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http://shanghaiist.com/2014/05/08/china ... l_from.php

the global community gets just a bit closer......

by the way, I put this in E and C because there ought to be some discussion around globalization, immigration/customs/entry of non-citizens, forward planning one's economy and other matters. Thus far, silence, but I have great faith in this group!

It sounds like a cool idea.

I'm not convinced that it will have *that* big of an effect on globalization. I guess that's based on the guess that it won't really revolutionize travel/shipping between the continents. I can see it sitting somewhere between air and boat in terms of both cost and transit time - so it's kind of "just another option," though I guess maybe it would open the doors for people that can't afford the plane ticket right now.

Now, if it manages to be equivalent cost or cheaper than boat travel/shipping, then it'll be a bigger deal.

Sounds like it'd be a really fun ride, if nothing else.

Yes, it will be a lot of fun when the train gets stuck in the snow, and you will have a good opportunity to photograph hungry bears at an air temperature of 70 degrees below zero Celsius

Yeah, and it still has to cross the Bering Strait and Alaska, which has some of the worst and coldest weather in the world outside Siberia. Me thinks they dream too big and haven't thought of our environmentalists throwing a fit over them raping a pristine Alaska ecosystem just to put in their train. Furthermore, I wouldn't want to ride in something built by the Chinese anyway. But you know, the Chinese are probably financing this thing off of U.S. debt.

I'd think the more immediate problem would be an undersea tunnel running right along the ring of fire, tunnels and earthquakes aren't exactly the best mix.