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Second Major Labor Group Condemns Occupy Movement’s Planned West Coast “Solidarity” Port Shutdown
The Occupy movement is planning to force a shutdown of West Coast ports, claiming they are standing in solidarity with the International Longshore and Warehouse…
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Don’t “Drill for Roads”
Over at National Review Online, I have an op-ed up explaining why fiscal conservatives should oppose House Republicans’ plan to direct oil and gas…
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Fred Weekly: Research & Development
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Fred Weekly: Residual Claimant Problem
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Update on FMCSA’s Proposed Hours-of-Service Rule
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the agency tasked with writing and enforcing safety regulations for large trucks and buses, is due today to…
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Longshoremen’s Union Rejects Occupy Oakland’s Call for “Solidarity” West Coast Port Shutdown
After briefly shutting down their [adopted] city's port earlier this month, Occupy Oakland is calling for a December 12 shutdown of all West Coast…
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Fred Weekly: Give Thanks for Capitalism
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Fred Weekly: Conflicts of Interest
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House Republicans’ Shortsighted Proposal to Fund Roads through More Drilling
Recently, Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives have proposed opening up more federal land and offshore areas to natural resource extraction. Such…
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Fred Weekly: Occupy Wall Street
In the latest episode of “Fred Weekly,” CEI President Fred Smith discusses the Occupy Wall Street movement and why the protesters ought to be targeting…
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Mississippi Voters Pass Initiative Restricting Eminent Domain Powers
Yesterday, voters in Mississippi overwhelmingly passed Initiative 31, which will limit eminent domain condemnations for private benefit. Despite opposition from Republican Governor Hailey…
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Surface Transportation Board Rejects Misguided Push to Re-Regulate the Railroad Industry… For Now
Late last week, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) refused [PDF] to initiate a rulemaking (Ex Parte 711) proceeding that was petitioned by the shippers'…
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Wealthy Chanhassen, Minnesota, NIMBYs Oppose Retail Competition, Support Development Socialism
Reading the tired, silly claims of left-wing, anti-Wal-Mart activists generally makes me yawn. But it annoys me to see some of my former neighbors from…
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Truck Drivers Don’t Need a Revised Hours-of-Service Rule
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is poised to enact a revised hours-of-service (HOS) rule that would greatly impact commercial motor vehicle operators.
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Congress Should Reject Tying a Repatriation Tax Holiday to a National Infrastructure Bank
It was reported on Tuesday that Senate Democrats intent on creating a National Infrastructure Bank (NIB) have quietly thrown Republicans a bone on the…
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The Legal Battle Over Honolulu’s Train to Nowhere
Rail transit advocates in Honolulu, Hawaii, have seen better days. Significant opposition is threatening the future of the proposed 20-mile, $5.5 billion elevated rail transit…
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Quantifying Capital Bikeshare’s Supposed “Success”
Last week, D.C.'s Capital Bikeshare program celebrated its millionth trip and one-year anniversary. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood celebrated the milestone with a…
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Do We Really Need Government-Funded Anti-Piracy Training?
Just introduced by New Jersey Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R), the Piracy Suppression Act of 2011 aims to improve U.S. policy with respect to ocean pirates…
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Eminent Domain and Redevelopment: Down in the Dumps
Remember New London, Connecticut, the dying industrial town that threw property rights under the bus thanks to 2005’s notoriously awful Kelo decision? I’m sure your…
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Welch vs. Lee: What About Freight?
Libertarian urbanist -- call him a "market urbanist" -- Timothy B. Lee recently had an article at Forbes.com in which he criticized Matt Welch…
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Eminent Domain, Rick Perry, and the Trans-Texas Corridor
Attorney Alan Ackerman has a post up highlighting and commenting on an article that argues that critics of Texas Governor Rick Perry from the right…
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CEI Joins Coalition to Oppose New Air Travel Taxes
Joining Americans for Tax Reform, National Taxpayers Union, Americans for Prosperity, and others, the Competitive Enterprise Institute signed a letter [PDF]…
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Robert Reich Doesn’t Understand Surface Transportation Funding
Over at Salon, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich has a predictably empty article on the debt ceiling deal in which he denounces Republicans for…
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NYC Bureaucrat Tries to Harsh Urban Apiarist’s Buzz for Not “Watering” Beehive
Although New York City reversed its position on urban beekeeping in Spring 2010 and legalized the practice, there are apparently still some government employees with…
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CEI’s Iain Murray Interviewed on New Book, Stealing You Blind
CEI Vice President for Strategy, and director of CEI’s Center for Economic Freedom, Iain Murray has a new book, Stealing You Blind: How Government…
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How Wealthy Are You?
