Not to get political, but I'm pretty sure Ron Paul is against EAS routes as a waste of government money.

Now, John Murtha and friends (JST and AOO) is a different story.

 

Have you ever actually lived in a poverty-stricken town with EAS service and realize how important it is to that town to be connected to the the national air transport system?

Have you ever flown tragically sick kids out of their small isolated towns to medical care in the "big city" that they can't reach by car for a price they can afford?

You probably haven't flown local entrepreneurs who rely on EAS to meet potential investors, business partners, and clients further afield, either.

This irks me to no end. When are we as Americans going to stop thinking about how to screw the other American and realize we are only shooting each other in the back? We sit isolated on our big continent... guess what- it's a big, populated world. Americans helping Americans will make this country stronger. Where is our loyalty to each other, as Americans?


And learn some math. If you think this is an "insane" waste of money you have little perspective.

 

Lots of good points made about this. However, I would not worry too much about EAS going away. It would be political suicide to vote in favor of something that would cost jobs at airlines and affect people in the small towns that get these representatives and senators elected in the first place.

 

This still has a chance of happening when this bill gets to conference.

Look, our country doesn't have money! Do people not get this? What do you do when you don't have money to pay the bills? Drive less, cut some of the extra cell phone minutes, get rid of the premium channel from your cable, switch insurance companies, not heat/cool your place as much, use coupons to buy food, not eat out as much, etc? None of these things alone which only save a few bucks makes a difference. But when you combine ALL of them, it does make a difference. That is what this EAS is about.

Also, Article 1 Section 8 does not say ANYTHING about EAS. Don't get me wrong, I want congress to stop subsiding farms and EVERYTHING else for that is not called for in the constitution.

There are many good charitable organizations that take care of people in need like Angel flight. The constitution was not meant to provide education and healthcare for everyone, it was meant for people to have personal responsibility to take care of themselves with minimal intervention from government. And if you need help, your fellow neighbor is there to help.

 

The fact that these politicians are even wasting time on this debate is preposterous. Maybe they should cut it, I don't know, but what is this going to do to cut the deficit? Nothing. It is just political grandstanding. Until there is real talk about SS, military and Medicare spending there will be no deficit reduction. Government is a joke in this country right now - on both sides.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boondoggle_(project)

sorry boys. this is another HUGE waste of YOUR dollars. This isnt about putting pilots out of work or anything like that. its simply a waste of tax dollars and turns out...those are short as it is right now.

 

My tax dollars go to support a Beech 1900 flying one or two people out of a tiny town that people can either drive to a larger airport from or choose to move away from if it's that inconvenient for them. This does effects me.

I am quite aware of how many could lose their jobs. Working at Lakes I had this same discussion with many of our own passengers! A majority of them agreed it was a huge waste of money once they found out all the flying was subsidized. I told them I wished the program was gone even though it would put me out of a job. My principles don't change just because I'm benefiting from something that goes against them.

I think UA and F9 will do just fine without the handful of pax Lakes brings to DEN. You are arguing that the government should subsidize business that shouldn't be there in the first place because it's not sustainable. That's just not the way I lean politically. As for EAS being important to Montana, that's an interesting opinion. My question is how important is OLF or GGW or HVR to the rest of the country? Doesn't amtrak go to a majority of those EAS towns as well? Isn't Amtrak also government subsidized? How many government subsidized travel services do these people need?

Once again, the point is being missed here. I don't hate people in small towns or wish ill-will on them, I just think government subsidy for air service to these small towns is an inappropriate waste of tax dollars. The interstate commerce clause in the constitution is the most abused clause in there and I'm sure that's where the government is magically finding the authority to do this but it's rubbish.

As for sick people, they can find all sorts of ways to get out of town to get medical help. In fact, I think there are businesses out there that specialize in exactly that kind of flying. Entrepreneurs that rely on EAS seem to be few and far between and their travel plans really aren't my concern as a tax payer. In fact, if they're so entrepreneurial, they will probably move out of that small town when they realize it's not a great place to do business from.

You think I'm out to screw Americans and not help them and I think we just have different views on how to help them. I'm fully aware of how big the world is and how isolated this country has become. You guys can all attack me all you want but it makes you look small and unable to think critically and discuss issues.

 

How many of these EAS routes are an hours drive or less from a city with air service that offers connections to multiple hubs?

I know Visalia (VIS) in California is less then an hour from Fresno and a little over an hour to Bakersfield both of these cities have multiple regional flights a day. Why is this necessary?

I understand Elko or Wyoming but 1 hours car drive?

 

+1!!!!

 

At least some of these routes could be cut. A few years ago there was an EAS route into Brookings, SD which is about a 35 minute drive to Sioux Falls. Wisely, it was eliminated. They'll propose a total elimination and hopefully meet in the middle and keep service to the most remote places.