Putting aside any views on same *** marriage, all this means is that when getting from point A to point B quickly is the goal, short distance is reasonable, viable and practical via train, but longer distance require air travel. I think Mr Norman has been pointing that out for a while now. I happen to really enjoy the long distance trains, but I also know that if I have a business only reason to go across country, and travel days are during my regular work schedule, I have to take a plane.
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
But isn't it still like taking a bath with Portuguese men-of-war?
(Sigh. Satire sure closes Saturday night.)
Posted by RR4me (Member # 6052) on :
I assume so. I hate it. But I don't think I'll test the comparison empirically . Maybe if one is in love and finally getting to marry the boy/girl of one's dreams, one doesn't focus on the cattle car mode of transportation.
Posted by Ocala Mike (Member # 4657) on :
Portuguese men-of-war = extremely poisonous jellyfish, not drag queens in Lisbon!
You're right, Henry, satire is definitely what closes on Saturday night!!
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
Ocala Mike, I think the members of the Portuguese army would object to your characterization.
(Portugal has an army, doesn't it? Please say it's so.)
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
You are safe, Henry. According to Google Portugal has an army.
Posted by Ira Slotkin (Member # 81) on :
And, of course, Portugal has Madiera.
"Have some Madiera my dear, It's ever so much nicer than beer.."
I don't know a citation for that old folk song, but it's a wonderful seduction song. "Have Some Madiera My Dear"
Ira
Ira
Posted by TwinStarRocket (Member # 2142) on :
Any bagpipers in that Portuguese army?
Posted by sojourner (Member # 3134) on :
Is Madeira from Portugal? I thought it was from islands in the Mediterranean. But Portugal definitely has port. It (or perhaps the city there, Oporto) is the origin of the word "port," I believe. Don't know if anyone drinks port any more.
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
How the hog hominy hell did we get from trashing JetBlue to praising madeira?
Thread creep is an insidious thing.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
That's what happens when you are dealing with intelligent, curious, open minded people. Rocket I think you have to go farther north for the pipers but perhaps they do have ponies.
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
Thank you for calling us all curious, intelligent and open-minded. Let's have another glass of madeira, my dear, as our inimitable Ira would say.
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Indeed madeira does come from Madeira, a Portuguese territory off in the Atlantic west of Africa. We call there (Funchal) on December 2nd as one of the ports on a fifteen night cruise from Barcelona to Galveston.
Frank in Sunny SBA
Posted by Ira Slotkin (Member # 81) on :
"Thread creep is an insidious thing", It brings out every dingaling To comment on, with fortified whine, What some folks consider quite sublime.
We write of bagpipes and ponies, my gosh Can't the moderator put the kibosh On some of this not train related? Has not coach vs sleeper been debated?
Methinks, like train lady, that we are curious And although some hereon get rather furious I'm glad for the talk to which we drift Like the Madeira, it gives a lift.
Can anyone put the inimitable Ira's song to music?
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
What fun!!thanks Vicki
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Thanks, Vicki! I'll post this link on the Roll Call for our cruise.
Frank in cooling SBA
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Back on the titled topic of the Amtrak Option, Today's Wall Street Journal carries an article relating what regular Amtrak riders already know; business is up...WAY up:
WASHINGTON -- The number of people riding Amtrak surged 13.9% in July from a year earlier, as high gas prices caused more commuters to rely on intercity rail.
But many Amtrak trains are getting overcrowded, and a backlog of infrastructure problems stands in the way of expanded service.
Since last fall, Americans have been driving less while Amtrak usage has steadily increased. The latest figures suggest that the migration from highways to rail is accelerating.
In July, Amtrak said, only one of its services saw fewer riders compared with the previous year. Elsewhere, there were major gains, such as a 33% jump on the Capitol Corridor between San Francisco and Sacramento, Calif.
Even on Amtrak's already heavily traveled Northeast Corridor line from Washington to Boston, passenger counts are up by nearly 8% over last year. Overall, Amtrak is on pace to serve a record 28 million passengers in its current fiscal year, up from the previous high of 25.8 million last year. Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
Unfortunately, the WSJ article says nothing about same s e x marriage, JetBlue, Portuguese men-of-war, madeira, port, bagpipes or ponies. Otherwise it's a pretty good piece and suggests the mainstream conservative media is beginning to entertain the idea of funding Amtrak in realistic fashion.
Though the WSJ is a subscription site, many of its articles are available to all readers, and this one is.
Posted by RRRICH (Member # 1418) on :
Vicki -- thanks a lot for that video link!! That was hilarious! -- LOL!
