All the factors that made such a strong case for rail in 1968 are much weaker now. Jim Ellis, the architect of the dream, recalls how the crusade began and why Seattle seemed the perfect city for an extensive rail system.
The Oregonian [http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1197433531322420.xml&coll=7] is running a fascinating story about fallout from the feds' June raid of Portland's Fresh Del Monte Produce plant, which arrested 167 people in a sweep targeting illegal workers.
Opening day for the new South Lake Union Streetcar is not a happy moment for Reinhard Krischer, keeper of the old Seattle monorail flame. He's still hoping for an extension of the 1962 Alweg line and still lamenting the failure of the Green Line in 2005. "All the safe, clever, and progressive advant
Voters were resisting a plan that was Seattle-centric and premised on the expectation that most people would become affluent professionals working in dense urban settings. This skeptic of rail transit also suggests how to recraft the proposal.
Barack Obama [http://www.barackobama.com/] was in town last night. He did two gigs for the hip [http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/343185_obama12.html] at $100 and $250 a head, and one for the rich, in the Highlands [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&time=&date=&ttype=&q=the+highlands+
