frequently forgotten.

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Maintaining it is something that is frequently forgotten.

Everyone forgets the cost of ownership.
Anything new has a CapEx line item, and that's what people fret about, but also an on-going concern budget impact, and that's where the real costs can be.

 

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Everyone forgets the cost of ownership.
Anything new has a CapEx line item, and that's what people fret about, but also an on-going concern budget impact, and that's where the real costs can be.

We seem to have forgotten about this in our country. The ones that have not forgotten are homeowners who continually have to maintain their homes and replace appliances that no longer last as long as they once did. Meanwhile everything around them crumbles or they are taxed more for desperation "fixes".

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

We seem to have forgotten about this in our country.

Pride of ownership?
Responsibility to care for and maintain what you've done (or see to it that it is)?

Meh, outdated concepts.


PS - Good on you! Thanks for the reminder. I need to measure my primary refrigerator (16 years) and go shopping. The ice maker is out and the filter ($50!) is due for a change. The thing ran constantly last summer because the self-defrost cycle can not longer keep up.

 

[joecct]

We seem to have forgotten about this in our country. The ones that have not forgotten are homeowners who continually have to maintain their homes and replace appliances that no longer last as long as they once did. Meanwhile everything around them crumbles or they are taxed more for desperation "fixes".

And we, the voters, have failed ourselves, our children and our children's children by not holding the politicians accountable. The Monster is on the loose and we won't be the ones to kill it.

 

[FreshFish]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Roads, bridges, airports, power lines, dams. We take those for granted because they've been there for us. We forget the prior generations put them there. And, they need maintenance.

If we wanted our infrastructure maintained, we'd have found a way for politicians to plaster their names all over the maintenance work.....

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

If we wanted our infrastructure maintained, we'd have found a way for politicians to plaster their names all over the maintenance work.....

Sen. Blowhard J. Funkwater Municipal Airport
currently maintained by legislation sponsored by Sen. Blowhard J. Funkwater II

just doesn't fit on the signs or letterhead.

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

Meanwhile, at the intersection of the Cannonball and Missouri (DAPL camp) ... three hours to mandatory evac and they're burning down the ... tents?

http://www.valleynewslive.com/content/news/414485893.html

 

[aparch]

If we wanted our infrastructure maintained, we'd have found a way for politicians to plaster their names all over the maintenance work.....

Like this?

<IMG SRC=http://i.dailyherald.com/stories/122/normal/122455.jpg>

Ironic, considering the Tollway is self funded and doesn't receive state funds for any maintenance or operations.

And yes, as soon as he was ousted, the signs were removed too.

 

[aparch]

Get your popcorn ready! The circus starts at 2 pm Central.

The irony that the waters these protesters were defending are in direct line of being tainted by these "protectors" is too good.

A shame for the environment they were trying to "protect."

 

[The Sicatoka]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

The irony that the waters these protesters were defending are in direct line of being tainted by these "protectors" is too good.

A shame for the environment they were trying to "protect."

Irony is a harsh mistress.

The latest from the Bismarck Tribune:

Celebratory fires --> but what about the CO2 emissions?
http://bismarcktribune.com/news/sta...cle_b9ac67d0-d8ff-5f99-b4e2-d5db60cdeb4f.html

Energy surges
http://bismarcktribune.com/news/sta...cle_ade60f0f-758c-5d44-a393-3b48e0b2826c.html

Ice jams raise flooding concern <-- that'll be UGLY; that'll wash that whole mess down to the Standing Rock civil water intake ... that they meant to protect
http://bismarcktribune.com/news/sta...cle_31caa8df-c5a5-5608-a4b9-b1581a05110c.html

 

[joecct]

Sen. Blowhard J. Funkwater Municipal Airport
currently maintained by legislation sponsored by Sen. Blowhard J. Funkwater II

just doesn't fit on the signs or letterhead.

Hey if there's an airport, there's usually a politician's name somewhere.

Should we return to Pork to restore the infrastructure?

 

[Kepler]

Re: The States: Mad Scientist Laboratories of Democracy

More from the Republican brain trust, part deux.