This was copied verbatim from the Facebook post I made after seeing this car this afternoon, which might explain my telling some folks things they already know:
There's a refrigerator car company out there known as Cryo-Trans, Inc. It owns literally thousands of white-and-orange cars for keeping perishables cool, cold, or frozen.
Its biggest claim to fame, however, is that much of its fleet of mechanical refrigerator cars is adorned on the doors with the name of a city, a geographic feature, names of people who have some meaning to someone, or are just plain whimsical (there is a trio of cars named Larry, Moe, and Curly, for example).
I take a little participatory pride in this fleet, as I lobbied the company successfully for cars named Proviso, Lombard, and Elmhurst. They don't look like much any more due to their age and the amount of time they've spent where graffiti vandals can get to them, but they are still out there.
Anyway, today, I saw one of the new cars carrying unusual markings. As it came closer, I noticed that it was a logo for some athletic team. As it came past, I could read the lettering on the logo: "Stoneman Douglas". The name on the door of the car read Parkland.
This tribute to the students lost in the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas school in Parkland, Florida, is a real touch of class for this company. There are, or will be, others—that group of cars built in late 2018 also has cars named Rodriguez, Columbine, Sandy Hook, and Blacksburg. I haven't seen if the school logos adorn the other ones yet, but what a beautiful tribute!
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
Very classy!
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
CShaveRRThere are, or will be, others—that group of cars built in late 2018 also has cars named Rodriguez, Columbine, Sandy Hook, and Blacksburg. I haven't seen if the school logos adorn the other ones yet, but what a beautiful tribute!
A beautiful tribute, but a complete and utter shame we need a (gowing) fleet of cars for that.
It's been fun. But it isn't much fun anymore. Signing off for now.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any
zugmann CShaveRR There are, or will be, others—that group of cars built in late 2018 also has cars named Rodriguez, Columbine, Sandy Hook, and Blacksburg. I haven't seen if the school logos adorn the other ones yet, but what a beautiful tribute! A beautiful tribute, but a complete and utter shame we need a (gowing) fleet of cars for that.
CShaveRR There are, or will be, others—that group of cars built in late 2018 also has cars named Rodriguez, Columbine, Sandy Hook, and Blacksburg. I haven't seen if the school logos adorn the other ones yet, but what a beautiful tribute!
Keeping these tragedies in the public consciousness is good. However, the greater, avoidable tragedy is that we as a nation have done ZERO to try to control firearms violence. This is truly a public health issue.
charlie hebdoKeeping these tragedies in the public consciousness is good. However, the greater, avoidable tragedy is that we as a nation have done ZERO to try to control firearms violence. This is truly a public health issue.
But the march of restrictive gun legislation in this country continues unabated:
https://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2019/02/13/here-is-every-new-gun-law-in-the-us-since-the-parkland-shooting/
CMStPnP charlie hebdo Keeping these tragedies in the public consciousness is good. However, the greater, avoidable tragedy is that we as a nation have done ZERO to try to control firearms violence. This is truly a public health issue. https://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2019/02/13/here-is-every-new-gun-law-in-the-us-since-the-parkland-shooting/
charlie hebdo Keeping these tragedies in the public consciousness is good. However, the greater, avoidable tragedy is that we as a nation have done ZERO to try to control firearms violence. This is truly a public health issue.
At the risk of turning this into yet another tar-baby thread:
The principal problem is that we're not enforcing the laws we already have. None of the proposed hysterical restrictions on the slippery slope toward removing the effect of the Second Amendment have any actual bearing (beyond more or less utter circumstantiality) in reducing school violence. The argument could be equally -- in fact better -- made that reducing speed limits to 15mph would eliminate most common road deaths, or that getting rid of cars would get rid of car-related problems like road rage or speeding accidents.
It is undeniably true that some of these shootings could have been avoided if the gun industry were destroyed (and all channels of importation actually closed off). We see George Soros in particular working at some of this by quietly buying up firearms manufacturers and then closing them ... while preserving full rights to their intellectual property so no one else can try reverse-engineering for production. I have no moral complaint with this approach, only that it has had more effect on driving up perceived gun value (or demanded gun prices), and hence the attractiveness of crime involving gun theft or diversion, etc., in the same way that our massively-failed 'drug' control schemes have.
