It is you who should read your history books. And if you think Americans are going to work more for less money because there is less regulation, you have obviously never studied the science of economics, both micro and macro. Minimum wage laws only do one thing - make sure fewer people are employed and that prices are higher. Minimum wage laws effectively killed whole swaths of jobs and infringe on liberty of contract.

As for ADA compliance, when Norfolk Southern needed to replace a small crew shack at Krannert, Georgia, they found out that the new one would have to be ADA compliant, despite the fact that virtually no disabled persons can work in railroad field operations that require things like working on track or hanging off of boxcars in the pouring rain. Why on earth should NS be forced to double its contruction costs for a building that will never need to be accessed by a disabled person? Governmental compliance costs for the ADA are astronomical. Are ADA compliant facilities a good thing? Sure. Can society afford to make every last bit infrastructure compliant - not at all. Do I lack compassion? Certainly not. Is it constitutional - NO WAY. 14th Ammendment and Due Process protections do not apply, and regulation of bathrooms at Wendy's is not interstate commerce. If your state wants to mandate that, fine, but it is not the place of the federal government to do so.

Apparently you have no familiarity with the Federal Employers Liability Act. It is the very reason that railroads are some of the safest jobs to be had in heavy industry today. FRA's myriad regulations on every nitpicking aspect of the industry are insanity (see idiocy of glazing requirements on older equipment). Roadway worker rules are far overreaching, voluminous passenger car safety standards unnecessary, regulation of electronic devices by force of law ridiculous, unenforceable, and pandering. The basic safety appliance and minimal inspection requirements specified in acts of Congress and inherited by FRA from ICC were probably appropriate, but most of their recent (25 years or so) stuff is purely to justify their own jobs (Stevie Z, do not be offended - you are a great mechanical engineer).

Now let's talk about the EPA. Initial Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act - arguably necessary to some degree, but ridiculous emissions standards for locomotives that move thousands of tons of freight? Regulation of carbon dioxide (you know, that stuff plants cannot live without, that is necessary for photosynthesis and resultant release of oxygen), banning of DDT that cannot in any objective way be proven to have any ill effects on anything (thanks, Rachel Carson) except pests (bed bugs, mosquitos) but has led to the deaths of 50 MILLION or more humans in sub-Saharan Africa, South America, and Southeast Asia; prevention of coal mining, oil and gas exploration (have you actually seen the frozen tundra part of ANWR where the oil is?), destruction of the logging industry (screw the spotted owl!), drying up the entire Central Valley of California for a minnow, shutting down Tellico Dam for the snail darter (not actually endangered after all), preventing the building of new coal fired power plants, steel mills, and countless other industries. Yes, indeed, the EPA needs to be shut down.

No, it is not me who should read history, it is you who should do so before making such "broad and [truly] ignorant generalizations."

Best,
Mike
A Proud Resident of Literalville, USA

Mike,

By the end of your post I was standing and saluting!!! You and I are of one mind!

Ditto

Mike, DDT caused Bald Eagles to lay thin shelled eggs therefore causing difficulty in reproduction. I think that is an ill effect.

[quote="Newriver400"] Are ADA compliant facilities a good thing? Sure. Can society afford to make every last bit infrastructure compliant - not at all. Do I lack compassion? Certainly not. Is it constitutional - NO WAY. 14th Ammendment and Due Process protections do not apply, and regulation of bathrooms at Wendy's is not interstate commerce. [/quote]

An interesting set of conclusions, which are nevertheless impossible to follow in the absence of citations to authority, and therefore beg the question as to your qualifications to render a legal opinion.

It amazes me that people casually toss around such statements in a forum which routinely defers to credentials, knowledge and accepted procedures in practically all other technical matters. I shudder to imagine such casually-offered and unsupported opinion on matters such as crown sheet thickness or staybolt spacing, but see that at least one other poster admits to "standing and saluting" your pontification. Maybe in the interest of balance we should henceforth seek out the positions of Glen Beck or Sarah Palin in discussions of things like firebox design.

