2 mo. ago • 69%

The state of the rail system the most reliable measure of how civilized a country really is

16 comments

Good thing the USA has one of the best rail systems in the world. Instead of passengers, it hauls all the crap you order off of Amazon

12
That must be why mobile and discriminating populations choose to move to China.

10
- People aren't moving to a country that's difficult to move to. Amazing argument you've mustered there.
  
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So, as suspected, the US is one shorted switch away from barbarism

9
That seems like a rather arbitrary measure. I could just as easily state “The state of the cereal aisle is the most reliable measure…”

9
- The state of the rail system is a good proxy because it's a huge infrastructure project that doesn't generate any immediate profit. These types of projects are done primarily to provide social value, thus it's an indication of a society that is willing to invest into improving the quality of life for the majority.
  
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Through a postcolonialist lens this is pretty clever. Use of civilized as a term to excuse the racist and expansionist actions of one’s own country, expansion which happens to have coincided with railways being central to industrial power. Now the colonized are civilized, are we the barbarians?

Unironically thinking like that is the real ape-brained behavior.

8
Riding a fast train in China was one of my worst Chinese experiences.

I can't claim to have ridden anything in the US though..

5
- Care to explain?
  
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  I've never been to the US.
  
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The state of the rail system is a relatively reliable measure of how densely populated a country is.

4
- This just seems like hand-wringing for the pitiful state of the rail system in the USA. A country can have many dense population centres separated by large distances, making HSR viable and worthwhile, but still have low population density overall - just like the USA. The only real obstacle is political will/public support.
  
  Western China has around half the population density of the USA but is already served by a 1,900km HSR line.
  
  11
Oh, Canada!

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- Best we can do is a broken airline.
  
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- Canada already loves Nazis and hates immigrants. Don't give them any ideas about trains.
  
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