It'd sure be nice! TAX TO THE MAX!

-- Mark Stilson (mark842@hotmail.com), July 14, 2000

Answers

Yes, what does I-745 mean? When I read it, I'm not really sure. I believe it refers to a "state transportation account". Therefore, as long transit agencies don't deposit any of their monies in the "account", they can spend it however they want.

To be honest, if Sound Transit had any brains, they should scrap their current plans and choose to build another bridge across Lake Washington. The new bridge could accommodate BOTH cars and rail. By charging cars a toll, and rail riders a fare, the project may not require much assistance from the taxpayer. However, taxpayer assistance would need to be promised, so Sound Transit could borrow money to fund the project.

It seems to me, that, if you want to showcase a particular transportation methodology or technology, you would want to select a project with a high chance of success. There would be heavy demand for a new bridge in BOTH directions, so the project would rake in a lot of dough.

-- Matthew M. Warren (mattinsky@msn.com), July 14, 2000.

Matt- DOT wants to try their fare based systems someplace a little less important than Seattle and the East side, so they can get all the bugs worked out. Let's see, where is a captive audience that is politically fairly impotent, so we won't have to pay a big political price for the inevitable early learning curve screw-ups?

Hey, how about the Tacoma Narrows?


-- (mark842@hotmail.com), July 18, 2000.

to Mark: Yes, after the Tacoma Narrows, the WSDOT will set its sights on Lake Washington. Like the Tacoma Narrows, there will be little the citizens can do.

It reminds of people's attitude towards the Nazis. The citizens reasoned: "I am not an immigrant, so it doesn't affect me". And they remained silent. Then, they reasoned, "I am not a Jew, so it doesn't affect me"..."I am not a gypsy, so it doesn't affect me"..."I am not a Catholic, so it doesn't affect me". All of a sudden, something happened that affected them, but they ended up being foisted on their own pitard of apathy.

The WSDOT now claims there is a law, allowing them to build a toll bridge whereever they want, plus they can institute tolls on existing bridges. Very scary, indeed.

But, hey, it doesn't affect the Eastside (YET).

-- Matthew M. Warren (mattinsky@msn.com), July 18, 2000.

Wow!
A poor pitiful me post!

What a lot of hogwash, trivializing the Nazis.
And you were the one that waa-waaed about Craigs comment about Hitler not being an excuse for the German people, that they had to take responsibilitiy for their own actions, trying to make that into a statement that he was somehow soft on Hitler?

If you consider this issue to be the equivalent of the Nazi menace, I assume you are preparing for armed combat against the stormtroopers of the DOT. That was considered to be the appropriate American thing to do when the Axis was on the march in WWII.

Or is it possible there's just a LITTLE bit of hyperbole in your posting???


zowie

-- (zowie@hotmail.com), July 18, 2000.

to zowie: You write: "I assume you are preparing for armed combat against the stormtroopers of the DOT. That was considered to be the appropriate American thing to do when the Axis was on the march in WWII."

Actually, the United States did very little when the Nazis first started to marginalize human rights, capping it off with the invasions of Czechoslovakia, Poland, etc. The British were active, along with the Soviets, and we did support them with military equipment. But, initially, we did not send our citizens into harm's way. And, we didn't even open up our shores to those fleeing Nazi oppression.

But, technically, yes, my community has the moral and ethical right to oppose the Tacoma Narrows Bridge project by any means necessary. Since, the process represents taxation without representation. However, there is always the hope of affecting change in non-violent ways, so armed combat is hardly a logical choice.

For me Naziism is an example of the philosophy that the strong should prey upon the weak. The Tacoma Narrows Bridge Project is also an example of the strong preying upon the weak.

I am not trivializing the evils of the Nazis, nor am I exaggerating the evils of the WSDOT. Clearly, the Nazis are the greater evil, since they killed people. But, does this mean we should excuse the evil of the WSDOT, since they're not killing anybody?

Actually, if the WSDOT would just perform a detailed cost-benefit analysis of the project, then that might represent significant progress. I suspect most people would agree that we need a new bridge. But do we need one at ANY cost??!!

-- Matthew M. Warren (mattinsky@msn.com), July 19, 2000.

"Actually, if the WSDOT would just perform a detailed cost-benefit analysis of the project, then that might represent significant progress. I suspect most people would agree that we need a new bridge. But do we need one at ANY cost??!! "

As Craig has often stated...It's the DEMOGRAPHICS, Stupid!

Actually, Craig has indicated that some cost justification is necessary in this case, but I thought that it would be fun to quote him for once. I guess that it's not just the DEMOGRAPHICS.

-- Gene (Gene@Gene.com), July 20, 2000.