Who said anything about Beck or Palin? Further, there are plenty of overeducated idiots out there with credentials out the yin yang, but they've never spent a day turning the crank to make things actually work (see Paul Krugman, Barry O, Harry Reid, Barbara "please address me as Senator" Boxer, Ray LaHood, Robert Reich, Tim Geithner, Ben Bernanke, Barney Frank, and on and on and on). Credentials mean NOTHING without applicable experience! Have you actually read what these ivory tower uber-credentialed people write or listen to what they say? How many Supreme Court rulings on constitutionally significant issues have you read? I have read the arguments, rulings, and dissents of Schecter aka the Sick Chicken case (one of the funniest lines of questioning by Justices ever!), Filburn, Roe, Citizens United, Dred Scott, Marbury, Plessy, Brown, and many others. I am a reasonably intelligent person with good logic and reasoning skills. Why do I need someone else to tell me what to think about original source material that I have read to find out how we are in this mess today?

As for DDT, the thin egg shells are a scientific myth perpetuated by so many innacurate sources that it's laughable. Read the EPA reports and the actual judicial opinions surrounding it, especially the findings of the adminstrative law judge regarding the actual science. I, too, was duped by middle and high school text books and teachers who lacked intellectual curiosity. Do you know that you can consume DDT by the tablespoon with no negative side effects? Yeah, I didn't know until a couple of years ago. Have you read the drivel that is "Silent Spring"? The whole environmental movement can be traced to what has long been exposed as pure conjecture and propaganda. Sad, really.

None of this is to say that I want to destroy the environment or want dirty air (ok, the nice acrid smell of coal smoke lingering might be an exception - the area around the coking facility at Burns Harbor smells like we still make things here) or dirty water, but for man to have the intoxicating vanity to think he will destroy life on earth or even the planet itself is absurd. The earth's own natural processes create and destroy more of the environment than man can even begin to contemplate. We are commanded to be good stewards of our resources by a higher authority, but stewardship does not mean extremism and it does not mean federal intervention except where interstate waters are concerned. Until we change our fundamental foundations of law (the Declaration - why we exist, and the Constitution - how we exist) through a lawful process of amendment, then most police power (not the crime fighting kind) rests in the several sovereign states and not with the federal government. Doing so allows us arrange our policies around the values that we ascribe to on a regional basis and discounts the ability to force a one size fits all policy for 300 million people. Mr. Madison's federalist style of national republic demands an adherance to this principle to survive long term.

Getting back to the topic and railway history in general, I highly recommend Conquering Gotham, which decribes the dreams, aspirations, trials and tribulations, and great vision of Alexander Cassatt and his team in their quest to run their Pennsylvania Railroad into the heart of Manhattan. I was struck by the sheer breadth of the undertaking and the fortitude required to complete it - without a burdensome federal behemoth riding on their backs. And it was all done with private funding! If we didn't have the hurdles that are faced today, would the ARC tunnels under the North River be a bit more affordable than $14 billion? I think tremendously so. I also think it would be done with impressive safety considering the advances in technology and science that allows us to understand things like "the bends." I really want to describe this in more detail and relation to the topic at hand, but gotta run for now.

Mike in Literalville

“I bring reason to your ears, and, in language as plain as ABC, hold up truth to your eyes.” - Thomas Paine

There's nothing wrong with ADA. There are, however, a lot of really stupid people out there.

One form of stupidity is allowing your politics to drive your perceptions of reality; often called "drinking the kool-aid". As Mark Twain says, "It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure... that just ain't so!"

Combine a local "doo gooder" inspector who demands more than is lawful... and a kool-aid drinking facility owner who "KNOWS" ADA is burdensome and unfair. It's a perfect storm. Both will agree on the unnecessary gold-plate, because it reinforces each person's different beliefs about ADA - beliefs that just ain't so.

The capacity of stupid people to misapply good law is absolutely STAGGERING.

Injustice? Hell no. This is America. Part and parcel of "the pursuit of happiness" is not protecting the stupid from their richly deserved consequences. Watch them fail, and laugh at them.


Exactly correct.

I mean - that's what the ADA already says. The mystery is why you think it does not.

To the extent the law has problems, it's because of what you say. The state can mandate it. More to the point, the municipality. If the city inspector says "Install gold plate", do you? I would argue a patriot's duty is to fight such injustice for yourself and posterity. I'm sorry if this duty falls to you one day, but freedom isn't free. Trust me on that!