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Mica and Duncan’s Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill Calls for 42% Cuts from SAFETEA-LU Levels
Today, House Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) and Highway and Transit Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Jimmy Duncan (R-Tenn.) announced they would be introducing a $230-billion,…
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New Video on the D.C. Taxicab Medallion Bill
Reason.tv has a new video up today, “D.C. Taxi Heist: How a new law would screw drivers and riders,” that explains why Washington’s proposed…
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Third Time’s the Charm: Ray LaHood Announces TIGER 3
Late last week, the Department of Transportation announced it was launching a third round of TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery -- I feel…
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Planning to Disaster: The Zoning Apparat vs. Paula Deen’s Chickens
Those who know me are aware that one of the two weird -- so I've been told -- policy issues I'm obsessed with is urban…
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Rail Carriers, Shippers Battle Over Regulation Before the Surface Transportation Board
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, I've been involved in an ongoing proceeding before the Surface Transportation Board, the independent Department of Transportation agency…
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Update on the Arrest of Reason.tv’s Jim Epstein at Yesterday’s D.C. Taxicab Commission Hearing
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Reason.tv Reporter Arrested at D.C. Taxicab Commission Hearing
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CEI Submits FOIA Requests to DOT Over California High-Speed Rail
This morning, the Department of Transportation should receive the two Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests I submitted on behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute.
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The Few, The Proud, The Greek Liberals (It’s Lonely Being a Libertarian in Greece)
As the crisis in the eurozone continues to spiral out of control, I’ve sometimes thought about what must be going through the heads of…
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John Hospers, RIP
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Planning to Disaster: San Diego and California’s Sustainable Communities Strategies
The San Diego metro area has been institutionalizing its boring reputation by undertaking in recent years what is arguably the most aggressive regional planning effort…
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Report: Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) Bridge Will Lose $4.5 Billion Over 20 Years
Via Peter Samuel of TOLLROADSnews, a new report from Conway MacKenzie estimates the proposed Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) bridge would lose in…
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California High-Speed Rail All Strung Out on Stimulus on the Outskirts of Town
Emily Washington of Market Urbanism highlights this Los Angeles Times article on the latest — depending on your outlook: hilarious or pathetic —…
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Somin on the Judicial Reaction to Kelo
George Mason University law professor Ilya Somin posted online the other day his paper on the judicial reaction to the Supreme Court’s infamous…
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Obama Calls on Federal Agencies to Move to Alternative Fuel Vehicles by 2015
Today, President Obama issued a memorandum that directed executive agencies to develop purchasing and deployment plans for replacing the entire federal vehicle fleet with…
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Donald Trump: Casino Welfare Queen and Takings-Abuser of Widows
With Donald Trump ending his quixotic-yet-simultaneously-cynical candidacy for president, this might not have the punch it could have had on his campaign, but I still…
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Alan Bock, RIP (1943-2011)
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Tom Palmer on the Morality of Profit
The Atlas Economic Research Foundation‘s Tom Palmer has a new video explaining why profits are moral and how the profit motive brings out…
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Planning to Disaster: Paso Robles, Calif. Adopts Form-Based Code
I’ve previously written about the dangers of form-based codes (see here, for instance), the Euclidian zoning replacements that, rather than gut government planning abilities,…
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Brookings Report: Time to Fix America’s Broken Transit Policy
Following my post yesterday on Portland’s immense rail transit waste comes this new report from the Brookings Institution. Released today, the report (and…
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Rail Transit Pipe Dream is Alive and Not-So-Well in Portland
