Why I am voting yes on Prop 1A…
Written by Jeshii on 2008.11.04 – 04:15 -
Friends, Californians, Countrymen; I am voting yes on State Measure 1A.
Yes, it will take a very long time. This is the reason I want to vote for it now. Think in the long view. If our parents had thought of this, like their Japanese counter parts had (the first 新幹線 (Shinkansen) in Japan was in the 60s!!!), we too would have something to boast about on the world scale. Japan currently sells bullet trains to Taiwan.
I personally see this less as a budget/population issue, and more an issue of dreams… and not short term dreams, but long term dreams. The US is so caught up in instant gratification, I’d be willing to bet this would fail even in good economic times.
The Golden Gate Bridge was another project that people thought would be too much money, or would hurt the local economy due to making unfair competition for the ferries. But, in the end, it became an enduring symbol of our state.
I think this is very much the same thing. Yes, I think it is cool. But, I also think that if we don’t do it now, it may never happen in our lifetime. We are all wired into a survival trip now. I’d be willing to bet many people, not my readers of course, but some people don’t think we’ll be around in 30 years, or our way of life will be vastly different. Hunting and gathering, perhaps. But, then again, Dr. Thompson wrote that line about the survival trip in 1971.
And here we are without flying cars, jet packs, underwater cities, or a stinking bullet train for christ’s sake.
Tags: ballot measures, bullet trains, california, election, non-japan, politics, prop 1a, shinkansen, state measures, transportation, trians, 新幹線
Posted in non-japan | 1 Comment »
1 Trackback(s)