MSNBC.com has an article on the dire straights of Obama's high speed rail line.
Is Obama's rail initiative a 'train to nowhere'?
High-speed train plan draws little enthusiasm as California costs soar
President Barack Obama's high-speed rail initiative is in danger of turning into the Big Engine That Couldn't.
As part of the economic stimulus plan of 2009, Obama pushed through more than $8 billion in initial funding to extend high-speed intercity rail service to 10 major U.S. rail corridors by 2034. The idea is to create superfast rail service — like Japan's futuristic bullet trains — that would be available to 80 percent of the U.S. population.
Federal Railroad Administration
Red lines in this map show planned high-speed rail corridors across the U.S.
Now you know there a bunch of lobbyists somewhere - construction, rail, manufacturers who have said the high speed railway is the future of the country. I don't know about you, but I would much prefer ways to eliminate travel than an alternative to driving or flying.
That 2020 ribbon-cutting? It's now projected to be no earlier than 2033 — at least 13 years late. That $33 billion price tag? It's been recalculated at $98.5 billion — nearly three times the original estimate.
The news came from the state's High Speed Rail Authority, which issued an updated "business plan" (.pdf) last week at the direction of California Gov. Jerry Brown. The good news, said Tom Umberg, chairman of the authority, is that "we understand the project better." The bad news is that "as time goes by, things get more expensive."
Google selected Kansas City for its broadband project, and people are asking where this goes.
Kansas City’s Google superhighway has unclear destinations
OK, Kansas City. You’ve been promised special Google goodies.
Now, whatcha gonna do when the search engine company finally hooks you up to an oh-so-fast Internet?
Short answer: Nobody knows.
Last week, Kansas City may have gotten a hint that Google will bundle its plan to include a cablelike television package with the Internet service. That might get more homes to sign up for the search giant’s offerings, but it doesn’t say how the ultrafast Internet might change other aspects of our lives.
What would happen if Obama funded a gigabit Internet in the US? The lobbyists behind the high speed rail project would through a fit, but don't you think the future is better with gigabit ethernet than 200 mph trains?