And yet every successful high speed rail system out there has stops in small towns and cities, many of which are much smaller than Fresno or even Merced...like

And yet every successful high speed rail system out there has stops in small towns and cities, many of which are much smaller than Fresno or even Merced...like Verdun, Atami, or Montereau. They're successful because of these stops, not in spite of them. The market size for SF to LA and back is not large enough to justify rail with no stops. Its not even close, even assuming monopolistic market shares. And airlines have shown extreme willingness to compete with rail on price grounds, and they could take half that market easily even with trains going top speed. Sorry if that burns your dreams of fast rail to the ground, but it is objectively the most financially responsible way to build. It can actually pay for itself that way, whereas it would be America's biggest boondoggle if they took your advice.