Parkland suggests some much more effective alternatives; here we have an activist school administration which had just completed extensive and expensive training on how to respond to a school-shooting incident, with all sorts of nominal feel-good response mechanisms. Want to fix that situation effectively? start by getting security personnel that don't run away at the first perception of actual danger. (There are other things about the 'official' response at Parkland that have me white with rage, but I won't go into them here as they're only circumstantially relevant to the cause.)
It is difficult to argue coherently against the idea of near-immediate rational armed response to any of these deranged mass-shooting things, and this almost immediately involves providing weapons that are accessible to teachers and perhaps some students within actual classrooms. (The alternative being to have paid guards in every hallway, or perhaps every classroom in some circumstances, with the concomitant increase in school budget to have this and incidentally try to provide a quality education too.)
I have to wonder whether there is a statistic similar to the one that was 'let slip' during the Lockerbie hearings, on exactly how many lethal opportunities are caught by existing kinds of safeguard, notably metal detectors, each year vs. the ones that get high-profile media coverage when safeguards are perceptibly inadequate or outright fail. Suspect some of this information will be suppressed for 'other reasons', some of which I acknowledge as being, in our currently imperfect society, perfectly understandable if expedient ones.
Personally, I have no problem with the 'constitutionality' of fair restrictions on firearm acquisition under the Second Amendment -- as long as they are equally and correctly observed, and not put in only as political discouragement of gun possession, as some of the 'mental health' criteria rapidly devolve into. In particular I find it inconceivable that 'gun show' sales of any deadly weapons are freely tolerated, and I thoroughly encourage extension of current FFL standards to any "mediatable" (what's a better word?) sale -- in fact I'm in moral favor of establishing a 'gun title' process similar to that for motor vehicles (but with fewer loopholes for commercial bypass than that system) that would require even private sales to go through ownership (and due-care) review and oversight ... just as car ownership transfers now do. The problem is that I think this would inevitably turn into a confiscation registry on any of the already-observed excuse pretexts (remember Katrina, anyone?) which is a primary reason gun-owning groups don't trust the 'deep state' access to that kind of information. Fix that problem definitively and many possible helps to the school-shooting problem become more likely.
We certainly don't want to turn this into a "pro-gun, anti-gun" dogfight, this isn't the place, but I'll say this and no more.
I'm 65 years old, soon to be 66, and I've seen gun laws in this country ratchet up tighter and tighter since November 22, 1963, (I shouldn't have to tell anyone what happened on that date, I remember it like it was yesterday) and instead of things getting better they've gotten worse. Why? There's probably deeper reasons, the discussion of which doesn't belong here either.
Just saying. And that's all I'll say.
If anyone wants to PM me over this go right ahead, I'm a good listener.
OvermodThe principal problem is that we're not enforcing the laws we already have.
Thats true and I am not worried about this issue at all long-term.
You will never have absolute gun confiscation or really strict iron clad gun control in this country for one, war Veterans would never allow it to happen......too many of them have seen first hand via combat what happens to societies that confiscate all the guns from the electorate.
Almost without exception the mass killers using guns have a mental issue. So I think the Israelis have the proper focus on this issue. Look for ways to scan a crowd via cameras or eyeball and attempt to find the mentally disturbed person or potential terrorist before they act. We should be following that lead in my humble opinion. It of course will inflame civil libertarians a little but I don't see it as much a civil rights issue if it is done via machine learning.
Flintlock76 We certainly don't want to turn this into a "pro-gun, anti-gun" dogfight, this isn't the place, but I'll say this and no more. I'm 65 years old, soon to be 66, and I've seen gun laws in this country ratchet up tighter and tighter since November 22, 1963, (I shouldn't have to tell anyone what happened on that date, I remember it like it was yesterday) and instead of things getting better they've gotten worse. Why? There's probably deeper reasons, the discussion of which doesn't belong here either.Yes, Wayne, Just saying. And that's all I'll say. If anyone wants to PM me over this go right ahead, I'm a good listener.
I'm 65 years old, soon to be 66, and I've seen gun laws in this country ratchet up tighter and tighter since November 22, 1963, (I shouldn't have to tell anyone what happened on that date, I remember it like it was yesterday) and instead of things getting better they've gotten worse. Why? There's probably deeper reasons, the discussion of which doesn't belong here either.Yes, Wayne,
Johnny
Deggesty Flintlock76 We certainly don't want to turn this into a "pro-gun, anti-gun" dogfight, this isn't the place, but I'll say this and no more. I'm 65 years old, soon to be 66, and I've seen gun laws in this country ratchet up tighter and tighter since November 22, 1963, (I shouldn't have to tell anyone what happened on that date, I remember it like it was yesterday) and instead of things getting better they've gotten worse. Why? There's probably deeper reasons, the discussion of which doesn't belong here either.Yes, Wayne, Just saying. And that's all I'll say. If anyone wants to PM me over this go right ahead, I'm a good listener. Yes, Wayne, this is a railroad forum, not a gun-lovers or gun-haters forum.
