Letters 12/29/05

Dec. 28, 2005

Trains: a better way to go
Jack Bileaux‚s article/letter “Do the Locomotion“ (12/8) struck a chord.
Although I‚m not sure that rail service to local town stops on long distance train travel is
practical, I am all in favor of high-speed long distance train travel. I spend time in Europe where
high-speed train travel is not only much cheaper than either auto or plane travel, it is in most
cases faster. As an example, I took a high-speed train from Paris to Brittany and by the time we
were leaving the Paris city limits we were traveling at over 100 miles an hour with little or no
sound. Because the rails are welded end to end all you can hear is the swoosh of the air as the
train moves along.
The time spent in travel was much less than it would have taken to drive or take a plane
considering that I traveled from city center to city center.
I travel to Chicago often where I lived for over 40 years. My drive time from home is a little
under seven hours. If I fly, I have to drive to Traverse City (two hours), be in the airport at least
an half hour before departure, spend an hour in the air before landing at O‚Hara; and then take
the El (elevated train) or a taxi to the Loop... another 35 minutes. Actually, the El is faster and
one heck of a lot cheaper.
A European type high-speed train leaving Traverse City would be in the Loop in four hours even
with stops in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. Even if you don‚t consider the time saved over
driving or flying, it would be much cheaper and more relaxing.
Our national government has cut back funding of passenger train travel while
continuing to pour money into highways and airports. Because the rail right-of-ways are
already there, it would cost much less to
improve the tracks to provide high-speed
rail travel.
Should the government fund these improvements? Yes, because it‚s the government that
should be providing the most basic and necessary services to the citizens.
Regarding „light rail‰ service within Northern Michigan, I‚m not sure the area is ready for a
service like the El in Chicago or the Metra rail service in Chicago‚s surrounding areas. Will it be a
viable concept in the future as the population grows? Yes, so long-term planning should be
started now.
When I grew up in Traverse City it was a small town with two industries. Today it is one of the
leading growth areas in the nation and like it or not, that growth will continue. The city and its
citizens must make the right choices so Traverse City does not become another Detroit. This
can be done while preserving the natural beauty of the area but only if the people of the area do
some long term thinking and planning.

Micheal Cromley ? Afton

Bring back our trains
I saw Jack Bileaux‘s article on railroads relating to Northern Michigan (Express 12/8). It is a
favorite cause of mine. I have watched the discontinuance of rail service in this area and it
seems that those who care are not in the majority.
When they pulled the tracks from Charlevoix and tore the railroad bridge down, it was the end
of any transportation ideas that made sense in the Petoskey area.
My late friend, John McGoff, who ran excursions from Charlevoix to Petoskey using old
equipment, had great expectations of reinstating rail service to Chicago, such as the Northern
Arrow, which ran on the Pennsylvania Railroad until the 1950s. But I am sure that the majority
of people don‘t care about this transportation.
A large line was the Pacific Electric. It ran for many years but they sold the cars to Argentina
many years ago and they ran for 30 to 40 years there. Well, it‘s the old story. The big factor
today is that there is no money for railroads. This is the old story.
You are truly correct on the need for rail service in the north country. Driving to Traverse City
from other areas can get almost impossible at peak times of the year. In fact, winter driving is
keeping many people from shopping there. It would be cheaper in the long run to do some
serious thinking about railroads. Buses help a little, but are not the answer.
Is there a committee thinking about the future of railroads in our region? I don‘t think so. So
my friend, the situation for improvements looks bleak until someone really gets serious. Until
some of the planners and real estate people here get off their duffs. There‘s lots of talk, but no
action.

Jim Annis ? Charlevoix
(Jim Annis is a renowned painter of nostalgic scenes of bygone railways and Chicago landmarks.
His work on the interuban rail era and the “Time of the Trolley“ is published by Middleton
Books.)