This law? http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/te ... .2&idno=49

Here is an interesting presentation from Edison Electric Institute discussing the US role in the world economy. In particular take a look at page 24:

http://www.eei.org/meetings/Meeting%20D ... erence.pdf

PC

OT, but interesting reading about DDT, with a bit of both sides thrown in:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/2010-04-22-tren21_ST_N.htm
http://www.21stcenturysciencetech.com/articles/summ02/Carson.html
http://www.depletedcranium.com/shame/
http://www.junkscience.com/ddtfaq.html
http://membracid.wordpress.com/2007/06/07/ddt-junk-science-malaria-and-the-attack-on-rachel-carson/

This law? http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/te ... .2&idno=49



Obviously you missed the discussions regarding the fact that the FRA has recently started nitpicking on the glazing requirements saying that "antiquated or historic" only applies to equipment built prior to 1945 and is now selectively forcing tourist railroads, excursion operators, and museums to comply or get waivers, which is bunk. The interpretation standard (available at FRA's website) has not been revised since 223 was written in the 1970's. Yes, FRA generally is granting waivers, but we shouldn't have to ask in the first place. Further, they are including special provisions in each waiver despite identical or similar equipment styles, types, build dates, circumstances.

Look up the thread from late 2009 or early 2010 for more info and discussion.

Mike

This looks to have been an interesting and reasonably balanced and factual presentation - wish I was able to hear the lecture/speech. It seems to reinforce what we've been discussing to a large degree - notice that a major factor that is hampering recovery is uncertainty about regulations, taxes, and public policy. We have only one group to blame - big government interventionists who try to manipulate the marketplace for some perceived social benefit. This is what is driving monetary policy at the Fed - the dual roles of the Fed to provide a stable currency is being far outweighed by the social goal of lower unemployment. The Fed should have only one overarching goal - stable currency. Taking inflation fears out of the picture helps businesses and investors plan for the future and doesn't create the hidden tax of inflation which hurts the poor most of all. See today's Wall St. Journal front page article on inflation fears.

America is still a decent place to do business, but it is only #6 on the scale of economic freedom. It should be #1 without any rivals (or at least those individual states that choose to be) without a lot of interference from Fedzilla (I love that moniker!).

Best,
Mike

We have been trained to blame the government, which some responses to this thread have shown. And we have been trained to ignore contradictions.I still am surprised when I meet folks who proclaim themselves to be anti-socialists, but happily drive on public roads and accept Medicare. Big government is bad... except when I need it, then it is OK, but otherwise it is BAD!

What it also shows is that there is another way to move ahead....a positive way. Kelly's original post highlights that.

The Eminem spot didn't blame and bicker, it just said - in a very direct manner - that things have changed but it doesn't all suck.

Isn't that a nicer place to start? It's better than screaming at each other as we circle the drain.

When we come together, progress happens. From your local museum to the highest powers in the world.

There is no doubt in my mind that "Americans are capable of making and saving great things." But -- I do doubt that we have the will do make it so to any great extent. As noted above, many of the people who are making policy -- not just Democratic Party operatives, but also Republican and Libertarian and Tea Party partisans -- have never had a callous or dirt under their fingernails or been dog-tired from working 10 or 12 hour days. They've never been scratched or cut or burned on the job. They don't have a clue what really goes into making steel or automobiles or lumber or buildings -- or locomotives. And too many of their followers don't, either.

And two houses of Congress full of multi-millionaire lawyers....

PC

The other solution is to PARTICIPATE! If you expect somebody else, either business or government, to provide improvements to your life....well keep waiting.

The role of business is to make money--pure and simple. It would be nice for it to have a sense of noblesse oblige (that they owe something to society) but a businessman's first obligation is to make money, to pay the bills and to keep the those supporting him (stockholders) happy. Fail that and he's gone.

Government carries the sticks to make business act to the benefit of society--hence regulation. Since business understands the relationship, it spends the money to participate (some would say corrupt) the business of government.

What we, as individuals, need to do is become involved in government ourselves. We can do this at the local level, at the state level and even at the state level. It takes more than mere voting. It takes an awareness of what is going on, what is being proposed and what can be done. I've been involved with a group that has been working to revise application of boiler law to make it much easier to operate a historical boiler in this state. It's an eye opening experience and I recommend it to all of you.

Laws stand because nobody appeals for their change. So get involved and find out the story of where these laws came from and fix them. This can involve regulations, economic policy or what have you. No matter your views of what government is, if you're not involved then nothing will change. It is a government of "We the People" Nobody else.

Michael Seitz
Missoula MT