There are over 20 different High Speed Rail projects currently in successful use around the planet. Successful, because they deliver what they promised. Why couldn't we have hired one of the leaders of those projects? They might not speak English perfectly, but they speak HSR, with no conflict of interest. This hiring smells of corruption. Cities routinely hire successful school administrators, police chiefs, redevelopment coordinators and so on because they had a chance to prove that they could do the job. That's just what we need at California's HSR project. I understand that the Board might want someone who could get along with the contractors and the politicians, but let's face it, the latest poll shows the public is opposed to the project, and that's because they have no confidence that it will succeed, which is exactly why we need real experienced leadership - experienced with HSR, that is.

(I understand that many in the public have been manipulated with lies promoted by paid lackeys of the oil and transportation-beholden Right to be opposed to the project, but I wanted to focus on the legitimate concern that many have that the project will never finish and never stay on budget, for which bringing in a leader who had done it before would be a great solution.)

We need to kill high speed rail project, which numerous impartial observers like the state auditor, the LAO and UC Berkeley's ITS have faulted. At the very least it needs to go back to voters. The California High Speed Rail Authority is mismanaged and in bed with the consultants and unions.

Money wasted on high speed rail could be better spend on deficit reduction. We should be given another chance to vote on high speed rail because the project now under discussion is not the project voters approved in 2008. Since HSR is not on the ballot, I plan to send a message of Governor Moonbeam by voting "NO" on his tax increases.