Matrix Games

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

Nicely said, Leo.

What's surprising to me is how *low* the rate of gun-related homicide is in the US. For a country awash in guns (almost one gun per capita here), we've a low-moderate *rate* associated with it. Access has never been equal to use here, something that is a confounder for many, but does trace itself back to our 'citizen militia' roots.

What I don't like about those statistics is, that they always ignore all those countless cases where guns protected someone. I think I've read about 5.000 or 6.000 cases of use of firearms for self-protection each day in the us.

Oh, bullsh!t, sir! Ive heard of those cases too and I highly doubt that they are as usual as you seem to think. Of course there have been cases where some lowlife had broken into a home and found himself looking down the barrel of a gun. I have no doubt of that. On the flip side of that equation, however, is the reality that when facing a situation of that sort, most people would hide or not resist if faced with an unknown number of possibly armed intruders rather than get into a shootout in their own house and risk harm to themselves and their family.

What is much, much more usual are cases of people who are either too drunk or too stupid to follow simple safety instructions who blow away themselves, their buddies or, very sadly, their children in accidental discharges. There was one such case in LI right before we left where the unfortunate nincompoop was a 10 year veteran of the NYPD and the victim was his 4 year old daughter.

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker
It is easy to get the public transportation competitive by subsidizing it with the taxpayer's money. This way, all have to pay for the convinience of a few.

Well, duh! Its not very likely that the commuters themselves would be able to foot the entire bill. Besides that, the idea is to expand the commuter transport network to such levels that car commuters willingly switch to public transit, thus reducing both traffic levels and emissions. Unfortunately, I think the LA public transit system is still very, very far from that.

Well, you can take money and create a market that wasn't there. This way, you destroy other markets with the money of all. You know how I think about that...

I am thinking for quite a while to buy a free space in my home city and turn it into a parking lot. This is only worth considering, because people commute by car and need cars.

So wehn you take tax money to fund a public transportation, you'll hurt other parts of the economy quite a lot. Gas stations will have less revenue, car dealers will sell less cars, parking lot owners won't be able to sell the places to commuters, garages would have less to repair - and so on.
So by taking your and my money to artificially create the demand - that obviously doesn't exist right now - for a public transportation, you destroy businesses and jobs.

Oh you.....ok, not only will no private enterprise be able to afford a project of this scale without the involvement of state and federal governments but urban planning is the business of government-level involvement. You can contract private firms all day to do the dirty work but the ultimate responsibility lies with elected officials. If you then want to sublet individual aspects of operation, like maintenance or trash removal to private companies, thats worthy of consideration, but again, the ultimate responsibility lies with local, state and federal elected officials.

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

But as you are well aware, I fiercly oppose a government that usurps power to protect its people from themselves.

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ORIGINAL: Historiker


But government is evil!

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

I'm having trouble rationalizing Federal assistance / subsidies for Los Angeles train systems. Then again, I'm a Federalist. I *might* agree to subsidize a rail spur for Los Angelinos if the terminus ends in a 30' drop into the Pacific though...

Simple, its in the federal government's direct interest to revitalize and expand the public transit network all over the US. Not only will this have a direct impact on our national fossil fuels dependency, but it will also reduce the strain on the national highway system which is the direct responsibility of the federal government.

Yes-INTERstate transit and transportation is very important for the Federal government to subsidize. Local stuff like LA (only) subway and the aforementioned high speed rail system? I don't think that presents the critical case.

So you dont see the connection between trucks hauling stuff from TX to CA getting stuck in gridlock around San Bernardino onward and the reduction of traffic load on LA area roads by a thorough, well-planned and constructed commuter transit system?

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker
It is easy to get the public transportation competitive by subsidizing it with the taxpayer's money. This way, all have to pay for the convinience of a few.

Well, duh! Its not very likely that the commuters themselves would be able to foot the entire bill. Besides that, the idea is to expand the commuter transport network to such levels that car commuters willingly switch to public transit, thus reducing both traffic levels and emissions. Unfortunately, I think the LA public transit system is still very, very far from that.

