Monday, July 03, 2017
More Important Than The Beach
You might remember that Chris Christie decided not to spend that black man's federal money on a rail tunnel and spent some of it on cocaine and bingo parlors or something instead and then he sorta got back on board with the whole tunnel idea.
Oh well.
The article says the funding isn't necessarily dead, but...
A lot of transit nerds were sorta happy that the previous tunnel project died because they thought it was flawed (it was!). I suppose only cynics like me were saying "yah, but, that money is probably never coming back..."
TRENTON -- Gov. Chris Christie on Tuesday professed "confidence" that the proposed Gateway Tunnel under the Hudson River will proceed without delays, even though President Trump's most recent budget eliminated a crucial source of funding for it.
"I had a very good conversation last week with (U.S. Transportation) Secretary (Elaine) Chao, said Christie, speaking to reporters at the groundbreaking of renovations at Newark's Liberty International Airport on Tuesday.
"I absolutely believe that we will be partnering with the federal government and the state of New York to build a Gateway Tunnel and that there won't be any delays of our current time frame."
Oh well.
BREAKING: The USDOT has pulled out of the group leading the $23.9 billion Gateway Program https://t.co/aDTIdhXRL6
— Paul Berger (@pdberger) July 3, 2017
The article says the funding isn't necessarily dead, but...
A lot of transit nerds were sorta happy that the previous tunnel project died because they thought it was flawed (it was!). I suppose only cynics like me were saying "yah, but, that money is probably never coming back..."
Did They Believe This Or Was It Just Messina's Election Messaging
The mystery is whether people in the UK ever believed they could get whatever they wanted out of Brexit.
One-sided benefits of membership and none of the costs all because Italy would be desperate to sell prosecco to the UK. That was the line they were running with (and even if Italy was that desperate to sell them prosecco, 26 other countries have a veto...).
Theresa May’s government has changed its tune on Brexit, striking a more sober and realistic tone weeks after her disastrous election. Gone is the bluster that had prompted European Union allies to chide the U.K. for wanting to have its cake and eat it, too.
One-sided benefits of membership and none of the costs all because Italy would be desperate to sell prosecco to the UK. That was the line they were running with (and even if Italy was that desperate to sell them prosecco, 26 other countries have a veto...).
DGAF
Gotta respect it, really.
BERKELEY TOWNSHIP -- People hoping to visit Island Beach State Park this holiday weekend were not allowed in because of the state government shutdown Gov. Chris Christie ordered amid the state budget standoff in Trenton.
...
And here are exclusive aerial photos by NJ Advance Media showing Christie surrounded by wife, Mary Pat Christie, and others.
...
At that news conference, Christie was asked if he got any sun Sunday.
"I didn't," he said. "I didn't get any sun today."
When later told of the photo, Brian Murray, the governor's spokesman, said: "Yes, the governor was on the beach briefly today talking to his wife and family before heading into the office."
Sunday, July 02, 2017
15% Approval? I'm Gonna Go For the Record!
Christie, his wife, his children and his son's friends have the run of a 10-mile public island, where police are turning away all others: https://t.co/osCezmdRqa
— Matt Katz (@mattkatz00) July 2, 2017
Top 17 Books I Read In The First Half of 2017!
Okay I only read 17, so I'll just put them in reverse chronological order. Didn't love them all, but they were all at least ok.
NUMBER 17----- ZADIE SMITH - NW
NUMBER 17----- ZADIE SMITH - NW
Why Do I Care About Self-Driving Cars?
Sure there's a "somebody on the internet is wrong" aspect to it, and I got posts to write, but otherwise I care about people making policy decisions based on technology which isn't here and in my opinion will never be here. People who hate mass transit always oppose it, and self-driving cars provide them with just another reason. Before self-driving cars, mass transit haters babbled on about "PRT" which was basically self-driving cars on rail, and if you ignored all the obvious costs, the opposition to rail footprint, and the lack of capacity, PRTs were an awesome idea much beloved by people who would never step foot in a PRT.
Life is better in places that are not built around needing automobiles, or their equivalent, for every single daily trip. You don't need to live in Manhattan or Paris, or even Philadelphia, or for everyone to live in 200 sq. ft apartments, to realize the dream that basically every European town/small city achieves. People spend lots of money on vacations to "quaint" places where people can walk to the corner and buy a baguette or a fish to cook for dinner, not realizing that these "quaint" places are not Disneytowns, but pretty much normal places (not all are beautiful, but the lifestyle is similar) for lots of people. Cars we shall always have with us, and even in these places people generally have them (they just don't need them for every single trip), but it's dumb to plan for a future of robot cars when they probably won't even exist anytime soon. They're big, they take up space, and your corner baguette shop can't exist if it has to be surrounded by a giant parking lot.
And, never fear, car lovers. Your paradise has been built for 60+ years. I am probably not going to be able to take that away from you.
Life is better in places that are not built around needing automobiles, or their equivalent, for every single daily trip. You don't need to live in Manhattan or Paris, or even Philadelphia, or for everyone to live in 200 sq. ft apartments, to realize the dream that basically every European town/small city achieves. People spend lots of money on vacations to "quaint" places where people can walk to the corner and buy a baguette or a fish to cook for dinner, not realizing that these "quaint" places are not Disneytowns, but pretty much normal places (not all are beautiful, but the lifestyle is similar) for lots of people. Cars we shall always have with us, and even in these places people generally have them (they just don't need them for every single trip), but it's dumb to plan for a future of robot cars when they probably won't even exist anytime soon. They're big, they take up space, and your corner baguette shop can't exist if it has to be surrounded by a giant parking lot.
