China may build an undersea train to America

[jimmy olsen]

I'll believe it when I see it!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/05/09/china-may-build-an-undersea-train-to-america/?tid=pm_pop

China may build an undersea train to America

    By Ishaan Tharoor   
    May 9 at 8:01 pm

China is planning to build a train line that would, in theory, connect Beijing to the United States. According to a report in the Beijing Times, citing an expert at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Chinese officials are considering a route that would start in the country's northeast, thread through eastern Siberia and cross the Bering Strait via a 125-mile long underwater tunnel into Alaska.

"Right now we're already in discussions. Russia has already been thinking about this for many years," says Wang Mengshu, the engineer cited in the article. The proposed "China-Russia-Canada-America" line would be some 8,000 miles long, 1,800 miles longer than the Trans-Siberian railroad. The tunnel that the Chinese would help bore beneath the icy seas would be four times the length of what traverses the English Channel.

That's reason enough to be skeptical of the project, of which there are few details beyond what was attributed to the one official cited by the state-run Beijing Times. Meanwhile, a report in the state-run China Daily insists the country does have the technology and means to complete a construction project of this scale, including another tunnel that would link the Chinese province of Fujian with nearby Taiwan.

In the past half decade or so, China has embarked on an astonishing rail construction spree, laying down tens of thousands of miles tracks and launching myriad high-speed lines. It has signaled its intent to build a "New Silk Road" -- a heavy-duty freight network through Central Asia that would connect with Europe via rail rather than the old caravans that once bridged West and East. A map that appeared on Xinhua's news site outlines the route below, alongside a parallel vision for a "maritime Silk Road."

While some of its neighbors watch China's rise warily, the main plank of Beijing's soft power pitch has always been its stated desire to improve economic ties and trade with virtually everyone. "China's wisdom for building an open world economy and open international relations is being drawn on more and more each day," trumpets the Xinhua report that accompanies the map above, according to the Diplomat.

To that end, Beijing has assiduously resurrected the narrative of the ancient Silk Road as well as given prime billing to the tales of China's famed Ming dynasty treasure fleets, which sailed all across the Indian Ocean. Seen in such grand historic perspective, a tunnel to Alaska doesn't seem too far-fetched.

[Monoriu]

That's just silly. 

[grumbler]

Seen in such grand historic perspective, a tunnel to Alaska doesn't seem too far-fetched.

That is just stupid.  Neither the Silk Road nor the Ming fleets required a technological leap or the commitment of such vast resources as to strain the home economy.  Timmay fucks up once again.

[mongers]

I'll believe it when I see it!
...

It'll happen before HS2 gets built.  (nimby)

[Josquius]

It's perfectly possible engineering wise but has very little economic case at all.
Particularly annoying are those people who are fond of a Bering crossing as they think it would make it easier for them to travel to Asia

[Razgovory]

A tunnel from nowhere to nowhere.  I may be wrong here, but I was under the impression that the English Channel Tunnel has been an economic failure.

[jimmy olsen]

Seen in such grand historic perspective, a tunnel to Alaska doesn't seem too far-fetched.

That is just stupid.  Neither the Silk Road nor the Ming fleets required a technological leap or the commitment of such vast resources as to strain the home economy.  Timmay fucks up once again.

Did I somehow imply that I thought this was possible? 

[DGuller]

What economic problem is being solved with this?

[Duque de Bragança]

A tunnel from nowhere to nowhere.  I may be wrong here, but I was under the impression that the English Channel Tunnel has been an economic failure.

In the beginning yes, since Maggie would not allow any public monies to fund it so they had to rely too much on banks and stock markets. Not anymore, following restructuring with small shareholders getting their savings wiped out.
Some over optimistic forecasting and rising security issues did not help as well.

[The Brain]

What economic problem is being solved with this?

Too many notes.

[grumbler]

Did I somehow imply that I thought this was possible? 

You started the thread.

Not even you are silly enough to start a new thread every time someone mentions something that is impossible.

Why not start a TIMMAY'S SILLY MEGATHREAD and post all of your thread ideas of this kind there?

[Grey Fox]

Did I somehow imply that I thought this was possible? 

You started the thread.

Not even you are silly enough to start a new thread every time someone mentions something that is impossible.

Why not start a TIMMAY'S SILLY MEGATHREAD and post all of your thread ideas of this kind there?

No, making fun of the Chinese is one of the cornerstone of Languish membership down.

[grumbler]

No, making fun of the Chinese is one of the cornerstone of Languish membership down.

  This isn't making fun of the Chinese.  There isn't anything to this story; it is a report that an engineer in some institute says that some un-named officials may or may not be thinking about a project that may or may not involve a rail link to the US.

I don't believe that even you think this is enough to bash the Chinese on.  Let's stick to what they are actually doing (like deliberately colliding with ships from other countries, or invading US territory, or the like).  No need to make stuff up.

[Ed Anger]

GRUMBLER MEGATHREAD

[derspiess]

  Old idea.