Breakup Railroads That Lie!

[edblysard]

Mookie,
Are you sure the percent is that low?[:D]
Ed

QUOTE: Originally posted by Mookie

Ok - I will stick a finger in this one -

So you break a railroad up that lies. Somewhere in my bb brain, I don't see this as a solution. And if we do that, what do we do with 85% of the politicians in this country - turn them into railroaders?

Surely you can come up with something a little more thought-provoking that this?

Moo

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by pchas

QUOTE: Originally posted by futuremodal

Whether there is "lying" going on or not is irrelevent to the key issue of the lack of competition among the Class I's. A monopoly can be as honest as a day is long, and still be a detriment to the GDP. The irrefutable fact is this: North American railroads' current service and rate structures favor overseas imports over domestic producers. That in and of itself is the best reason to bring anti-trust legislation to the fore.

Container ships are lined up with imports waiting to be unloaded. That being the case, It simply makes sense from the railroads' point of view to service this large and growing sector over the domestic producers, which offer a smaller margin. I may not love UP, but I'm not going to blame the trade deficit on Uncle Pete!! And with the advent of the interstate highway system and the trucking industry, trains don't have a monopoly on moving freight.

Except you've got it backwards. It is the grain, coal, chemicals, e.g. commodities of domestic origin that are the high margin commodities, while import intermodal offers the smallest of margins. Look at where railroads are excerting their pricing power - it ain't on those double stacks of Chinese imports. The big rate increases are all occuring on the domestic stuff.

And the import intermodal, while the fastest growing sector of railroading, is still not even close to the volumes provided by coal and grain.

The truth is, the railroads (especially BNSF and UP) make the core of their revenues from domestic products, and then turn around and authorize their capacity improvement funds on those import intermodal lanes.

One would almost think that Chairman Mao is the spiritual CEO of the rail oligarchy.

[sebamat]

Every Businnes should make what they think is better for them or give the better chances to make money. If they toke the wrong directionand they will lose money .. pity for them (and their workers, see Ford) .

But to decide that corporations should be 'punished' because they did not made what public opinion think is the right thing, the list of candidates will be very long and not only RRs; and, specially the list would allways be VERY VERY opinable!!!

Or it will become like in Russia: I do not like you/you have what I like --> I destroy your company...


sebastiano

[gabe]

QUOTE: Originally posted by jeaton

Did I miss something? Like a bad case of paranoia?

It would be nice if we could hold every person, government and business entity to a level of honesty as required in a court of law-"the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth". Perhaps embarrasing, but nice.

The suggestion is that if "railroads" lie, they should be broken up. The last time I talked to a switch point, I seemed to be getting the straight story. How about instead, any managers that commits a crime or lies to cover the commission is prosecuted and if convicted is fined and jailed.

An oasis of sanity . . .

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by K. P. Harrier

I believe a railroad that lies through its teeth should be broken up into two or more railroads. Because of railroading’s nature and importance to America, the natural process of ELIMINATING unscrupulous businesses through awareness is NOT practical. But government ordered breakups is practical, and very safe! A serious threat of THAT could orientate matters aright within shady companies that happen to be super important to the continued economic well being of the nation.

H'mmmmm,

Don't forget, Railroads have devised "Hydra-cushion"



So for every head you cut off, two equally menacing heads are likely to grow back in it's place.

[:D]

What seems funny to me is that the general concensus of this forum tends to be along the lines that the big freight railroads are too big, ranging among a plethora of reasons including that insufficient competition causes higher rates, the railroads have grown too large to effectively manage themselves, etc, all the way down to simple narcistic resentment that their favorite fallen flag was assimilated by those 'dirty rotten so and so's' .

Yet at the same time, these very same people will argue against breaking up Amtrak until they are foaming at the mouth, insisting that a single, nationwide network is the ONLY acceptable solution.

Which IS it? Is what I'd like to know.

Has Amtrak ever lied to us? Well, lets break it up into a thousand pieces.

Or better yet, how about this option?

If the large Railroads lie, lets force them to resume passenger rail. That ought to send shivers down their spine.

[samfp1943]

QUOTE: Originally posted by MichaelSol

QUOTE: Originally posted by PNWRMNM

Who will be the truth police and why should we believe them???

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? has been the dilemma of every society since the beginning of time.

Best regards, Michael Sol

Boy! Your computer goes to the 'puter shop to be wormed, and the Trojan Horse reshod, and the inmates have captured the asylum!!!
What you said, MICHAEL.....[^][^][^][^]

[cpbloom]

What is the real reason this topic was started?

[SALfan]

Are we to assume that K. P. Harrier NEVER, EVER told a lie in his entire life? Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by JOdom

Are we to assume that K. P. Harrier NEVER, EVER told a lie in his entire life? Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.

Except K.P. probably isn't a railroad CEO putting American farmers out of business and forcing US manufacturing overseas. Hard working, taxpaying Americans are being hurt by the actions of US railroads. Why shouldn't such corporations come under more public scrutiny?