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Monthly archive for August, 2011
The Daily Dig: Should the U.S. Be Exporting Coal to China?
Thursday, August 4th, 2011
• A battle over a proposed port terminal in Washington state has led to broader questions about whether economics and jobs should trump concerns over helping support China’s environmentally-questionable energy use. (McClatchy) • Democrats went on the offensive on Wednesday, Read more ›
For and Against High-Speed Rail, Part V: Spending Edition
Thursday, August 4th, 2011
On today’s episode of “For and Against High-Speed Rail” we find a political diatribe masquerading as economic reasoning, a case for getting something for your money, and a reference to Dr. Evil. We begin with the “against” position, defended by Read more ›
The Daily Dig: FAA To Stay Partially Shuttered ’til September
Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011
• Both the Senate and House left Washington before resolving the FAA funding issue, pretty much guaranteeing that the agency will stay partly shutdown for all of August. (AP) (NYT) • The oil wealth fund for Alaska is reporting more Read more ›
Life Without Left Turns
Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011
We are not all ambi-turners. Turning left has been a problem for Derek Zoolander since he was a baby. George Costanza’s love life is beholden to right-hand advances. UPS delivery routes are designed to eliminate left turns, a “seemingly silly Read more ›
Ignoring Infrastructure Is Playing With Fire: A Guest Post
Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011
This is a guest post by Richard “Rich” Cooper, vice president of Research & Emerging Issues for the National Chamber Foundation (NCF), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s nonprofit think tank. Last Friday, the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) budget ran out. Read more ›
The Daily Dig: Questioning the Way We Do Public Works Projects
Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011
• A column by Virginia Postrel argues that many public works projects come in over-budget with usage numbers that are often smaller than forecast. (Bloomberg) • Many in China believe that the nation’s feverish growth rate has led to negligence Read more ›
New Report: California Should Review Its High-Speed Ridership Estimates
Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011
A lot of people think California’s proposed high-speed rail line has a lot of big problems, but that’s not true. It’s got plenty of small problems too. In the past month or so an advocacy group asked the state’s high-speed Read more ›
The Daily Dig: India Gets Serious About Infrastructure
Monday, August 1st, 2011
• A feature article looks at how the rise of wealthy tycoons in India has led them to help India modernize its infrastructure. (NYT) • China is ramping up censorship of coverage of the train disaster. (NYT) (Reuters) • A Read more ›
Are Consumers Getting Smarter About Hybrid Cars?
Monday, August 1st, 2011
Last week President Obama announced that American automobiles must meet a fuel-efficiency standard of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. Obama called the shift “the single most important step we’ve ever taken as a nation to reduce our dependence on foreign Read more ›
