High-Speed Rails All Around

High-speed rails in Europe and China have brought convenience, "green" traveling, and a better economy to the people of those areas. President Obama, recognizing these benefits, recently pledged $8 billion taxpayer money to fund America's first high-speed rail. It is odd that the U.S., one of the leading superpowers of the world, is so late in building a high-speed rail. This is most likely because Americans don't need a high-speed rail since so many of them own cars or travel by subway or train. If that is the case, this new high-speed rail could soon become a poorly maintained burden on the U.S. economy. However, Obama obviously recognizes these possible setbacks and to him, practicality may not be his foremost goal. Aside from being fast and convenient, high-speed rails are a show of social development and technological advancement. Recently, when Obama was visiting China, he went sightseeing at China's own high-speed rail. If fact, China has many more of these transportation systems in the planning. One ambitious plan is to build a "grid" of 8 interlocked high-speed rails, 4 traveling east-west and 4 traveling north-south. When Obama saw Europe and China's railways, and heard of their grand plans for the future, perhaps he thought it was time for the U.S. to have its own high-speed rail