Who is the guy singing? He looks familiar......
-- "Railroad Rich" K
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
quote:Originally posted by Henry Kisor: Otherwise it's a pretty good piece and suggests the mainstream conservative media is beginning to entertain the idea of funding Amtrak in realistic fashion.
Unfortunately Mr. Kisor, as you infer, Amtrak's recent success could adversely affect its FY09 appropriation.
The reasoning would be "you are doing so much better at the farebox nowadays, you don't need as much from us".
I can only hope Congress can see past such shortcomings and consider the deteriorating NEC infrastructure, 30 year old Amfleets, and woefully under-equipped Acelas to meet the demand for Standard and Premium service in US intercity passenger rail's most important market.
While I hold that the most "sure bet" private sector venture, or the "privatization" that the Bush administration had sought, with Amtrak would be to acquire 40 Acela cars (most likely Coaches) to enhance the existing Acela sets to eight cars, and with the private sector assuming or benefiting from all entrepreneurial risks and rewards. The necessary lengthening of the three Acela "car barns" would have to be accomplished by appropriation.
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
Mr. Norman, I neither inferred -- nor implied, the word I think you wanted -- any such thing about adverse effects on Amtrak's Fiscal Year 2009 appropriation. You perhaps are reading your own views, which are legitimate and well argued but are not shared by me, into my broad comment.
Posted by Ira Slotkin (Member # 81) on :
Companion bathers not withstanding JetBlue's market is expanding, But not their room for knees and feet. For that, Amtrak can't be beat.
This suggestion is not needed (Unsought advice oft goes unheeded): To avoid the man-o-war be like Hank And keep your a s s out of the tank.
And I add with all due deference Rather than by in- or reference: Some times I have a deeper sense That some one is on reefer-ence
Not me. Not for a loonnngg time.
Meanwhile: now that we are on this TRAIN of thought: What is the plural of man-o-war? Men-o-war? Man-o-wars? Draftees? Not a school of fish but perhaps a boot camp? And what about the females? Are they also man-o-war fish?
And that somehow takes us back to the same *** companion issues of whence we began.
ps - Henry - thanks for not protesting when I call you Hank. Much easier to rhyme.
Rambling off the main line.
Ira
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
Ira, I have not been called "Hank" since graduating from high school in 1958, but now that our 50th reunion is coming up in September, I had better get used to it.
"Reefer-ence"? Brilliant. Not by me, either -- not for a loooong time, too!
The plural of "man-o-war," H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N would have said, is "the Navy". (You remember he argued that the plural of "sandwich" is "delicatessen.")
Posted by RR4me (Member # 6052) on :
Mr. Kisor, were you perhaps paraphrasing David Allen Coe, discussing in song why Steve Goodman (City of New Orleans) had not written the perfect country and western song?
Posted by RR4me (Member # 6052) on :
I am confused by some comments in the article, and this may be a dumb question, but I've been under the impression that Amtrak rides on tracks owned by the freight railroads, therefore I was nto sure why Amtrak had an infrastructure problem. Is this not true in the northeast?
Posted by George Harris (Member # 2077) on :
RR4me: Amtrak owns Washington to New York to somewhere not far beyond the Hell Gate Bridge and from New Haven to Boston. New Haven to Grand Central New York is owned by Metro North (Connecticut DOT within Connecticut??) They also own a section of track in Michigan. Most of the rest is as you say, railroad company owned. Most of us on here know that, and tend to forget that this particular tidbit of knowledge is not universal. I am also sure that someone will add specifics to the above that I don't try to remember.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Mr Railroad For Me, an additional 'stretch" of trackage owned by Amtrak is that between Porter IN and Kalamazoo MI. This track hosts "four a day" or all Michigan trains except the Pere Marquette. The latter intersects this line on CSX rails to the East of New Buffalo MI X-ing such on an overpass.
Posted by Hoop (Member # 4607) on :
quote:Originally posted by Gilbert B Norman:
The reasoning would be "you are doing so much better at the farebox nowadays, you don't need as much from us".
Actually, I think I prefer this method of thinking. Time to hold Amtrak accountable for making their own money and surviving on themsleves and their own business practices.
Throwing money at a problem doesn't seem to solve things.
If Amtrak wants to survive and keep their high paid managers and employees on the payroll, perhaps it's time to make 'em do so on their own. Begin to be sales focused on selling the trips and the train experience, and provide excellent travel experiences to foster retention and attract those high priced sleeper accommodations. Fire all those lazy maintenance workers we hear about sleeping on the job when they should be fixing equipment, etc. Fire all the unsuitable OBS who have bad attitudes. In essence, turn the system around to be a "sales focused" approach to attract riders, with good equipment, good service, etc, and ACCOUNTABLITY on itself to maintain itself and support itself.