And, never fear, car lovers. Your paradise has been built for 60+ years. I am probably not going to be able to take that away from you.
Road Raging
No one wants to listen to me prattle on about the evils of cars, but driving does make people MAD, and that rage is amplified by misogyny. Women friends have told me about how men have followed them, enraged, after incidents on the road, though fortunately no one I know has been shot. People like to feel in control, and despite all the tributes to the freedom of the road, etc..., in a car you are barely in control and the slightest incident can wipe that illusion away. Also, guns kill people.
People are bad at distances, so a "quarter-mile stretch" is basically a merge lane on a highway, 15 seconds at 60MPH, 30 seconds at 30MPH, hardly enough time for a "game" just a typical "let me in the lane before I crash, asshole."
...and he turned himself in.
It was during the peak of the homebound commute, witnesses said, that they saw a dangerous “cat-and-mouse game” in which two motorists were jockeying for positions on a quarter-mile stretch of highway where two lanes become one.
When it was over, an 18-year-old college-bound Chester County girl was dead, her family and friends were devastated, and a nationwide manhunt had begun for the driver of a faded red pickup who shot and killed Bianca Roberson in what police said was a road rage murder.
People are bad at distances, so a "quarter-mile stretch" is basically a merge lane on a highway, 15 seconds at 60MPH, 30 seconds at 30MPH, hardly enough time for a "game" just a typical "let me in the lane before I crash, asshole."
...and he turned himself in.
#BREAKING: David Desper, 28, turned himself in at 2 a.m. and is facing murder charges in road rage killing of #BiancaRoberson. @CBSPhilly pic.twitter.com/fB0KxhiFjL
— Anita Oh (@anita_oh) July 2, 2017
Local Control
Pennsylvania likes to boss Philadelphia around, too. I'm not one who thinks local control is always better but there are literally "applies to Philadelphia only" laws.
But here in Texas, the bigger battle over tree ordinances is whether they represent a form of local government overreach. Gov. Greg Abbott (R), citing grave worries about “socialistic” behavior in the state’s liberal cities, has called on Texas lawmakers to gather this month for a special session that will consider a host of bills aimed at curtailing local power on issues ranging from taxation to collecting union dues.
Texas presents perhaps the most dramatic example of the increasingly acrimonious relationship between red-state leaders and their blue city centers, which have moved aggressively to expand environmental regulations and social programs often against the grain of their states.
Republican state leaders across the country have responded to the widening cultural gulf by passing legislation preempting local laws.
Saturday, July 01, 2017
"No Parks, But Casinos Will Stay Open"
Pretty much captures the current state of affairs.
NJ Gov. Chris Christie shuts down state government amid budget impasse. No parks, but casinos will stay open. Story: https://t.co/INtrUKoa8N pic.twitter.com/hIW0A2IN9u
— AP Eastern U.S. (@APEastRegion) July 1, 2017
Can Always Get Away With Screwing The Right People
Just not the ones who are richer than you are.
Joon H. Kim, the acting United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement: “McFarland allegedly presented fake documents to induce investors to put over a million dollars into his company and the fiasco called the Fyre Festival.” If convicted, Mr. McFarland could face a maximum of 20 years in prison, but is likely to receive a lesser sentence.
Tech
One of my ever-growing number of pet peeves (yes I am getting old and cranky) is that every newish thing is referred to as "tech." I mean, come on, unless you are inventing a new microchip or a time machine, it isn't really "tech." A new online store isn't tech any more than this blog is tech. A new "food delivery app" isn't tech, it's a trivial piece of software that any smart 14-year-old could write which will be (or not be) a successful business plan based on a bunch of things which have little to do with "tech" (marketing, sales, business partnerships, etc). A new dating app (Tinder, but slightly different!) isn't "tech." A new coffee maker probably isn't "tech" unless it, I dunno, uses quantum lasers or some shit like that. Linking your toaster to the internet isn't "tech" at this point any more than sticking a digital display in a car 25 years ago was "tech." This is all just "design" with commodity components and trivial software development skills at this point.
Nothing against new ideas. Some of them might even be good ones! But just because a company is based in the Bay Area and does something on your smartphone doesn't really make it "tech" at this point any more than something which uses that new-fangled electricity is tech.
Nothing against new ideas. Some of them might even be good ones! But just because a company is based in the Bay Area and does something on your smartphone doesn't really make it "tech" at this point any more than something which uses that new-fangled electricity is tech.
This Is The White House
I get that during the campaign there are people whose job it is to worry about this stuff, as ridiculous as it sounds. But that's a campaign. They won. They run the world.
Some White House advisers said they were frustrated that the Brzezinski feud — which continued to unfurl throughout the day Friday with accusations and counteraccusations — overtook the president’s fight with CNN, which seemed in their eyes to have clearer villains and heroes.
Saturday Morning
Digby nails it, in just a few words.
It's only been five months.
But one thing is sure. Trump is not doing the job of president. He's a celebrity managing his personal PR. He doesn't seem to know that this is not the job of president.
It's only been five months.
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