Facebook
Fark
Digg
Reddit
StumbleSun editorial:
No waste in rail dream
Local efforts supporting high-speed rail sharply contrast with image broadcast worldwide
Thursday, March 5, 2009 | 2:07 a.m.
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal misfired last month while aiming a shot at Las Vegas and the stimulus bill. “It (the stimulus bill) includes ... $8 billion for high-speed rail projects, such as a magnetic levitation line from Las Vegas to Disneyland,” Jindal said in contesting a speech by President Barack Obama that supported the bill.
Our Washington reporter, Lisa Mascaro, wrote a story correcting his televised mistake, but we wonder how many people outside of our state still believe what he said because congressional Republicans and right-wing commentators continue to make the false claims.
Mascaro wrote that, yes, there is $8 billion in the bill for high-speed rail. But the money does not have a project attached to it. Any regional commission or state government can apply for a portion of the money.
Many other countries have had high-speed rail systems for years, but officials here are still working on proposals for them.
That is a shame, because high-speed rail lines serve millions of travelers, save energy and employ thousands of people in their construction, maintenance and operation — perfectly fitting the goals of the stimulus bill.
The reality of a magnetic levitation train connecting Las Vegas to Anaheim is far from the image conveyed by Jindal. Listeners could easily have imagined that taxpayers were funding plans being drafted in well-appointed offices by high-paid engineers and administrators.
Las Vegas Sun reporter Brian Eckhouse wrote Tuesday about what is really happening. There is an incomplete proposal for a maglev line. It has been alive, but just barely, for more than 20 years. There is a public-private commission that backs such an idea, but it has accumulated just $50,000 toward a line that would cost at least $12 billion. The commission has a headquarters — in the Las Vegas home of retiree Richann Bender, the commission’s only, and unpaid, employee.
Bender has been associated with this project since 1981, and we admire her passion to see it through despite the barriers. Rather than the one spun by Jindal, her story is the one a nationwide audience should be hearing.
Discussion: comments so far…
Comments are moderated by Las Vegas Sun editors. Our goal is not to limit the discussion, but rather to elevate it. Comments should be relevant and contain no abusive language. Comments that are off-topic, vulgar, profane or include personal attacks will be removed. Full comments policy. Additionally, we now display comments from trusted commenters by default. Those wishing to become a trusted commenter need to verify their identity or sign in with Facebook Connect to tie their Facebook account to their Las Vegas Sun account. For more on this change, read our story about how it works and why we did it.
Only trusted comments are displayed on this page. Untrusted comments have expired from this story.
No trusted comments have been posted.
Post a comment
Most Popular
- Viewed
- Discussed
- E-mailed
- Coolican: Henderson officials out of loop on police brutality case, raising red flags
- Lumberjacks — ‘Where the Big Boys Eat’ — hiring for North Las Vegas location
- Berkley draws stark contrasts with Heller over immigration
- Two dead after accident in downtown Las Vegas
- Instant Analysis: Debating whether UNLV should continue series with San Diego State
- Superstar Whitney Houston dies at 48
- Howard Miller, prominent lawyer and ‘true Las Vegas native,’ dies at 68
- Short memories may serve president
- Police looking for man in white Ford Explorer
- Saying ‘No mas’ to government
Blogs
The Kats Report
Color from scene at Thomas & Mack: We have a wire job! Rebels win, and Louie Armstrong sings!
South Point owner Michael Gaughan's take on 'Vegas Stripped': 'I'll give it an 8' (4 Comments)
Author relishes writing the life story of ‘larger-than-life’ Oscar Goodman (3 Comments)
Elsewhere
Landowner: All roads could lead to Uxbridge casino
Revel reveals smoke-free casino opening
Cirque du Soleil show in Sands China casino to close this month
Meet the woman behind Sheldon Adelson
The Sun
Locally owned and independent for more than 50 years.
Thank goodness....the Sun did not fire the "liar" gun again.
Now it is just a mistake.
But I really do not see much difference in this statement: "It (the stimulus bill) includes ... $8 billion for high-speed rail projects, such as a magnetic levitation line from Las Vegas to Disneyland," "
and this statement: "Similarly, the much-ridiculed $8 billion for high-speed rail that could help develop a proposed line between Las Vegas and Disneyland could bring additional jobs to the state."
or even this: "In late-stage talks, Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., pressed for $8 billion to construct high-speed rail lines, quadrupling the amount in the bill that passed the Senate on Tuesday.
Reid's office issued a statement noting that a proposed Los Angeles-to-Las Vegas rail might get a big chunk of the money."
I guess they are all mistakes.
or
They all are saying the same thing.....which is the truth.
It depends on which day of the week it is.
Why is a high speed rail from Calif to Nevada a national priority instead of a state priority? Obama is already trying to buy votes to save harry Reid. Now that is throwing good money down the drain, harry is done in Nevada.
I didn't see or hear Gov Jindal's speech. But as I recall, the President did say projects in his stimulus bill would be "Shovel ready projects." Meaning projects that would put people to work right away. I just dont see where an 8 billion dollar project like this, that wont start for 20 years, (if ever) should have been in this bill. Maybe that is the point the governor was making And didn't Sen Reid get in the 2007 or 2008 budget almost 2 billion dollars for this same project?