Yes, Wayne, this is a railroad forum, not a gun-lovers or gun-haters forum.
The post was about tragedies from guns, commemorated on Cryo cars.
Scanning faces or eyeballs in crowd?Identifying folks who are severely mentally ill and predisposed to violence is hard enough for seasoned professionals. Even if we required a psych evaluation as part of licensing, most domestic gun violence peeps do not have a history of mental illness.
charlie hebdoHowever, the greater, avoidable tragedy is that we as a nation have done ZERO to try to control firearms violence. This is truly a public health issue.
Alas, the problem has far less to do with the tool of choice for these people than the people themselves.
This is why there is talk of banning certain types of knives in Britain.
Until you figure out how to deal with the mental health issues, violent video games, and our entitled youth, the problem will continue.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
tree68 charlie hebdo However, the greater, avoidable tragedy is that we as a nation have done ZERO to try to control firearms violence. This is truly a public health issue. Alas, the problem has far less to do with the tool of choice for these people than the people themselves. This is why there is talk of banning certain types of knives in Britain. Until you figure out how to deal withj the mental health issues, violent video games, and our entitled youth, the problem will continue.
charlie hebdo However, the greater, avoidable tragedy is that we as a nation have done ZERO to try to control firearms violence. This is truly a public health issue.
Until you figure out how to deal withj the mental health issues, violent video games, and our entitled youth, the problem will continue.
With all due respect, I've worked professionally with the mentally ill, some profoundly, for almost 40 years. The incidence of mental illnesses is similar in the industrialized world. Violent video games are everywhere. Entitlement abounds almost all over.
But we have a much higher incidence of mass shootings than any other country. We also have far more guns (~350 million) than we did 50 years ago (75 MIL.) or than any other industrialized nation. The results are appallingly obvious.
charlie hebdo Violent video games are everywhere. Entitlement abounds almost all over.
When I was in high school, entitlement was rare and violent video games didn't exist. People had guns in their vehicles at school. I even took a gun safety course in junior high school. It was no big deal. No lockdowns, no panic.
And there were no mass shootings in schools. "Going postal" didn't kick in until 1986 (although the first shooting in a post office occurred in 1970).
During one of the seminars I attended today at the NYS Fire Chief's Expo, the speaker spoke of new fire recruits who have never heard the word "no." They don't know how to react - "no" is a totally foreign concept to them.
charlie hebdoBut we have a much higher incidence of mass shootings than any other country.
In a study of mass shootings from 2009-2015 worldwide by the Crime Prevention Research Center, the results show the U.S. ranked 11th in per capita mass shooting killings.
With more deaths per capita in mass shootings in Europe than in the U.S. were Norway, Serbia, France, Macedonia, Albania, Slovakia, Finland, Belgium, and Czech Republic.
The study, from 2009-2015, showed there were 16 shootings worldwide where at least 15 people were killed. Four in the U.S., two in Germany, two in France, and two in the U.K. With the U.S. population four times larger than Germany and five times larger than the U.K., the U.S had a lower per capita rate of deaths due to shootings.
Adjusted for population, Germany had a mass shooting nearly two times the rate of the U.S., and the U.K. had a rate nearly two-and-a-half times the U.S.
The Crime Prevention Research Center does not receive any funding from the NRA or from gun manufacturers.
https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/sorry-despite-gun-control-advocates-claims-u-s-isnt-the-worst-country-for-mass-shootings/
York1 John
Entitlement didn't exist in large part when I was in high school, college or graduate school. And I don't think it correlates with the increase in mass shootings.
And then there's Switzerland.
The Swiss have compulsary military service for all able-bodied males from the ages of 18 up to, in some cases, 49. Aside from a small full-time military it's essentially a massive reserve force. Members are responsible for their personal weapons, are issued the same, and up until recently were required to keep them at home. They now have the option of depositing them in local armories if they choose. How many take the option I don't know.
That being said, we can for all intents and purposes say that the Swiss are a people armed to the teeth. We don't hear of any mass shootings there. We should ask why.
