Today we welcome a visit from the Ghost of Government Future, and with just four days before the Silver Spring Zombie Walk (@sszombiewalk), it’s just in time. I ended last week talking about a project that didn’t quite go according to plan. As we peer into the future let’s look at one of the potentially most influential projects of that future and how we can apply lessons of the past to better its outcome. For the sake of discussion, however you think the process is going, let’s just say that the Purple Line is still in the planning phase.
“Politics In Purple Prose ”
The fact is the Purple Line is a project that will have at least some affect on your life. Will it give you a better way to travel between Bethesda, Lyttonsville, Silver Spring, College Park, and New Carrollton? Are you a regular user of the Georgetown Branch Trail? Do you live near, or even on, the land needed to build the line? I’ll get a little personal here and tell you my answer to all three questions, yes, yes, and yes.
The Purple Line plan claims a number of wide ranging benefits. It’s been said that it will take thousands of cars off the road. Provide a quicker public transit option for southern Montgomery County (or as I call it SoMoCo). Other benefits include creating jobs and a reducing effects on the environment. Above all, one thing this project will assuredly cause is the public to have questions.I have one of my own:
How do you see the Purple Line?
Is it the solution on how to get from Bethesda to Silver Spring in just 10-15 minutes? (Versus over half an hour by bus, or well over an hour on the Red Line.)
Or…
Do you see it as just something that will harm the running and biking trails around the area?
The real important question is do you see the Purple Line as a reason to vote on November 4th? I began this article reminding you of a government project that didn’t go according to plan. Starting in just two days, when early voting starts in Maryland, all of us have the chance to shape this plan.
Let me finish today’s piece with a quote from my favorite President, Jed Bartlett. (I don’t care if he’s fictional.)
He said, “It’s not up to us to decide what the voters get to use in evaluating us.”
When it comes to whom you vote for, that’s completely up to you. That’s the true power you have as a voter. Don’t give up that power. Go vote!
Tomorrow, I make history… Ok, I won’t make history, but I’ll tell you how your fellow voters made history. Prepare yourselves. The only likely thing tomorrow that won’t shock you is if you see another quote from The West Wing.
Significant Thought the complete series:
Significant Thought – Part 1
Significant Thought – Part 2
Significant Thought – Part 3
Significant Thought – Part 4
Significant Thought – Part 5
Significant Thought – Part 6
Significant Thought – Part 7
Significant Thought – Part 8
