California OKs Funding For High-Speed Rail Line

AP ^ | 7/6/12 | Judy Lin

[Lmo56]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- California lawmakers approved billions of dollars Friday in construction financing for the initial segment of the nation's first dedicated high-speed rail line connecting Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The move marked a major political victory for Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown and the Obama administration. Both have promoted bullet trains as job generators and clean transportation alternatives.

[Loyal Sedition]

If there is NOT such a butterfly now, there WILL be soon!

The eco-nuts have been caught before transplanting species to new locations in order to support their zero development goals.

There will also be “Native American” remains found, even if they have to move them into the path in the dark of night to make it happen.
Designated “Native American Experts” will get rich deciding if the remains can be relocated, or the track has to be rerouted.

Bits of broken pottery will be enough to halt construction for months at a time.

It’s a very rural area, a few more modern bodies may turn up too, where IS Jimmy Hoffa?

This is going to be the most lucrative scam of the century, and you KNOW who will end up covering the expense when it’s determined to be a project “Too important to fail”!

[Jack Hammer]

Only in California could a legislature that’s charged with overseeing a state that’s not only flat broke, it’s deep in the red, decide to jump into the bottommless pit of debt and spend more to build a railroad on one of the world’s biggest geological fault lines.

Someone’s been spending too much time in Fantasyland.

[afraidfortherepublic]

For those unfamiliar with California, look at a map of those two cities and what’s in between them.

Fresno is in between. Fresno is the heart of the Central Valley, has a large population, and is increasingly difficult to access by air. I'm not saying that this train is a good idea, but I am saying that it is frustrating to try to reach Fresno these days. It is estimated that Fresno County has a population of 900,000. That's what's between.

[pepsionice]

Go out and question 1k residents of both LA and San Francisco. Let them know what a round-trip ticket would really cost (likely in the $200 range per person). If you check the current Amtrak round-trip costs...it’s near to $125 for a round-trip ticket...taking eight hours to get from one destination to another. The speed rail? It won’t be any less than three hours.

[ronnie raygun]

Love the catch phrases, “high speed rail line” means BAILOUT MONEY.

[blueunicorn6]

“Bullet trains”? - way too harsh....let’s call them fluffy pillow trains.....

[Captain Peter Blood]

So where is other $100 Billion going to come from to actually build this thing and put it into service????????

[waus]

Yeah, I thought about that after I posted.

But, then, it was too late.

[mo]

.” In summary, just passing the bill, gives California a $3.2 billion federal bailout while the actual use of funds may or may not ever appear (or money is on the latter). If still confused think Greece and Germany, because Federal tax collections were just used to give California a very fungible cash injection. Where the money ends up now is anyone’s guess”

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/cash-strapped-california-votes-68-billion-monorail-get-federal-bailout

This was The Won’s down payment to California for their Electoral Votes in November.