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MAY 12,2015-PHILADELPHIA TRAIN CRASH:US INFRASTRUCTURE
Hello people,
two days ago an Amtrak train traveling at 106 miles (169 kms.) an hour near Philadelphia crashed,killing seven (7) people and imjuring over 200 people.The train was traveling between Washington.D.C. and New York City. People are currenly blaming the engineer for traveling twice the speed limit. 106 miles an hour.In Europe fast speed trains travel twice as fast. In Japan and China trains travel more than three times as fast as 106 miles. In Japan they can go 374 miles (600 kms.) an hour.Further,in the USA trains are used less frequently than they are in Europe,Japan and China.Yet the USA has a lot more accidents. 44% of accidents in the USA last year were caused by track failure. Not only are the trains delapadated the entire infrastructure in the USA has gone down the tubes with bridges collapsing and roads that are pitiful. Whatever happened to the USA. In the 1860s President Abraham Lincoln gave land grants to the citizens.Also in the 1800s the USA built the trans-continental railroad under President Grant.This made the country be seen as a beacon to the world.In the 1930s President FDR improved infrastructure with his new deal projects like the TVA. The 1950s saw President Eisenhower creating the Interstate Highway system.President Kennedy improved space travel. Then in the 1980s came Ronald Reagan claimed government spending is the problem and infrastructure went down the drain and has done so since.One of his targets was infrastructure. But he increaseddefense spending sig nificantly. One day after this tragic Philadelphia train crash the Republican dominated US congress voted to cut Amtrak spending.They claim Amtrak does not make a profit. I guess they'd prefer to sell Amtrak to some billonaire. But railroads and highways are not supposed to be money makers.They are essential for people and products to get transported around the country quickly and safely. The infrastructure is essential for businesses to make a profit.Mr. Reagan,government is not the problem. Government is the solution. The USA is now on a destructive path. They spend billions and billions of dollars bombing countries all over the world. Then they won't spend money to improve the roads,bridges and railroads in their own country. How many more people will have to die before the roads and railroads improve in the USA.
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