Florida cited 'ridership' as reason to reject train funding. How foolish is that?

Very foolish.

California bullet train backers want funds that Florida shunned  (click title to entry - thank you)

Florida Gov. Rick Scott rejected $2.4 billion in federal funds for a proposed high-speed line between Orlando and Tampa. Brown, Feinstein and Boxer say California would welcome the additional money.

By Rich Connell, Los Angeles Times

February 17, 2011

California bullet train supporters began angling Wednesday for a sizeable share of $2.4 billion in federal high-speed rail funding that Florida Gov. Rick Scott rejected.

Scott, a Republican, told reporters he didn't believe projections for a proposed high-speed train between Orlando and Tampa and feared Florida taxpayers would end up having to subsidize the service...

Someone want to tell Scott to wise up and begin construction of an advanced form of mass transit that can enhance not only the "Disney Experience" but also the tourism on the Gulf Coast of Florida?

As always, the 'independent transportation' cronies in the USA are behind the curve when it comes to alternative fuels, electric cars and mass transit.  Gas prices are increasing and when the summer comes around people won't have disposable income to travel to domestic destinations.  There has to be a better mass transit infrastructure that is both modern, efficient and reasonably priced to continue to support our service / tourism economy.  Build these trains now!

Core Inflation Edges Up in January  (click here)

02/17/11 - 08:59 AM EST

By Shanthi Bharatwaj

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Consumer prices edged slightly higher in January, as food and energy prices continue to climb, the Labor Department said Thursday....

I believe the 'Middle East Tensions' are overrated.  I sincerely believe the 'liberation movement' can be peaceful where current leadership seek a peaceful resolve to unrest.  Libya's al-Gaddafi, a Bedouin, is taking some of this in stride as he refers to the unrest as. "The Day of Anger."  Unless there are rock solid reports about interruption in oil exports from these countries I would not take this 'speculation' too seriously.

North Sea oil price near 2.5-yr. high on Mideast tension  (click here)

By Anna Yukhananov, Reuters

February 17, 2011 9:06 AM

Crude oil prices hold steady Thursday (click here)

Published: Feb. 17, 2011 at 10:12 AM

Officials in Egypt said Iran had canceled plans to send two warships through the Suez Canal. While that pointed to easing tensions, police and anti-government protesters clashed in Bahrain, leaving at least four dead, The Guardian reported.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, March delivery light, sweet crude oil rose 8 cents to $85.07 per barrel. Home heating oil shed 0.86 cents to $2.7662 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline prices gained 0.45 cents to $2.5492 per gallon. Henry Hub natural gas prices shed 0.4 cents to $3.917 per million British thermal units....

LONDON - North Sea Brent crude oil steadied around $104 per barrel on Thursday, near a two-and-a-half-year high, as unrest in the Middle East and Israel-Iran tension stoked fears of a disruption of oil flows.
Bahrain police stormed a square in Manama, killing at least three people as protests in the Middle East and North Africa gathered pace, inspired by revolts in Tunisia and Egypt.
Clashes were reported in tightly controlled oil producer Libya, sandwiched between Egypt and Tunisia, while at least 40 were wounded in Yemen in the seventh day of demonstrations against the president's 32-year rule.
The dollar earlier hit a one-week low against a basket of currencies on worries over rising Middle East tension....

There are a lot of reasons for speculators to scream at the top of their lungs that supplies will diminish, including, intimidation of Canada and their environmental assault with oil sands.  Wall Street extremsists are like waging war.  They drop bombs on economic speculation all the time just to claim profits on a daily basis they weren't ever enttitled to in the first place.  Sound familiar?  REAL ESTATE bargaining?  Everyone knows what happens afterward. the 'less sophisticated' otherwise known as 'investors' are left holding the bag or crying for a government bailout.