If you’ve been following the free-market critiques of rail transit, you know that Portland, while frequently touted as “the city that works” by lefty…
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D.C. Councilmembers Propose Taxicab Medallion System… Again
Washington, D.C., is one of the five taxicab jurisdictions in the country that allows for essentially free entry. While the cab situation in D.C. is…
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Randal O’Toole on the Future of Automobility
Cato’s Randal “Antiplanner” O’Toole discusses replacing the gas tax with tolls and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) taxes, the importance of signal coordination and adaptive…
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High-Speed Rail: A Bad Idea in the U.S., a Bad Idea in China
Today, Stuart Varney of Fox Business Network hosted Andy Kunz, the honcho of the lobbying outfit U.S. High Speed Rail Association. His advisory…
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Super-sized Convention Centers: The Boondoggles that Refuse to Die
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Stated Housing Preferences vs. Revealed Housing Reality
In March, the National Association of Realtors released the 2011 Community Preference Survey. Some greeniac urbanists are touting the survey results…
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STB Should Ignore Calls to Re-regulate Railroads
Yesterday, I filed a comment letter with the Surface Transportation Board (STB) on behalf of CEI regarding the board's request for comments prior to…
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House Rejects Obama-Backed, Pro-Union Amendment to FAA Reauthorization Bill
This afternoon, the House passed the FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011. Perhaps the most contentious issue debated was a provision of the legislation that…
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U.S. Property Rights Protections Continue to Decline
This morning, I attended the Property Rights Alliance’s launch presentation of the 2011 International Property Rights Index. Overall, the United States declined to…
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High-Speed Rail Follies: International Edition
Over at the excellent NewGeography.com, Wendell Cox has an article about the battle over high-speed rail investment in Britain. As we've seen in the…
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Steve LaTourette Wants More Federally Funded Transit (Highway-User Robbery)
Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Ohio), vice chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies, essentially told…
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Rail Transit and Transportation Waste
Over the weekend, I appeared on Fox Business Network’s “Tom Sullivan Show,” along with John Charles of the Cascade Policy Institute, to discuss…
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What *The Economist* Got Right, Got Wrong About NYC Bike Lanes
New Yorker econ writer John Cassidy created quite a stir last week with this blog post that attacked bike lanes in New York City.
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Texas Needs Real Eminent Domain Reform, Not More Empty Rhetoric
Last month, I briefly discussed the bogus eminent domain "reform" legislation that unanimously passed the Texas Senate. Over at RedState, Texas Public Policy Foundation…
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TreeHugger’s Non-Arguments in Favor of High-Speed Rail
Following George Will's article on high-speed rail as a shiny new object for wealthy liberals comes this remarkably poor defense from a TreeHugger…
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Obama’s Transportation Agenda Continues to Get Worse
Over at the National Journal's Transportation Expert blog, Fawn Johnson asks whether or not the Obama administration's transportation agenda, as laid out in…
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Florida Governor Rick Scott Wisely Rejects High-Speed Rail
Yesterday, Florida’s newly elected governor, Rick Scott, announced he was rejecting the $2.4 billion he had received from the federal government to subsidize the…
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Texas Senate Passes Bogus Eminent Domain Reform Bill
Here’s some more bad news for those of us seeking real eminent domain reform, rather than style-over-substance feel-good legislation. Here’s the Dallas Morning News…
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Arlington County Kills I-5/395 HOT Lanes Inside the Beltway
An innovative project that would have converted high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes, increased highway capacity, reduced congestion, expanded transit, and improved…
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Smart-Growthers Still Upset by Introduction of Newfangled Horseless Carriages
As somewhat of an anti–“smart growth” groupie, I try to keep up with their various online writings. Everyday, it’s like finding buried treasure. Take yesterday,…
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DOJ Wants Access to Your Data!
