Not New but Still True

More guns does not mean more lunatics, but it does mean more lunatics with guns.

From the 2006 Independent (emphasis mine):

"In the US, there are roughly 17,000 murders a year, of which about 15,000 are committed with firearms. By contrast, Britain, Australia and Canada combined see fewer than 350 gun-related murders each year. And it's not just about murder. The non-gun-related suicide rate in the US is consistent with the rest of the developed world. Factor in firearms, and the rate is suddenly twice as high as the rest of the developed world.

Children are affected particularly hard. An American youth is murdered with a firearm every four and a half hours on average. And an American youth commits suicide with a firearm every eight hours. It's worth remembering that many of the most spectacular mass murders of recent years were really suicides, with the perpetrators choosing to take a few other people with them while they were at it. Gun-control advocates argue they manage to carry out their murderous fantasies only because firearms give them the means to do so."

BMW introduces new greener rail cars . . . in Poland

Once again Europe gets there a decade or two ahead of the good 'ol USA.  While we're struggling to hold on to Obama's public transit works in several states (light rail plans dropping like flies, as Republicans scream and deny Fed monies) Poland is welcoming these beauties from BMW. 

"The handholds inside the car are lit from above and shaped like tree branches, which according to the designers are a symbol of the cars’ green ambitions. The carriage’s aluminum chassis has been designed to reduce weight and hence reduce the energy consumption. Moreover, the carriages, according to the designers, are 97.5 percent recyclable."

With spacious interiors, hidden mechanics, and wider doors these dreams of the future will be reality in Warsaw next year.  One more pic. . . .

Wait, I'm loving this HUMMER?

I still think that the coolest overlooked option to inject cash and interest back into Detroit's manufacturing base would be to make any auto industry bail-out money contingent on rapid total transition to either a wind turbine company, or a photo-voltaic producer . . . but perhaps there's dollahs in bikes too . . .

As recently reported in the London Evening Standard, European automobile manufacturers are
sensing that trend is favoring livable cities, walking and biking, and ditching dirty transportation options to the obscurity of the century in which they were born . . . and these automakers are BUILDING BIKES!  From TransportMichigan:  more . . .

China plans high-speed rail to Europe. Really? I'm jealous.

They've already got the most advanced high-speed rail system in the world, and now the Chinese have announced plans to extend it to Europe.  This means a two-day trip from King's Cross to Beijing!!  Detractors say this is the modern Imperialist equivalent of the Via Publicae -- a move to cement China's supremacy across the continent -- but others doubt it will ever come to fruition . . . the perceived benefits beyond passenger service being somewhat limited for the cost.  The US, for all it's "security" spending abroad, could take a page from this strategy book and strengthen our domestic infrastructure in a similar way to vast benefit. FULL STORY from the Edmonton Journal.
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