Wolfman overkill
I‘m writing in response to the article about what the prosecutor stated (“Wolf‘s Last Stand,“ 12/
22).
I think it‚s a bunch of bull. I feel the police were NOT faced with a deadly force. Had the animal
control officer handled it differently, John Sutherland would be alive today.
Since when does it take 30 plus officers PLUS a SWAT team just to talk with a person who owns
animals? To me, anyone being woke out of a sound sleep with a gun in their face would most
likely respond the same way. John apologized for what he done, but I guess that wasn‘t enough.
Why is it that John has had his wolves for 10 years and had no problems discussing issues with
other animal control personnel, but all of a sudden it took all these law officers and SWAT team
to take him out? John was once a law officer himself, he knew the law and what they would
do.
In the Manistee News Advocate it stated that John had his gun in his back pocket the entire
time,which I tend to believe. And why was he shot with a bean bag gun? Like the one friend of
John‚s said, it was a whitewash of what exactly happened.
Strangers are going to believe the law and the prosecutor, but people that knew John was
going to think differently. The bad part of all this is that John had to leave his beloved wolves
and family behind, but the good part is that NO ONE will ever hurt him again.
He‚s in a better place now and can look down and see his wolves and family and watch over all
of them in peace.

Roberta J. Gabriel ? Brethren
Three cheers for people
Hooray for the people of TC for voting to “free the animals“!
In reality, a zoo only exists for two purposes. 1., to try to entertain people. 2., to make money.
If our reasons were for imprisoning these animals for conservation, then we need to begin by
preserving the animals‘ natural habitat so that they can thrive in their natural environment.
Educationally, a zoo only teaches disregard for the nature of other living beings. And yes, our
children can learn about these incredible animals through films and books the same way they
learn about non-native people. We don‘t take people and put them on display in cages.

Mary Eschbach ? Cedar

Trains: a better way to go
Jack Bileaux‚s article/letter “Do the Locomotion“ (12/8) struck a chord.
Although I‚m not sure that rail service to local town stops on long distance train travel is
practical, I am all in favor of high-speed long distance train travel. I spend time in Europe where
high-speed train travel is not only much cheaper than either auto or plane travel, it is in most
cases faster. As an example, I took a high-speed train from Paris to Brittany and by the time we
were leaving the Paris city limits we were traveling at over 100 miles an hour with little or no
sound. Because the rails are welded end to end all you can hear is the swoosh of the air as the
train moves along.
The time spent in travel was much less than it would have taken to drive or take a plane
considering that I traveled from city center to city center.
I travel to Chicago often where I lived for over 40 years. My drive time from home is a little
under seven hours. If I fly, I have to drive to Traverse City (two hours), be in the airport at least
an half hour before departure, spend an hour in the air before landing at O‚Hara; and then take
the El (elevated train) or a taxi to the Loop... another 35 minutes. Actually, the El is faster and
one heck of a lot cheaper.
A European type high-speed train leaving Traverse City would be in the Loop in four hours even
with stops in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. Even if you don‚t consider the time saved over
driving or flying, it would be much cheaper and more relaxing.
Our national government has cut back funding of passenger train travel while
continuing to pour money into highways and airports. Because the rail right-of-ways are
already there, it would cost much less to
improve the tracks to provide high-speed
rail travel.
Should the government fund these improvements? Yes, because it‚s the government that
should be providing the most basic and necessary services to the citizens.
Regarding „light rail‰ service within Northern Michigan, I‚m not sure the area is ready for a
service like the El in Chicago or the Metra rail service in Chicago‚s surrounding areas. Will it be a
viable concept in the future as the population grows? Yes, so long-term planning should be
started now.
When I grew up in Traverse City it was a small town with two industries. Today it is one of the
leading growth areas in the nation and like it or not, that growth will continue. The city and its
citizens must make the right choices so Traverse City does not become another Detroit. This
can be done while preserving the natural beauty of the area but only if the people of the area do
some long term thinking and planning.