Or maybe the chocolates, the cheeses, and the trains are so good they've got nothing to be PO'd about? (I had to throw some rail-themed words in there!)
I apologize, I said I'd say no more.
York1 charlie hebdo But we have a much higher incidence of mass shootings than any other country. In a study of mass shootings from 2009-2015 worldwide by the Crime Prevention Research Center, the results show the U.S. ranked 11th in per capita mass shooting killings. With more deaths per capita in mass shootings in Europe than in the U.S. were Norway, Serbia, France, Macedonia, Albania, Slovakia, Finland, Belgium, and Czech Republic. The study, from 2009-2015, showed there were 16 shootings worldwide where at least 15 people were killed. Four in the U.S., two in Germany, two in France, and two in the U.K. With the U.S. population four times larger than Germany and five times larger than the U.K., the U.S had a lower per capita rate of deaths due to shootings. Adjusted for population, Germany had a mass shooting nearly two times the rate of the U.S., and the U.K. had a rate nearly two-and-a-half times the U.S. The Crime Prevention Research Center does not receive any funding from the NRA or from gun manufacturers. https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/sorry-despite-gun-control-advocates-claims-u-s-isnt-the-worst-country-for-mass-shootings/
charlie hebdo But we have a much higher incidence of mass shootings than any other country.
Rightist fake news. Get real.
charlie hebdoRightist fake news. Get real.
Are their statistics in this report incorrect?
It's all fake news nowadays.
I don't believe anything unless it says "Trains," "Classic Trains," or "Classic Toy Trains" on the website heading.
Trying to keep this "railroady."
Ahh the Swiss- what an amazing railway system they have. Standard and narrow gauge. And the steamship system! I was in Zurich in 1978 and there was a fleet of side-wheelers with tall skinny smokestacks on top of a superstructure that reminded me of a wedding cake. You took one of those boats to get to the other side of the lake; these were common carriers, not a fleet of antiques. Also, I never saw so many Ford Mustangs in one place before, even more than in the USA and all the taxis were Dodges and Plymouths. The streetcars were blue and white and the builders plates on the ones I rode said they were made in 1938. Wood trim everywhere with comfortably upholstered seats. Mint condition like a fleet of classic cars of which there were many, especially Citroens. So- trains, ships, streetcars and old automobiles. I guess I've covered them all. Guns? I don't have a problem with vintage firearms but who the hell needs an assualt rifle? But, back to trains, if you've never been to Switzerland, go! The rail system is astonishing, it truly is.
Thanks 54', maybe that's why Swiss society is so quiet and well-ordered.
I mean, if someone's walking around surly, anti-social, and generally PO'd when he's surrounded by all that cool stuff the authorities just KNOW there's something wrong with him and take him out of circulation quick!
"Switzerland! Come for the chocolate, stay for all the cool stuff!"
54light15but who the hell needs an assualt rifle?
Ah, someone that has never worked in a high visibility target type building before.....
My workplace is protected by the short stock A4 Carbine assault rifle with scope and the private security force is quite proficient with the weapon. I feel quite comfortable they will get the job done when a target presents itself. The last target was about a year ago but I was back in Dallas at the time working from home. :)
In that case they needed the firepower as he was armed with a shotgun, some of the initial non-lethal hits without effect on his charge (which tells me he might have injected himself with drugs first). I am wiling to bet they were happy for the A4 that day vs a less capable, less precise weapon.
Flintlock76And then there's Switzerland. The Swiss have compulsary military service for all able-bodied males from the ages of 18 up to, in some cases, 49. Aside from a small full-time military it's essentially a massive reserve force. Members are responsible for their personal weapons, are issued the same, and up until recently were required to keep them at home. They now have the option of depositing them in local armories if they choose. How many take the option I don't know. That being said, we can for all intents and purposes say that the Swiss are a people armed to the teeth. We don't hear of any mass shootings there. We should ask why. Or maybe the chocolates, the cheeses, and the trains are so good they've got nothing to be PO'd about? (I had to throw some rail-themed words in there!) I apologize, I said I'd say no more.
So it goes back to how the Swiss handle mental incompetence and mental illness versus how it is handled in this country. Same deal with the Germans. Both are worlds apart from the United States.
"Ah, someone that has never worked in a high visibility target type building before....."
Nope, never have unless you consider an aircraft carrier a high visibilty target. Umm- where exactly do you work?
