why bother to bail out GM and other failing auto makers, so they can continue to build the same crappy cars that nobody wants (hence their impending failure)? We don't need more and more cars on the road, which add to traffic jams, pollution, and reliance on oil. what we need are high speed trains crisscrossing the US! If the French have it, why can't we???
I say bail out GM only if they will start making these rather than their crappy cars:
http://www.capitolweekly.net/...
http://www.capitolweekly.net/...
The short-term and long-term economic impacts of a high-speed rail system would be tremendous for California's economy. Construction of the system is estimated to generate almost 300,000 jobs. Following construction, the system will provide 450,000 permanent jobs in California. These jobs will have a huge ripple effect into other areas of California's economy, such as the service and manufacturing industries. Overall, for every dollar invested in this system, we will see two dollars in return.
Any Californian who travels more than fifty miles to work, or who travels for pleasure will tell you they would love a headache and traffic-free route to their destination. Whether flying from Los Angeles to San Francisco, driving back and forth from the Inland Empire to San Diego, or commuting from the Central Valley to the Bay Area, drive and fly times can total four or five hours of travel time. High speed rail can not only cut these travel times significantly, but ease the grind of congestion Californians have while traveling in-state by car or air.
From Earth Day to the Environmental Quality Act, California has always been known as a leader in pioneering environmental protections. But with air pollution worsening, we've lost ground. Electric high-speed trains will restore our leadership role in the "green" movement.
High-speed trains will eliminate nearly 18 billion pounds of the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming each year. That's equivalent to removing more than one million vehicles from our roads annually. They will also reduce dependence on foreign oil by up to 22 million barrels per year.
As populations continue to increase, high-speed trains are constitute a key pillar in local efforts to clean up what has become some of the nation's dirtiest air. Statewide, California's population will rise to 50 million people in 20 years.
Update - After reading the comments, my main point is to put out the idea that we need to invest in a high speed train network. Bail out the auto-makers if we have to, but they can't just keep going on about their business as before. They have to make a major shift.