Model of a train ferry

From: "Robert Schmidt" roberts@breadner.com

I am currently constructing a model train layout and ... want to contruct a model of a train ferry. I will not be modeling the Solano itself but a fictional ferry that fits my layout and is similar in design to the Solano.

—Robert Schmidt

"EVERY WORKING AMERICAN SHOULD BE AN AUTOMATIC MILLIONAIRE"

We welcome your comments about our blurb "EVERY WORKING AMERICAN SHOULD BE AN AUTOMATIC MILLIONAIRE" about the actual causes of wealth and poverty in America. Do you agree or disagree? Do you have any insights that you would be willing to contribute to the discussion of this controversial subject? We think that the easily fixed Social Security and Pension mess that government malfeasance has created is literally a matter of economic survival, and are concerned that so many people are afraid of the simple solution (actually saving so that you will be able to afford your own retirement expenses or help your family) which will avert an impending and otherwise unavoidable financial catastrophe if government continues to immediately spend every last cent of the money that people think that they are saving. Have we drawn the correct lessons from history? Click on "POST A COMMENT" (First click on "COMMENTS" if you are on an index page) to add your thoughts.

"THE CENTRAL PACIFIC RAILROAD'S LESSON FOR TODAY'S HEALTH CARE CRISIS"

We welcome your comments about our blurb "THE CENTRAL PACIFIC RAILROAD'S LESSON FOR TODAY'S HEALTH CARE CRISIS." Do you agree or disagree? Do you have any insights that you would be willing to contribute to the discussion of this controversial subject? We think that the easily fixed health insurance mess that government intervention has created is literally a matter of life and death. It is of great concern that as a result of misdiagnosing the problem, many people believe that more government intervention will help, not understanding that more of the same will only make healthcare worse. We are sure that HillaryCare or any of the various misguided calls for more government amount to nothing more than a slippery slope leading to a lethal single payor system with all the efficiency of FEMA and all the compassion of the IRS. Have we drawn the correct lessons from history? Click on "POST A COMMENT" (First click on "COMMENTS" if you are on an index page) to add your thoughts.

"IT'S GETTING BETTER ALL THE TIME"

We welcome your comments about our blurb "IT'S GETTING BETTER ALL THE TIME" concerning the rapid improvement in the environment, economy, longevity, and standard of living over the decades since the transcontinental railroad was built. Do you agree or disagree? Do you have any insights that you would be willing to contribute to the discussion of this controversial subject? We think that doom and gloom illustrated by murder and mayhem that passes for the "evening news" is utterly misleading. Have we drawn the correct lessons from history? Click on "POST A COMMENT" (First click on "COMMENTS" if you are on an index page) to add your thoughts.

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Time Magazine Cover predicting Global Cooling, December 3, 1973.

Sacramento to hear ambitious railyard plan

"City to hear ambitious railyard plan" by Mary Lynne Vellinga, © Sacramento Bee, March 9, 2006. (News Article)

"The developers of downtown Sacramento's 240-acre railyard today will submit a new plan to the city that includes high-rise housing along the river, a 1,000-seat live theater and a new sports arena anchoring an entertainment district. ... it would ... take at least 15 years to build out ... The plan also has 10,000 housing units, including high-rise towers of up to 40 stories, 3 million square feet of office space and 1.3 million square feet of retail. Picturesque but dilapidated old railroad shops would become a museum of railroad technology and a public market similar to San Francisco's Ferry Building. ... The railyard is considered one of the nation's most significant downtown "infill" sites. Just north of downtown, it is about the same size as the existing central business district. But the site has proved difficult to develop, in part because of its lack of streets and other infrastructure, and because it was so soaked with toxic leftovers from the rail industry that it was labeled a Superfund site. ... "People think there are issues with the railroad and there are not," ... "It just takes time, and we want to do it right. This is probably the most complicated land deal in the country." ... One issue that needs to be solved before development can occur is how to come up with $20 million for moving the train tracks several hundred feet to the north – a move that UP says will improve railroad operations. ... " [More]

[Courtesy Bruce C. Cooper.]