So, back to the cars decorated with murder sites, how many psychos are trying to plan an even bigger body count so as to get THEIR kill zone so commemorated?
CMStPnP Flintlock76 And then there's Switzerland. The Swiss have compulsary military service for all able-bodied males from the ages of 18 up to, in some cases, 49. Aside from a small full-time military it's essentially a massive reserve force. Members are responsible for their personal weapons, are issued the same, and up until recently were required to keep them at home. They now have the option of depositing them in local armories if they choose. How many take the option I don't know. That being said, we can for all intents and purposes say that the Swiss are a people armed to the teeth. We don't hear of any mass shootings there. We should ask why. Or maybe the chocolates, the cheeses, and the trains are so good they've got nothing to be PO'd about? (I had to throw some rail-themed words in there!) I apologize, I said I'd say no more. So it goes back to how the Swiss handle mental incompetence and mental illness versus how it is handled in this country. Same deal with the Germans. Both are worlds apart from the United States.
Flintlock76 And then there's Switzerland. The Swiss have compulsary military service for all able-bodied males from the ages of 18 up to, in some cases, 49. Aside from a small full-time military it's essentially a massive reserve force. Members are responsible for their personal weapons, are issued the same, and up until recently were required to keep them at home. They now have the option of depositing them in local armories if they choose. How many take the option I don't know. That being said, we can for all intents and purposes say that the Swiss are a people armed to the teeth. We don't hear of any mass shootings there. We should ask why. Or maybe the chocolates, the cheeses, and the trains are so good they've got nothing to be PO'd about? (I had to throw some rail-themed words in there!) I apologize, I said I'd say no more.
As I tend to recall about 40 years ago or so, the Mental Health movement was for the elimination of hospitals and facilities for the mentally ill and all but the worst patients were to be 'Main Streamed' with the general population. A general population that is in no way equipped to deal with their issues and needs. It was all about the Benjamins, not mental health.
Health Insurance that exists today will only cover short periods of 'mental health' care - its all about the Benjamins.
Near where I live there is an entire hospital complex with nearly 100 building on several hundred, if not a thousand acres of land that was a state mental health facility. Within the past couple of years the State has deeded the facility - buildings and land to be 'developed' by my small town of 4400 people. Lord only knows how this will turn out - discussion of the property and it's development was a big point of discussion in the 'Town Council Debate' that was held prior to the Town Council Election in early May.
In today's USA 'mental health' is just a buzz word for don't bother me with your problems, its all about the Benjamins.
Slight correction or addition. Ending the captivity of millions in state hospitals and asylums was an outgrowth of the combination of the civil fights movement and the discovery that neuroleptic medications could bring some relief to those actually diagnosed with schizophrenia. Community-based mental health centers were to be funded to provide support, medication and counseling to these newly liberated souls. Unfortunately the federal government never funded these facilities at the planned level and starting with Reagan, severe cuts were made. Follow the Benjamin's and Grovers (Cleveland).
Who needs to be able to own a semi auto rifle. How about a law abiding citizen on the South side of Chicago where the weather on the weekends can be told by the bodycount on Monday. Or a shop owner protecting his store from being robbed for the 10 time this year.
The average response time for anything in Chicago that's gun related is almost 15 minutes before the first officers arrive on site. That's a hell of a long time to be wishing you could be fighting back.
54light15Umm- where exactly do you work?
I can't say overtly on social media but you should be able to guess based on what I stated already because just about everyone visits us as a school kid on a tour. So just think back to your child hood when you potentially first saw security guards with machine guns on a tour.
BaltACDIn today's USA 'mental health' is just a buzz word for don't bother me with your problems, its all about the Benjamins.
The big issue I am having in my life is my surviving Parent can no longer responsibly handle her finances but I cannot remove the decision making authority on her finances unless I get her declared medically incompetent. In which case I need a medical opinoin (most Doctors will not do that unless it is obvious to the brain dead) that states that on paper or she has to be voluntarily willing to sign that away (afraid of being placed in a nursing home). All a Financial Power of attorney does in our society is just gives you informational access to the financial accounts. I still need her signature to do anything financially with the accounts. Everyone knows this including the con artists that call her........she has been ripped off twice over the phone already to the tune of $6000.00 so far. One of her past financial advisors ripped her off for more by selling a dog annuity to her. One of her priests at her church took her for a ride on the buy your way to heaven plan. All I can do is sit back and watch this happen as I cannot intercede in the financial transactions.
It's pretty bad but that is what we are stuck with.
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