Well, you can take money and create a market that wasn't there. This way, you destroy other markets with the money of all. You know how I think about that...

I am thinking for quite a while to buy a free space in my home city and turn it into a parking lot. This is only worth considering, because people commute by car and need cars.

So wehn you take tax money to fund a public transportation, you'll hurt other parts of the economy quite a lot. Gas stations will have less revenue, car dealers will sell less cars, parking lot owners won't be able to sell the places to commuters, garages would have less to repair - and so on.
So by taking your and my money to artificially create the demand - that obviously doesn't exist right now - for a public transportation, you destroy businesses and jobs.

Oh you.....ok, not only will no private enterprise be able to afford a project of this scale without the involvement of state and federal governments but urban planning is the business of government-level involvement. You can contract private firms all day to do the dirty work but the ultimate responsibility lies with elected officials. If you then want to sublet individual aspects of operation, like maintenance or trash removal to private companies, thats worthy of consideration, but again, the ultimate responsibility lies with local, state and federal elected officials.

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

But as you are well aware, I fiercly oppose a government that usurps power to protect its people from themselves.

Now there is something we can both agree on.

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker


But government is evil!

No, government is stupid, slow and nearsighted. Corporations are evil.

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

In your tenuous example, I would choose to have the truckers' route delayed in preference to my taxes being used for that.

Plus, it's California, right? What are the odds of there EVER being a thorough, well-planned and (well) constructed commuter transit system. I don't need that kind of boondoggle on my conscience. It'd make the "Bridge to Nowhere" look like a kid's plaything.

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

In your tenuous example, I would choose to have the truckers' route delayed in preference to my taxes being used for that.

Plus, it's California, right? What are the odds of there EVER being a thorough, well-planned and (well) constructed commuter transit system. I don't need that kind of boondoggle on my conscience. It'd make the "Bridge to Nowhere" look like a kid's plaything.

Luckily, you dont need to carry such national scale burdens on your chicken-sized shoulders.

Sadly, I think youre probably right about the boondoggle part. Doent mean the system is any less needed, though.

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy
Torsten's on the right track with this one. The airlines that do bang-up shuttle business between NoCal and SoCal have got to be fuming about this. Taxpayers are on the hook for $90B to subsidize competition for the airlines. Nobody benefits. Lots of people lose.

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

But as you are well aware, I fiercly oppose a government that usurps power to protect its people from themselves.

Now there is something we can both agree on.

So why did you support the soda ban in NYC?

Or to quote the great Ron Swanson:

“The whole point of this country is if you want to eat garbage, balloon up to 600 pounds, and die of a heart attack at 43, you can! You are free to do so! To me, that’s beautiful.”

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker


But government is evil!

No, government is stupid, slow and nearsighted. Corporations are evil.

And commies. Commies too.

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

In your tenuous example, I would choose to have the truckers' route delayed in preference to my taxes being used for that.

Plus, it's California, right? What are the odds of there EVER being a thorough, well-planned and (well) constructed commuter transit system. I don't need that kind of boondoggle on my conscience. It'd make the "Bridge to Nowhere" look like a kid's plaything.

Luckily, you dont need to carry such national scale burdens on your chicken-sized shoulders.

Sadly, I think youre probably right about the boondoggle part. Doent mean the system is any less needed, though.

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

In your tenuous example, I would choose to have the truckers' route delayed in preference to my taxes being used for that.

Plus, it's California, right? What are the odds of there EVER being a thorough, well-planned and (well) constructed commuter transit system. I don't need that kind of boondoggle on my conscience. It'd make the "Bridge to Nowhere" look like a kid's plaything.

Luckily, you dont need to carry such national scale burdens on your chicken-sized shoulders.

Sadly, I think youre probably right about the boondoggle part. Doent mean the system is any less needed, though.

