4 ms·

I still see this in the last paragraph: > Unfortunately, though, the closest thing the U.S. has to a national rail provider like CN is the chronically under-fu

I still see this in the last paragraph: > Unfortunately, though, the closest thing the U.S. has to a national rail provider like CN is the chronically under-funded Amtrak I quoted "Canadian Amtrak" as an expression of my own making, not one from the article.

Ensorceled 6y ago
That's not how quotes work :-) The article is saying Amtrak, a half baked VIA, is the closest thing they, in Texas, have to CN. That's not saying CN is close to Amtrak. If my buddy has a Humvee and I say, "Unfortunately, the closest thing I have is a Schwinn", I'm not saying their Humvee is a bicycle.
- vinay427 6y ago
  > That's not how quotes work Quotes are commonly used to mark a specific novel phrase. I was not intending to imply that it was a phrase from the article. > The article is saying Amtrak, a half baked VIA, is the closest thing they, in Texas, have to CN. I disagree with the interpretation, and this claim is still wrong. First of all, the part I quoted makes a statement about the US, not just Texas. I realize that the previous sentence mentions Texas, but this sentence is clearly naming the country as a whole. Second, if the article is saying that, this claim would also be incorrect. There are actual rail providers that own significant amounts of railway in Texas, and Amtrak (like VIA Rail) is not one of them. Here's a decent map: https://www.intekfreight-logistics.com/intermodal-network-map https://www.intekfreight-logistics.com/intermodal-network-ma... > If my buddy has a Humvee and I say, "Unfortunately, the closest thing I have is a Schwinn", I'm not saying their Humvee is a bicycle. Yes. Unfortunately for the author, the US has multiple Humvee equivalents depending on the region, so saying that the "closest thing I have is a Schwinn" is just false when Union Pacific (among others) exists in Texas and is in the same market as Canadian National.
johnwalkr 6y ago
FWIW I understood and appreciated your highlight of this inaccurate sentence by reversing it into a short phrase.

Ensorceled 6y ago

That's not how quotes work :-) The article is saying Amtrak, a half baked VIA, is the closest thing they, in Texas, have to CN. That's not saying CN is close to Amtrak. If my buddy has a Humvee and I say, "Unfortunately, the closest thing I have is a Schwinn", I'm not saying their Humvee is a bicycle.

vinay427 6y ago
> That's not how quotes work Quotes are commonly used to mark a specific novel phrase. I was not intending to imply that it was a phrase from the article. > The article is saying Amtrak, a half baked VIA, is the closest thing they, in Texas, have to CN. I disagree with the interpretation, and this claim is still wrong. First of all, the part I quoted makes a statement about the US, not just Texas. I realize that the previous sentence mentions Texas, but this sentence is clearly naming the country as a whole. Second, if the article is saying that, this claim would also be incorrect. There are actual rail providers that own significant amounts of railway in Texas, and Amtrak (like VIA Rail) is not one of them. Here's a decent map: https://www.intekfreight-logistics.com/intermodal-network-map https://www.intekfreight-logistics.com/intermodal-network-ma... > If my buddy has a Humvee and I say, "Unfortunately, the closest thing I have is a Schwinn", I'm not saying their Humvee is a bicycle. Yes. Unfortunately for the author, the US has multiple Humvee equivalents depending on the region, so saying that the "closest thing I have is a Schwinn" is just false when Union Pacific (among others) exists in Texas and is in the same market as Canadian National.

johnwalkr 6y ago

FWIW I understood and appreciated your highlight of this inaccurate sentence by reversing it into a short phrase.