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Obama’s State of the Union Address: More of the Same on Trains
For the second year in a row, President Barack Obama has fretted over the “faster trains” of Europe and China in his State of…
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How to Cop Proof Your Cell Phone
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVCROjpgCB0 285 234]…
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Vincent Vernuccio on Unions’ Public Image
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxnvlndMyjY 285 234]…
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An Incrementalist Approach to Transportation Extremists
Architecture writer Karrie Jacobs has a new article up at Metropolis magazine’s website, “The Incrementalists,” in which she derides the supposed slow-and-steady course chartered…
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Villaraigosa: Brown’s Elimination of Redevelopment Agencies “a Non-Starter”
Pro-smart-growth, “green” Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is upset with Governor Jerry Brown’s remarkably sensible decision to shut down the state’s 425 redevelopment agencies, including…
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Fred Smith: Government Force vs Personal Choice
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Media Continue Spreading High-Speed Rail Misinformation
Following the Obama administration’s decision to revoke Ohio and Wisconsin’s High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) Program funding that was included in the American Recovery…
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Highway Trust Fund’s Funding Guarantees are the Problem
Streetsblog laments incoming Republicans’ alleged attempt to “hoard” Highway Trust Fund dollars as a budget gimmick. At issue is a proposed change to…
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The Streetcar Delusion: Minneapolis Receives Funding to Bolster Wasteful Rail Transit
Delusional Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood continues to flush taxpayer dollars down the toilet on increasingly idiotic rail programs. The latest example of LaHood’s anti-mobility…
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High-Speed Rail as the New Political Football?
Over at National Journal‘s Transportation Experts blog, Fawn Johnson asks whether or not high-speed rail has become a new political football in the United…
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Supreme Court will not Hear Columbia University Eminent Domain Case
It was announced today that the U.S. Supreme Court will not take up a challenge to the Empire State Development Corporation’s property takings in…
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The Insanity of Ethanol Policy
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Vincent Vernuccio on the Federal Pay Freeze
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Seattle Land-Use Regulation Liberalization Redux
Stephen Smith of Market Urbanism responds to my response to his question, asking if I thought Seattle’s proposed land-use liberalization bill was a…
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Brian McGraw on China’s Green Economy
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Seattle Land Use Liberalization Bill Fails to Address Key Problems
Stephen Smith of Market Urbanism asked me what I thought of proposed legislation in Seattle that would remove some restrictions on land use…
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Vincent Vernuccio on TSA Unions
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Real Estate Development and Generation Y
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I came across this article in Urban Land magazine, “Housing Gen Y: The Next Challenge for Cities,” by John McIlwain. In…
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TSA Backlash Directed at Failed Screening Methods, Not Airport Security
Contrary to what mouth-frothing Obama apparatchiki claim, critics of the current TSA screening practices are not hyper-partisan corporate shills. Nor are we irrationally…
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High-Speed Rail in China: On Track for Failure
In recent years, Western media reports have been filled with fawning descriptions of China’s investment in high-speed bullet trains: “China Leads World In High-Speed…
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Minnesota AFL-CIO Pushes for Wisconsin “High-Speed” Rail
I’m currently in my home state of Minnesota, a place known to non-lefty residents as the People’s Republic of Minnesota, a place where the state’s…
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Greg Conko on “Frankenfish”
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Union Members: Where Do Your Dues Go?
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Pro-Pedestrian Advocates Push Deadly Policies
One thing that never surprises me is how often anti-car zealots fail to consider trade-offs before blindly screaming for their preferred policies. Take, for example,…
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Sam Kazman on Cigarette Warning Labels
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaNCeIN0Ka8 285 234]…
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America: Where “High-Speed Rail” is Not High-Speed Rail
Yesterday, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood addressed a crowd of Midwest rail fans, saying, “Twenty-five years from now, because of the president’s vision, we will…
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Vincent Vernuccio on Card Check
Watch the interview on YouTube. …
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Chris Horner on Overestimation of Emissions
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Smart Growth Decreases Housing Affordability
Wendell Cox had an interesting article this week on his new findings on land-use regulation and housing prices. Long a critic of smart-growth…
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A Bizarre Defense of High-Speed Rail
Perhaps “bizarre” is not the appropriate word, as Matthew Yglesias is employed by the Obama administration’s barely unofficial think tank/PR shop Center for American…
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Assaulting Campaign Materials: An American Political Tradition
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Angela Logomasini On The Risk of BPA
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Obama Pumps More Money into “High-Speed Rail” Boondoggles
The Department of Transportation announced today that another $2.4 billion is being doled out to high-speed rail projects around the country. This is on…