Posted by RR4me (Member # 6052) on :
Thanks to Mr. Harris and Mr. Norman. The longer I participate here, the more I learn. All my train rides have been west of Chicago. Someday, probably after retirement, I'll get to ride the south and east coast routes.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
re Hoops comments: Isn't the reason we have Amtrak because private industry couldn't hack it? Aren't most if not all foreign railroads subsidized by their governments?
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
RR4me: I am afraid I do not know Coe, although I have heard of Steve Goodman. Could you explain the reference?
Train Lady: Indeed almost all foreign passenger railroads are subsidized. Many economists believe that throughout history railroads made little or no money hauling passengers.
Congress increasingly is coming around to the view that expecting Amtrak to make it on its own is unrealistic, that it should be helped by government just as air and highway transportation is.
Posted by RR4me (Member # 6052) on :
Henry, a bit long to explain...in the 70's David Alan Coe was a singer/songwriter. In one song. written by Steve Goodman, he tells how Goodman told him it was the perfect country and western song. Coe says he told Goodman it was not because it didn't mention mama, or trains, or tucks, or prisons, or getting drunk (similar to your earlier comment). So Goodman wrote another verse,
"Well I was drunk the day my mama got outta prison and I went to pick 'er up in the rain, But before I could get to the station in my pickup truck, She got runned over by a damned old train"
And now he had the perfect country and western song!
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
rr4me, thanks! That one's a keeper!
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
At Post #28, Mr. Hoop makes some meritorious points regarding the state of Amtrak affairs.
Amtrak could be on the threshold as a Federal agency (let's stow the 'for profit' charade) that is about to deliver a program that represents a meaningful way to transport John Q between Point A and B. While, I know that I "fly in the face of" the majority around here that believe LD trains are an essential piece of the landscape, the growth and relevance of passenger rail will be in the Corridor markets.
Amtrak, being a Federal agency, is of course going to suffer the inefficiencies of any bureaucracy anywhere in the world. In addition to a VP-Operations complete with a cadre of court jesters, it will also "need' a VP-Operations Support, also complete with its cadre of court jesters. I can only hope that as Amtrak enters what could well be its "golden age" of providing meaningful transportation (sorry volks, but icicles will freeze in Hades before I can ever accept NARP's "connect the dots" charade, or expansion of the LD system beyond what is needed for political expediency, as meaningful), they can be viewed as an agency that runs its program, i.e. provide intercity passenger rail transportation, in an economic and efficient manner.
Posted by TBlack (Member # 181) on :
"Have some Madiera my dear, It's ever so much nicer than beer.."
Ira: Tom Leher, former professor at MIT, made up and sang, accompanied by piano, many humorous songs. "Poisoning pidgeons in the park" being one. He also incorporated your couplet into one of his songs. I wish I could recite the rest of it, but it's late Sat PM now and I'm too old, but maybe I've given you enough to jog your memory?
Posted by Ira Slotkin (Member # 81) on :
Hey TBlack # 181:
There's a link to someone doing the song in one of the above postings. A very good version, I think. I used to hear it in St Louis years ago at a place called Frank Moskus In Exile Bar. If there happen to be any St Louis lurkers out there, you may recall that place.
And, yes. I recall Tom Lehrer. I know his work well. Thanks for the memory tweak. I have a number of his LPs. I do have a CD also of some new songs he wrote maybe 10 years ago. I didn't recall that he did that song, but I have been kown to launch into Vatican Rag and National Brotherhood Week ..." What a remarkably clever guy.
Ira
Posted by TBlack (Member # 181) on :
I don't know how you find these things on the web, Ira, but that's the same song that Lehrer used to sing. One has to be slightly leacherous in performing it!
Posted by Ira Slotkin (Member # 81) on :
I didn't find that link - Vicki (see above) did. I didn't recall he did it. And you can find quite a few Lehrer clips if you google Tom Lehrer.
I google all sorts of things just to see where I can end up.
Amtrak
Ira
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
For you Tom Lehrer fans around here (includes GBN):
Ira, My father used to have several Lehrer records and the song is on one of them. Bucky Bush, from St. Louis and a recreational guitar player, also sings the song, attributing it to T.L., but maybe he heard in the same Exile Bar?
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
. Maybe if one is in love and finally getting to marry the boy/girl of one's dreams, one doesn't focus on the cattle car mode of transportation.