[lbo-talk] My latest on Grist - light rail on a diet and automated

Gar Lipow gar.lipow at gmail.com
Tue Jan 14 16:14:16 PST 2014


http://bit.ly/L9we9o Light rail on a diet and automated is best chance to get USA off oil for transport.

1st paragraph:
>I often write about the key role the federal government plays in
infrastructure. Ultralight rail is one small example of the role national governments can play in advancing or bottlenecking infrastructure change.

last paragraph


>We face deadly dangerous problems. But there are possible solutions too.
Unfortunately every single solution is considered politically unfeasible. It seems like war is always politically feasible, austerity is always politically feasible. It seems like forgiveness for rich kids who commit murder and bankers who steal billions is politically feasible, but when it comes to jail time for a black kid in New York caught with a joint, well “the law is the law”. Years ago there was a term “crackpot realism”. I would like to update that with the idea of “crackpot feasibility”. It is time to reject crackpot feasibility. One of the multitude of “politically infeasible” changes we need is massive public spending on public infrastructure. Ultralight rail, in turn, is just one tiny example of needed public infrastructure. It is time we prove that we have more sense than cartoon lemmings and demand the politically “impossible”.

For what is in between http://bit.ly/L9we9o

-- Facebook: Gar Lipow Twitter: GarLipow Solving the Climate Crisis web page: SolvingTheClimateCrisis.com Grist Blog: http://grist.org/author/gar-lipow/ Online technical reference: http://www.nohairshirts.com



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