Micheal Cromley ? Afton

Bring back our trains
I saw Jack Bileaux‘s article on railroads relating to Northern Michigan (Express 12/8). It is a
favorite cause of mine. I have watched the discontinuance of rail service in this area and it
seems that those who care are not in the majority.
When they pulled the tracks from Charlevoix and tore the railroad bridge down, it was the end
of any transportation ideas that made sense in the Petoskey area.
My late friend, John McGoff, who ran excursions from Charlevoix to Petoskey using old
equipment, had great expectations of reinstating rail service to Chicago, such as the Northern
Arrow, which ran on the Pennsylvania Railroad until the 1950s. But I am sure that the majority
of people don‘t care about this transportation.
A large line was the Pacific Electric. It ran for many years but they sold the cars to Argentina
many years ago and they ran for 30 to 40 years there. Well, it‘s the old story. The big factor
today is that there is no money for railroads. This is the old story.
You are truly correct on the need for rail service in the north country. Driving to Traverse City
from other areas can get almost impossible at peak times of the year. In fact, winter driving is
keeping many people from shopping there. It would be cheaper in the long run to do some
serious thinking about railroads. Buses help a little, but are not the answer.
Is there a committee thinking about the future of railroads in our region? I don‘t think so. So
my friend, the situation for improvements looks bleak until someone really gets serious. Until
some of the planners and real estate people here get off their duffs. There‘s lots of talk, but no
action.

Jim Annis ? Charlevoix
(Jim Annis is a renowned painter of nostalgic scenes of bygone railways and Chicago landmarks.
His work on the interuban rail era and the “Time of the Trolley“ is published by Middleton
Books.)

Wolfman overkill
I‘m writing in response to the article about what the prosecutor stated (“Wolf‘s Last Stand,“ 12/
22).
I think it‚s a bunch of bull. I feel the police were NOT faced with a deadly force. Had the animal
control officer handled it differently, John Sutherland would be alive today.
Since when does it take 30 plus officers PLUS a SWAT team just to talk with a person who owns
animals? To me, anyone being woke out of a sound sleep with a gun in their face would most
likely respond the same way. John apologized for what he done, but I guess that wasn‘t enough.
Why is it that John has had his wolves for 10 years and had no problems discussing issues with
other animal control personnel, but all of a sudden it took all these law officers and SWAT team
to take him out? John was once a law officer himself, he knew the law and what they would
do.
In the Manistee News Advocate it stated that John had his gun in his back pocket the entire
time,which I tend to believe. And why was he shot with a bean bag gun? Like the one friend of
John‚s said, it was a whitewash of what exactly happened.
Strangers are going to believe the law and the prosecutor, but people that knew John was
going to think differently. The bad part of all this is that John had to leave his beloved wolves
and family behind, but the good part is that NO ONE will ever hurt him again.
He‚s in a better place now and can look down and see his wolves and family and watch over all
of them in peace.

Roberta J. Gabriel ? Brethren
Three cheers for people
Hooray for the people of TC for voting to “free the animals“!
In reality, a zoo only exists for two purposes. 1., to try to entertain people. 2., to make money.
If our reasons were for imprisoning these animals for conservation, then we need to begin by
preserving the animals‘ natural habitat so that they can thrive in their natural environment.
Educationally, a zoo only teaches disregard for the nature of other living beings. And yes, our
children can learn about these incredible animals through films and books the same way they
learn about non-native people. We don‘t take people and put them on display in cages.

