DM&E vs Mayo: Who's side is TRAINS on anyway?

[samfp1943]

I applaud kalmbach's williingness to err on the side of objectivity, and not sully themselves with the kind of cherrypicked data slashing that has been displayed by many of DM&E proponents. Just because they are an industry organ does not dictate that they have to suck it up and play cheerleader, too.

   Spot on, AG.

  I would like to think that they are trying to have a neutral position, if that is possible.

[Anonymous]

I applaud kalmbach's williingness to err on the side of objectivity, and not sully themselves with the kind of cherrypicked data slashing that has been displayed by many of DM&E proponents.

Just because they are an industry organ does not dictate that they have to suck it up and play cheerleader, too.

[solzrules]

It certainly would appear that Trains magazine's anylisis of the poll is less than optimistic.  I am curious, though, as to the source of the trains article.  It reads an awful lot like a newspaper article-in that it was copied perhaps?  Just a stab in the dark.  Anyhoo - it seems that if the Mayo clinic wants to argue about how the technical aspects of their poll are superior than that of the DME poll they are going to lose the interest of a whole lot of people.  In other words, the DME won this round in that they got their poll out first and nobody gives a crap about the 'specifics' behind the poll, save maybe a few poll geeks.  In the PR battle DME -1, Mayo - 0.  Besides - a good pollster can get the public to support anything if they ask the questions the right way.  How do you explain Hillary Clinton? 

[Anonymous]

In the battle of winning over the hearts and minds of regular joes regarding the DM&E expansion, both DM&E and Mayo produced poll results that show that most Minnesotans support the DM&E project (according to the DM&E commissioned poll) AND oppose the DM&E project (according to the Mayo commissioned poll).

Okay, nothing suprising there in these days of inherently discredited polls (read:  push polls).

But what does suprise me is the way the railroad press is treating the duel, at least from the TRAINS and ProgressiveRailroading perspectives.

From ProgressiveRailroading.com's perspective........

http://www.progressiverailroading.com/freightnews/article.asp?id=9368

......the Mayo poll is misleading because it states DM&E doesn't have collateral to support the RRIF loan, which DM&E refutes - “In fact, the DM&E will provide collateral [and] this loan will be fully secured,” according to DM&E spokeman Jafar Karim.

But, from the TRAINS Newswire perspective.......

http://www.trains.com/trn/print.aspx?c=a&id=725

.....it is the DM&E poll that appears misleading, in that "DM&E refused to release the complete survey results or provide media with a complete list of questions asked."  (For those of you without a TRAINS subscription, you will not be able to access the TRAINS side of the story.  Sorry.)

Question:  Did TRAINS staff bother to get DM&E's version of this latest poll duel?  Wouldn't you think a rail industry mag would first get the railroad side of a story before they extoll the views of the anti-railroad types?