Public transportation is taking a hit as part of the economic downturn. Ridership is down, funding from state and local municipalities has been reduced. The Stimulus money a/k/a the Federal bailout of failed state budgets isn’t sufficient to help keep them afloat so many transit authorities are reducing route coverage and reducing the number of buses/trains on routes forcing more infrequent trips. So what happens in turn? Riders can’t or won’t rely on public transportation for work or school commutes because of the less frequent runs or the inconvenience of more crowded trips with the reduced numbers of runs. Hence, lower ridership and funds generated by travelers.

So why am I pointing this out? You’ve probably already seen this in the news or read it in coverage like this article in the WSJ. Watch. Later this year or maybe early next year, there will be a push from the social engineers from the likes of Obama’s cabinet, to push for an increased focus on public transportation. It will be veiled in a environment issue or one for “creating and saving jobs”. Here’s the bottom line – people will use the transportation option that best fits their needs. Do I have to walk to the bus stop, ride a bus for 45 minutes, transfer to a subway train for another 15 minutes and then another bus, when I can drive directly there in 40 minutes? Public transportation is good and serves a purpose – but we cannot force people to use it. Encouragement through discounted fares and other means is well within bounds. Why the Metro system in DC doesn’t invert their fare structure is beyond me. Currently, rush hour fares are higher and when a full commute is taken into account (i.e. parking at a subway station, train fare, etc.), it generally runs higher than parking possibly even including wear and tear on the vehicle. This is somewhat rhetorical, but why not encourage more ridership during rush hour through reduced fares then?
Anyway, you’ve been forewarned. The next social engineering experiment will be an effort to save or enhance public transportation through the penalization of driving (through fees or taxes) and the “requirement” of use of public transit systems.

GorT

GorT is an eight-foot-tall robot from the 51ˢᵗ Century who routinely time-travels to steal expensive technology from the future and return it to the past for retroinvention. The profits from this pay all the Gormogons’ bills, including subsidizing this website. Some of the products he has introduced from the future include oven mitts, the Guinness widget, Oxy-Clean, and Dr. Pepper. Due to his immense cybernetic brain, GorT is able to produce a post in 0.023 seconds and research it in even less time. Only ’Puter spends less time on research. GorT speaks entirely in zeros and ones, but occasionally throws in a ڭ to annoy the Volgi. He is a massive proponent of science, technology, and energy development, and enjoys nothing more than taking the Czar’s more interesting scientific theories, going into the past, publishing them as his own, and then returning to take credit for them. He is the only Gormogon who is capable of doing math. Possessed of incredible strength, he understands the awesome responsibility that follows and only uses it to hurt people.