From day to day...

I guess there is a lot going on but then again, there may not be. This crazy world we live in just seems to be getting crazier all the time and no one seems to know how to fix the problems we have. Now our illustrious governator, wants to send some prison inmates out of state because there is not room for them here. Well, it may relieve overcrowding here but it certainly does not address the issue of why people end up in prison in the first place. The reasons are many of course and will not be the subject of this blog as it would go on forever if I undertook that task but the out of sight - out of mind approach does not work and this country must look at why we have such a huge prison population compared to other countries.

And once again we have an article in the Chronicle about the fact that BART ridership to the airport has not lived up to expectations. Sorry guys but I could have told you ahead of time that it wouldn't. I have experience with other transit systems to airports and even in Paris where the trains go to many places and are very convenient, most people deplaning at Charles de Gaule Airport still opt for taxis. Door-to-door transportation either via taxi or shuttle van was, is, and always will be the preferred method of transportation especialy when lugging around one or more large suitcases. I have witnessed this in Paris, Atlanta, Boston, New York, and San Francisco. The problem in Paris is just the opposite of here in San Francisco however. The BART line to the airport has few riders so even one large suitcase (if not taken during rush hour) is not a problem but the RER "B" line in Paris is so heavily used at all times that once your train is two or three stops away from the aiport, anything bigger than a lap top computer becomes a problem. (BART should be so lucky.) I really would like to know what they based their ridership projections on. It certainly could not have been based on anything in the real world. I am glad they built it but the alternate plan of the Sky Train extending to and from the Milbrae BART station would have been a preferred and less costly way of doing things. Now we have BART officials trying to blame lack of riders on the dot-com bust (I thought we were out of the woods there.), 9/11 (Can we still blame that for anything?) and SARS (Oh really - how many thousands died here from that?). Anyway, back to the Sky Train for a moment. It goes to all terminals not just the international terminal which is the only one BART goes to so if a passenger is going to have to transfer to another mode of transport, what would have been wrong with doing it at Milbrae? This was certainly not a case of "If you build it, they will come."

Now I see that Senator Hilary Clinton has a problem. How to handle the same-sex marriage issue as she contemplates running for either re-election or running for president. That could very well be the most difficult issue of the campaign even in liberal New York. Personally I have a problem with the term marriage as it opens up a whole hornets nest of legal issues especially if the partners "divorce". Why not stick with the term union and find other ways to deal with community property, health care, and adoption issues?

And here in liberal San Francisco the wackos at City Hall have taken the smoking issue out onto the streets by passing a law forbiding smoking around bus stops. Oh, come on now, how the hell are you supposed to inforce that one? For example, as I was walking down Van Ness Avenue the other day and passed a bus stop at Geary, one or more people were smoking. Yes, I smelled the smoke as I would from any other smoker walking down the street but what was I to do? Quickly get on my cell phone and report a crime being committed at the bus stop?????? Come on folks, get real!

Oh enough already. Let me go somewhere else where people seem to have their heads screwed on correctly, but where? That is the $64,000 Question!