Mary Eschbach ? Cedar

Trains: a better way to go
Jack Bileaux‚s article/letter “Do the Locomotion“ (12/8) struck a chord.
Although I‚m not sure that rail service to local town stops on long distance train travel is
practical, I am all in favor of high-speed long distance train travel. I spend time in Europe where
high-speed train travel is not only much cheaper than either auto or plane travel, it is in most
cases faster. As an example, I took a high-speed train from Paris to Brittany and by the time we
were leaving the Paris city limits we were traveling at over 100 miles an hour with little or no
sound. Because the rails are welded end to end all you can hear is the swoosh of the air as the
train moves along.
The time spent in travel was much less than it would have taken to drive or take a plane
considering that I traveled from city center to city center.
I travel to Chicago often where I lived for over 40 years. My drive time from home is a little
under seven hours. If I fly, I have to drive to Traverse City (two hours), be in the airport at least
an half hour before departure, spend an hour in the air before landing at O‚Hara; and then take
the El (elevated train) or a taxi to the Loop... another 35 minutes. Actually, the El is faster and
one heck of a lot cheaper.
A European type high-speed train leaving Traverse City would be in the Loop in four hours even
with stops in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. Even if you don‚t consider the time saved over
driving or flying, it would be much cheaper and more relaxing.
Our national government has cut back funding of passenger train travel while
continuing to pour money into highways and airports. Because the rail right-of-ways are
already there, it would cost much less to
improve the tracks to provide high-speed
rail travel.
Should the government fund these improvements? Yes, because it‚s the government that
should be providing the most basic and necessary services to the citizens.
Regarding „light rail‰ service within Northern Michigan, I‚m not sure the area is ready for a
service like the El in Chicago or the Metra rail service in Chicago‚s surrounding areas. Will it be a
viable concept in the future as the population grows? Yes, so long-term planning should be
started now.
When I grew up in Traverse City it was a small town with two industries. Today it is one of the
leading growth areas in the nation and like it or not, that growth will continue. The city and its
citizens must make the right choices so Traverse City does not become another Detroit. This
can be done while preserving the natural beauty of the area but only if the people of the area do
some long term thinking and planning.

Micheal Cromley ? Afton

Bring back our trains
I saw Jack Bileaux‘s article on railroads relating to Northern Michigan (Express 12/8). It is a
favorite cause of mine. I have watched the discontinuance of rail service in this area and it
seems that those who care are not in the majority.
When they pulled the tracks from Charlevoix and tore the railroad bridge down, it was the end
of any transportation ideas that made sense in the Petoskey area.
My late friend, John McGoff, who ran excursions from Charlevoix to Petoskey using old
equipment, had great expectations of reinstating rail service to Chicago, such as the Northern
Arrow, which ran on the Pennsylvania Railroad until the 1950s. But I am sure that the majority
of people don‘t care about this transportation.
A large line was the Pacific Electric. It ran for many years but they sold the cars to Argentina
many years ago and they ran for 30 to 40 years there. Well, it‘s the old story. The big factor
today is that there is no money for railroads. This is the old story.
You are truly correct on the need for rail service in the north country. Driving to Traverse City
from other areas can get almost impossible at peak times of the year. In fact, winter driving is
keeping many people from shopping there. It would be cheaper in the long run to do some
serious thinking about railroads. Buses help a little, but are not the answer.
Is there a committee thinking about the future of railroads in our region? I don‘t think so. So
my friend, the situation for improvements looks bleak until someone really gets serious. Until
some of the planners and real estate people here get off their duffs. There‘s lots of talk, but no
action.

Jim Annis ? Charlevoix
(Jim Annis is a renowned painter of nostalgic scenes of bygone railways and Chicago landmarks.
His work on the interuban rail era and the “Time of the Trolley“ is published by Middleton
Books.)

Wolfman overkill
I‘m writing in response to the article about what the prosecutor stated (“Wolf‘s Last Stand,“ 12/
22).
I think it‚s a bunch of bull. I feel the police were NOT faced with a deadly force. Had the animal
control officer handled it differently, John Sutherland would be alive today.
Since when does it take 30 plus officers PLUS a SWAT team just to talk with a person who owns
animals? To me, anyone being woke out of a sound sleep with a gun in their face would most
likely respond the same way. John apologized for what he done, but I guess that wasn‘t enough.
Why is it that John has had his wolves for 10 years and had no problems discussing issues with
other animal control personnel, but all of a sudden it took all these law officers and SWAT team
to take him out? John was once a law officer himself, he knew the law and what they would
do.
In the Manistee News Advocate it stated that John had his gun in his back pocket the entire
time,which I tend to believe. And why was he shot with a bean bag gun? Like the one friend of
John‚s said, it was a whitewash of what exactly happened.
Strangers are going to believe the law and the prosecutor, but people that knew John was
going to think differently. The bad part of all this is that John had to leave his beloved wolves
and family behind, but the good part is that NO ONE will ever hurt him again.
He‚s in a better place now and can look down and see his wolves and family and watch over all
of them in peace.

