I was thinking about this particularly this weekend while I was camping in the Uinta Mountains. We toured the Flaming Gorge Dam, and I couldn't help but wonder why there has been no national infrastructure, environmental, or, what I call, "USA" projects in the last three decades. Unless I'm mistaken, what have we done since going to the moon? What have we done since building a national freeway system? What have we done since the water conservation projects in the 60s and 70s? What have we done since the national park movement? *Where has the innovation gone?*
Those of you who have heard me rant, you know that America stands as a land of innovation in my mind. The power of innovation in this country is more powerful than the power of (so-called) freedom. Innovation brought about the concept of democracy--of freedom. And now where has it been? Private innovation has continued, sure, but what about public innovation?
But I digress.
This is a topic you'll read about often from me, but today it's more of an intro to a sadder topic.
In 1963, America learned a painful lesson when Pennsylvania Station, an architectural treasure that Senator Daniel Moynihan described as “the best thing in our city,” was torn down and replaced with a dreary complex that includes an office building and Madison Square Garden. The rail station, to this day the nation’s busiest, was moved underground into a claustrophobic warren of artificially lit passageways and bleak waiting rooms.
Check out these beautiful stations that were demolished and replaced with fugly projects. Good and short read.
Atlanta is twice guilty (at least). I pass the train stop to work every morning and its a cramped, poorly-located, MESS. Train passengers get off and basically have to step thru traffic to get some air. how sad is that. But the high speed train looks cool.
ReplyDeleteThis would be the bomb! I would use it like crazy!
ReplyDeleteThere has been talk of a high speed from LA LA to Vegas for years now. But I here it really might happen.
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