Unintended Consequences of High Speed Rail

NigelTufnel said:
This stuff never happens when highways are built. Never. Ever.
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For the record, I'm for high speed rail, just not now because we have way too much debt. Nor am I an opponent of eminent domain, as long as the owner is treated fairly.

The problem here is that the City owned this building up until the 1970's, when they sold it for scrap because they figured it was worthless. This guy took the risk to save it. Now the City sees that the building has real value and wants it back, but for a measly amount.

This is a museum quality building, and the guy that took the risk to save it 40 years ago should get what it's worth.
 
Damn Yankee said:
For the record, I'm for high speed rail, just not now because we have way too much debt. Nor am I an opponent of eminent domain, as long as the owner is treated fairly.

The problem here is that the City owned this building up until the 1970's, when they sold it for scrap because they figured it was worthless. This guy took the risk to save it. Now the City sees that the building has real value and wants it back, but for a measly amount.

This is a museum quality building, and the guy that took the risk to save it 40 years ago should get what it's worth.
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Yes, he should get what it is worth, which is likely more than $680K, but he bought it from the Railroad, not the city.
 
Topspin said:
High speed rail is the turb-lib catch phrase for Amtrak on steroids.
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Man dude I love my car and I love the freedom to travel it allows me but I also live a metropolitan life style and decent public transportation would be sweet. I've been abroad where I can catch a bus or a cab to the airport or downtown or to the market for a few dollars. Fuck it costs me $40 bucks to take a cab to the airport and I only live 12 miles away! I live 8 miles from downtown and it cost $30. Oh I can take a bus down town but it takes 2 hours to get there. It aint that way in a lot of the world. In Europe you'd have to be an blythering idiot to get a DUI, mass transit is so abundant and cheap. Why can't we do that here too? As a consumer it would be a very nice option and I'd certainly pay to use that service if it was reasonably priced.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
Man dude I love my car and I love the freedom to travel it allows me but I also live a metropolitan life style and decent public transportation would be sweet. I've been abroad where I can catch a bus or a cab to the airport or downtown or to the market for a few dollars. Fuck it costs me $40 bucks to take a cab to the airport and I only live 12 miles away! I live 8 miles from downtown and it cost $30. Oh I can take a bus down town but it takes 2 hours to get there. It aint that way in a lot of the world. In Europe you'd have to be an blythering idiot to get a DUI, mass transit is so abundant and cheap. Why can't we do that here too? As a consumer it would be a very nice option and I'd certainly pay to use that service if it was reasonably priced.
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I hate driving, especially in the mid west along I-70 with all those huge semis!

I have been in Alaska too long.
 
Damn Yankee said:
For the record, I'm for high speed rail, just not now because we have way too much debt. Nor am I an opponent of eminent domain, as long as the owner is treated fairly.

The problem here is that the City owned this building up until the 1970's, when they sold it for scrap because they figured it was worthless. This guy took the risk to save it. Now the City sees that the building has real value and wants it back, but for a measly amount.

This is a museum quality building, and the guy that took the risk to save it 40 years ago should get what it's worth.
Click to expand...

High speed rail only really makes sense in a few highly populated areas of the country. My suggestion: those states that contain areas in which high speed rail would be cost-effective should form an interstate compact to build it, calculate how much taxes it would cost to build, and put a plebiscite before voters on whether or not they want they want it to be built.

Unfortunately such a plan involves many people coming together, as they so rarely do. But the federal government can't place special taxes on them to build it, and the people in flyover country aren't going to want to spend such a huge amount of money on something that's only going to benefit megacities.
 
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