Roberta J. Gabriel ? Brethren
Three cheers for people
Hooray for the people of TC for voting to “free the animals“!
In reality, a zoo only exists for two purposes. 1., to try to entertain people. 2., to make money.
If our reasons were for imprisoning these animals for conservation, then we need to begin by
preserving the animals‘ natural habitat so that they can thrive in their natural environment.
Educationally, a zoo only teaches disregard for the nature of other living beings. And yes, our
children can learn about these incredible animals through films and books the same way they
learn about non-native people. We don‘t take people and put them on display in cages.

Mary Eschbach ? Cedar

Trains: a better way to go
Jack Bileaux‚s article/letter “Do the Locomotion“ (12/8) struck a chord.
Although I‚m not sure that rail service to local town stops on long distance train travel is
practical, I am all in favor of high-speed long distance train travel. I spend time in Europe where
high-speed train travel is not only much cheaper than either auto or plane travel, it is in most
cases faster. As an example, I took a high-speed train from Paris to Brittany and by the time we
were leaving the Paris city limits we were traveling at over 100 miles an hour with little or no
sound. Because the rails are welded end to end all you can hear is the swoosh of the air as the
train moves along.
The time spent in travel was much less than it would have taken to drive or take a plane
considering that I traveled from city center to city center.
I travel to Chicago often where I lived for over 40 years. My drive time from home is a little
under seven hours. If I fly, I have to drive to Traverse City (two hours), be in the airport at least
an half hour before departure, spend an hour in the air before landing at O‚Hara; and then take
the El (elevated train) or a taxi to the Loop... another 35 minutes. Actually, the El is faster and
one heck of a lot cheaper.
A European type high-speed train leaving Traverse City would be in the Loop in four hours even
with stops in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. Even if you don‚t consider the time saved over
driving or flying, it would be much cheaper and more relaxing.
Our national government has cut back funding of passenger train travel while
continuing to pour money into highways and airports. Because the rail right-of-ways are
already there, it would cost much less to
improve the tracks to provide high-speed
rail travel.
Should the government fund these improvements? Yes, because it‚s the government that
should be providing the most basic and necessary services to the citizens.
Regarding „light rail‰ service within Northern Michigan, I‚m not sure the area is ready for a
service like the El in Chicago or the Metra rail service in Chicago‚s surrounding areas. Will it be a
viable concept in the future as the population grows? Yes, so long-term planning should be
started now.
When I grew up in Traverse City it was a small town with two industries. Today it is one of the
leading growth areas in the nation and like it or not, that growth will continue. The city and its
citizens must make the right choices so Traverse City does not become another Detroit. This
can be done while preserving the natural beauty of the area but only if the people of the area do
some long term thinking and planning.

