Tuesday, January 5, 2010

His Train Has Been Derailed

PaddyMac scoffs at the engineering feat of a train that can travel 245 miles per hour. Giving up on his concrete ribbons of highways trying to match that accomplishment, Paddy now goes for the airplanes, which do travel much faster.

James Rowen points out that planes are fine, as long as you have an airport nearby to land at and take off from.

But there is another key point that the erudite Rowen missed. Paddy made this assertion in his post (emphasis mine):
Oh, wait: We get around in America on an even faster form of transportation. It goes about 600 mph. It beats trains on most trips, and it carries Americans 600 billion passenger miles a year, far more than the most optimistic projections for high-speed trains here. And it pretty much is funded out of passenger fees rather than general taxes.
One problem for old Paddy. How many of those pesky airports does he know of that are privately built or maintained. Even Milwaukee County took stimulus dollars to improve Mitchell Field.

But Paddy's never let a thing like the truth bother him before, why start now?

8 comments:

  1. And how much does Amtrak get subsidized a year. I believe there is only 1 Amtrack route that is profitable.
    So, for effeciency of tax money, cars are still the best bet.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dan, highways are paid for with public tax dollars, and cost even more than airports. You're wrong again, my friend.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yep capper and where does most of the money come from? Oh, right, user fees in the terms gas taxes, liscense fees, trucking fees, etc.. Still more effecient.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Granted, those fees go to pay for it, but it is not for all of the costs, and I doubt that it is even most of the costs. Did you ever have the street in front of your house redone? It goes on your property tax.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh, God, what could be worse than listening to Hemorrhoid Dan opine about public financing and other things about which he knows nothing.

    ReplyDelete
  6. "Hemorrhoid Dan" Ha, that's good.
    Especially coming from a guy who won't use his/her/it's name.

    ReplyDelete
  7. And capper, I think the part about the street assessment/repairs going on your property tax is wrong. You don't own the street, you get miminal benefit from it as oppossed to the neighbors and the community. Further you don't have a choice about repairs.

    ReplyDelete
  8. We never get a choice about repairs. We only get to pay. But they did that to my folks when they repaved their street.

    ReplyDelete