You're right about the need. California is desperately in need of effective governance. Instead, they just got a supermajority and a numbskull governor. When Governor moonbeam is the alleged 'moderate' in the crowd, you've got some real big problems.

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

Alright, comrade. I'm out. No turns in my inbox , so I'm off to take in a movie with the Mrs. Peace yo. Dre out.

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker


But government is evil!

No, government is stupid, slow and nearsighted. Corporations are evil.

And commies. Commies too.

Commies are a great bunch of guys. You just havent met any.

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

In your tenuous example, I would choose to have the truckers' route delayed in preference to my taxes being used for that.

Plus, it's California, right? What are the odds of there EVER being a thorough, well-planned and (well) constructed commuter transit system. I don't need that kind of boondoggle on my conscience. It'd make the "Bridge to Nowhere" look like a kid's plaything.

Luckily, you dont need to carry such national scale burdens on your chicken-sized shoulders.

Sadly, I think youre probably right about the boondoggle part. Doent mean the system is any less needed, though.

every intervention prevents the flow of the market.

Yes, Interstates may only be built by the government (I doubt that, though), but by building them with tax money, it is possible to drive from Raleigh to Miami in one day. Great, right?

Well, this way, the taxes of the airlines are used to prevent me using them as a more efficiant way to bridge that distane.
This way, the hotel's taxes is used to prevent me from needing a place to rest for the night.


Why can't the market decide whether we need overland roads, or public transportation?
Don't you think an entrepreneur would immeadiatly creat dozends of bus lines, if they were worth running them by the demand? Why is it needed to waste tax money, which had to be robbed from those who now worked without payment first, on forcing something on the people who didn't show a demand for that by themselves?

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

In your tenuous example, I would choose to have the truckers' route delayed in preference to my taxes being used for that.

Plus, it's California, right? What are the odds of there EVER being a thorough, well-planned and (well) constructed commuter transit system. I don't need that kind of boondoggle on my conscience. It'd make the "Bridge to Nowhere" look like a kid's plaything.

Luckily, you dont need to carry such national scale burdens on your chicken-sized shoulders.

Sadly, I think youre probably right about the boondoggle part. Doent mean the system is any less needed, though.

every intervention prevents the flow of the market.

Yes, Interstates may only be built by the government (I doubt that, though), but by building them with tax money, it is possible to drive from Raleigh to Miami in one day. Great, right?

Well, this way, the taxes of the airlines are used to prevent me using them as a more efficiant way to bridge that distane.
This way, the hotel's taxes is used to prevent me from needing a place to rest for the night.


Why can't the market decide whether we need overland roads, or public transportation?
Don't you think an entrepreneur would immeadiatly creat dozends of bus lines, if they were worth running them by the demand? Why is it needed to waste tax money, which had to be robbed from those who now worked without payment first, on forcing something on the people who didn't show a demand for that by themselves?

You just love being categorical and uncompromising, dont you?

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker


But government is evil!

No, government is stupid, slow and nearsighted. Corporations are evil.

And commies. Commies too.

Commies are a great bunch of guys. You just havent met any.

Commies are evil! Rather a prostate exam twice a day than being forced to live in a commie world!

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ORIGINAL: Historiker
the government has a higher claim to the fruits of my work then I have makes me furious!

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

The bird disapproves of you.

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

And I have to return to wintery Germany in a few days

Already?

The plane leaves 12/5

Darn.

Well, you had a good run. Whats awaiting you in Deutchland?

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ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

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ORIGINAL: Onime No Kyo

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ORIGINAL: Historiker

And I have to return to wintery Germany in a few days

Already?

The plane leaves 12/5

I know your time here has not yet ended, but how would you rate your experience, Herr Historiker? Still looking to emigrate Deutschland?

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ORIGINAL: sprior

Hey, Yankee dogs, are you wimping out with scenario 1 or man up with scenario 2?

Spring chicken to ****ehawk in one easy lesson.

(in reply to sprior)