Micheal Cromley ? Afton

Bring back our trains
I saw Jack Bileaux‘s article on railroads relating to Northern Michigan (Express 12/8). It is a
favorite cause of mine. I have watched the discontinuance of rail service in this area and it
seems that those who care are not in the majority.
When they pulled the tracks from Charlevoix and tore the railroad bridge down, it was the end
of any transportation ideas that made sense in the Petoskey area.
My late friend, John McGoff, who ran excursions from Charlevoix to Petoskey using old
equipment, had great expectations of reinstating rail service to Chicago, such as the Northern
Arrow, which ran on the Pennsylvania Railroad until the 1950s. But I am sure that the majority
of people don‘t care about this transportation.
A large line was the Pacific Electric. It ran for many years but they sold the cars to Argentina
many years ago and they ran for 30 to 40 years there. Well, it‘s the old story. The big factor
today is that there is no money for railroads. This is the old story.
You are truly correct on the need for rail service in the north country. Driving to Traverse City
from other areas can get almost impossible at peak times of the year. In fact, winter driving is
keeping many people from shopping there. It would be cheaper in the long run to do some
serious thinking about railroads. Buses help a little, but are not the answer.
Is there a committee thinking about the future of railroads in our region? I don‘t think so. So
my friend, the situation for improvements looks bleak until someone really gets serious. Until
some of the planners and real estate people here get off their duffs. There‘s lots of talk, but no
action.

Jim Annis ? Charlevoix
(Jim Annis is a renowned painter of nostalgic scenes of bygone railways and Chicago landmarks.
His work on the interuban rail era and the “Time of the Trolley“ is published by Middleton
Books.)

Wolfman overkill
I‘m writing in response to the article about what the prosecutor stated (“Wolf‘s Last Stand,“ 12/
22).
I think it‚s a bunch of bull. I feel the police were NOT faced with a deadly force. Had the animal
control officer handled it differently, John Sutherland would be alive today.
Since when does it take 30 plus officers PLUS a SWAT team just to talk with a person who owns
animals? To me, anyone being woke out of a sound sleep with a gun in their face would most
likely respond the same way. John apologized for what he done, but I guess that wasn‘t enough.
Why is it that John has had his wolves for 10 years and had no problems discussing issues with
other animal control personnel, but all of a sudden it took all these law officers and SWAT team
to take him out? John was once a law officer himself, he knew the law and what they would
do.
In the Manistee News Advocate it stated that John had his gun in his back pocket the entire
time,which I tend to believe. And why was he shot with a bean bag gun? Like the one friend of
John‚s said, it was a whitewash of what exactly happened.
Strangers are going to believe the law and the prosecutor, but people that knew John was
going to think differently. The bad part of all this is that John had to leave his beloved wolves
and family behind, but the good part is that NO ONE will ever hurt him again.
He‚s in a better place now and can look down and see his wolves and family and watch over all
of them in peace.

Roberta J. Gabriel ? Brethren
Three cheers for people
Hooray for the people of TC for voting to “free the animals“!
In reality, a zoo only exists for two purposes. 1., to try to entertain people. 2., to make money.
If our reasons were for imprisoning these animals for conservation, then we need to begin by
preserving the animals‘ natural habitat so that they can thrive in their natural environment.
Educationally, a zoo only teaches disregard for the nature of other living beings. And yes, our
children can learn about these incredible animals through films and books the same way they
learn about non-native people. We don‘t take people and put them on display in cages.

Mary Eschbach ? Cedar

Alert Cab program offers a safe way home
If you‘re feeling too tipsy to drive over the holidays and you happen to live in Grand Traverse
County or Cadillac, then the annual Alert Cab program is your safe way home.
Ryan Ribel of H. Cox and Son., Inc., says the beverage distribution company has been
sponsoring the safe driving program since 1986, providing more than 4,000 rides over the past
19 years.
“Drunk driving has really decreased in Michigan through the years and we‘re really trying to
help make the roads safer,“ Ribel says.
Of note, the number of people killed in drunk driving crashes has declined 28% since 1990 and
37% since 1982, going from 18,444 in 1982 to 11,529 in 2000.
Under the Alert Cab program, participating restaurateurs and bartenders in the Grand Traverse
and Cadillac areas are provided with a confidential telephone number, which can be used to call
for a ride to take a patron home at no charge.
Alert Cab is in operation December 21-31 between the hours of 6 p.m. and 2 a.m. (no service
is offered Christmas Day). On New Years Eve the program will run until 4 a.m.