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Saturday, January 30. 2021

How ecstasy and psilocybin are shaking up psychiatry

J&J Vaccine Provides Strong Shield Against Severe Covid

What Teachers Have Been Doing Instead of Teaching

James report exposes Andrew Cuomo’s despicable, cynical dishonesty

Cuomo Asked Why He Lied About Nursing Home Deaths: “Who Cares”

Why Is American Rail So Costly? A new research project identifies one cause: bloated station designs.

FBI Lawyer Who Forged Email in Carter Page FISA Process Sentenced to Probation

Democrats Introduce Bill to ‘Massively Expand’ Mail-in Voting

87% of Bureau of Land Management Staffers Quit When Trump Told Them to Move to Colorado

Biden Presidency: The Dopes Have Taken Full Control

China Tells Taiwan "Independence Means War" As Rival Wargames Ongoing

Posted by Bird Dog in Hot News & Misc. Short Subjects at 05:12 | Comments (13) | Trackbacks (2)

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re Why Is American Rail So Costly? A new research project identifies one cause: bloated station designs.

Being parasites themselves, the researchers are unable to take the wider view.

The reason why these projects are so costly is because they are government funded and operated.

Politicians always make the gutless, easy choice to please every special interest and stick the taxpayer with the bill. This allows the grifters to come out of the woodwork.

There is nothing surprising here.

#1 feeblemind on 2021-01-30 08:43 (Reply)

One other thing. Our ruling masters are imbued with a "If you build it, they will come." mentality. They use that line of thinking to justify the most egregious infrastructure projects.

#1.1 feeblemind on 2021-01-30 16:31 (Reply)

Well ... I s'pose it's a start ...

For reasons too long to get into, the raiload stuff always ended up on my desk. My Brueau Chief once asked me how much a proposed service would cost. I replied that I could tell him how much we'd be expected to pay for it, and what sort of gazumping might be added to it after the fact. I
also observed that we had no idea what it actually would cost, except that it would probably be a whole lot less.

My own analysis suggested 25-50% less before the data mysteriouly dried up. Since then, I've seen competent analyses by people armed with FOI writs that indicate we're paying two-to-three times the cost, which means that a lot of these services are making money from the wheels up. This includes at least one major commuter sevice I've seen an account level audit of.

Congress has a habit of structurally inflating the price to an appalling degree. This is true of Federal programs, generally. Until this is resolved, gold-plated station projects are among the least of our problems.

By the bye, if you're interested in valid cost analyses of urban rail systems, start with the work done by J. J. Bakker and his team at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, in the late-'70s. It's the first time I ran across the discussion of gold-plated station projects. It should be a lot better known than it is.

#1.2 Phil, Jr. on 2021-01-31 06:59 (Reply)

Clinesmith ... he was promised a lenient sentence, and so didn't turn on his fellow coup conspirators. This is why investigations so often run into dead ends. The DOJ is corrupted beyond repair.
If there were any justice, Clinesmith would be doing 20 years of hard labor in a Mexican prison. This is just more proof of a totally corrupted system.

#2 ruralcounsel on 2021-01-30 08:48 (Reply)

Ace at Ace of Spades blog reacted with this:

This is the Deep State saying, "Fuck you, we own this shit, you are our slaves, and there's not a fucking thing you can do about it."

Could they make it any clearer that Clinesmith was, in fact, doing exactly the job they asked of him and following his superiors' orders to the T?

I couldn't say it better than that.

#2.1 feeblemind on 2021-01-30 10:13 (Reply)

He’s naive to not know they are not finished with the process.

#2.2 Louie Miller on 2021-01-30 12:43 (Reply)

But then, it should have been obvious to everybody how destructive Biden’s program was going to be, and nevertheless somehow he got elected.

Feature, not bug. Is there really any question that a lot of these Leftists hate America and everything she stands for? C'mon, man!

And Joe Biden's all in favor of destroying America if that's what his handlers tell him he should be in favor of - Joe Biden is perhaps the stupidest man ever to hold the Presidency, he has no clue that he's a puppet. He claims to know nothing about his son's business dealings and I completely believe him. It never occurred to him to be curious about his son's business dealings, that's how dumb he is. I have no idea who's actually running the White House - perhaps Obama - but it sure ain't Joe.

#3 Jerryskids on 2021-01-30 09:43 (Reply)

https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/2021/january/harbinger-author-messianic-rabbi-jonathan-cahn-reissues-george-washingtons-prophetic-warning-for-biden-and-america

#3.1 Missy on 2021-01-30 09:55 (Reply)

China Tells Taiwan "Independence Means War" As Rival Wargames Ongoing: Throwing its weight around. I'm sure they know Biden won't even consider trying to stop them.

What Teachers Have Been Doing Instead of Teaching: They should be fired.

James report exposes Andrew Cuomo’s despicable, cynical dishonesty: Will New Yorkers vote him out, or are they stupid?

Cuomo Asked Why He Lied About Nursing Home Deaths: “Who Cares”: See above.

Why Is American Rail So Costly?: Because nobody's trying to stop it.

#4 Sam L. on 2021-01-30 11:15 (Reply)

American Rail -- Apparently there is a train itinerary that connects Paso Robles, CA to Yosemite National Park. These points 157 miles apart span most of CAs width. It's a nearly 12 hour journey, although I suspect it involves train ride up the coast, across at the Bay, then down the Sierra Nevada foothills. At least that route doesn't cross the route of the (ha, ha) "high-speed rail". I have a theory that population density per mile may have some use in determining whether rail is worthwhile or a gummint boondoggle to Harry Reid rail, solar, wind, and eviction industries (and ilk).

#5 Ted on 2021-01-30 13:06 (Reply)

There are formulas for that exact thing! You may want to read The Road More Traveled, even though it is a bit dated now. As you may guess, the density has to be pretty high for a station to support itself. But once the rail is in place, everyone wants it to stop right near them - and some of them have political power and need to be appeased.

#5.1 Assistant Village Idiot on 2021-01-30 15:52 (Reply)

If the Democrats were serious about reducing carbon they would make some effort to deal with the largest polluters, like China and India. I would suggest that we don't purchase anything from China and India until they clean up their act. Don't allow anyone from those countries to enter the U.S.

#6 Anon on 2021-01-30 18:22 (Reply)

"What teachers have been doing instead of teaching" - we are fortunate that - here in Alberta - schools are back in session. Would be hard to put to say who was happier, the grandbrats returning to school and friends or the parents who finally had a quiet house with no sibling squabbles. Even the teachers we know are glad to get back, though concerned about having to self-isolate should a student test positive (not always possible in a family setting).

We're grateful for the teachers' returning to teach, but our gratitude is rather seriously mitigated by the realization that many other "front line" workers have kept our community functioning during this "pandemic" while on longer work hours, lower wages, and fewer benefits than teachers enjoy. It doesn't help that several of our offspring - all considered "essential" - have been working long hours throughout the pandemic to the point where they're reaching overload. They may not be "front line", but the work loads they have been handed are brutal. And - let us note - none of them have nice DB pensions of any sort, let alone ones guaranteed by government.

#7 Frances on 2021-01-31 23:21 (Reply)

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Saturday, January 30. 2021

Saturday morning links