[PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
John Swindler
j_swindler at hotmail.com
Mon Oct 18 10:41:53 EDT 2010
Hi Ed
It seems that railfans collect/treasure books - and that spills over into other subject areas. The homes that came to mind were yours, Fred's and John Baxters. My parents collected books too, but I always considered that an English sort of thing. There is a problem from making generalizations from limited samples.
Cheers
John
> From: trams2 at comcast.net
> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
> Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2010 18:38:43 -0400
>
> I have walls of bookcases...but only one shelf of railroad/trolley books.
> There are too many other things of interest! If I want trolley books I go to
> the other library that I manage...
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org
> [mailto:pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org] On Behalf Of John
> Swindler
> Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2010 12:34 PM
> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
>
>
>
> Try finding bookcases in many American homes today - (railfan homes
> excepted)(:>)
>
>
>
> > Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
> > From: fwschneider at comcast.net
> > Date: Sat, 16 Oct 2010 19:12:42 -0400
> > To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> >
> > 1. In the 1960s when I went through F&M, you simply flunked out if you
> didn't know how to write a paper.
> >
> > 2. Back in the 1970s my wife was teaching remedial English at Franklin
> and Marshall for students who didn't get it.
> >
> > 3. It's gotten worse today ... the schools have almost given up. Jim
> Henwood, who spent his life as a history professor at East Stroudsburg State
> University, admitted to me that he retired because the kids came there
> expecting that the school would give them a degree because daddy was paying
> for it. They didn't belive in the 1990s that they should actually have to
> work for it.
> >
> > 4. And this year East Stroudsburg is converting the library that they
> built years ago to dorm space because the kids don't read and the professors
> have given up trying to force them to read.
> >
> > 5. I had a similar experience when I toured my township high school a
> month ago. The current high school has roughly eight times the enrollment
> that was there when I graduated. The library is only twice as large. The
> metal and wood shops are half as large. But the cafeteria is a boutique
> restaurant ... the kids don't stand in a cafeteria line like we did, they
> walk around and select what appeals to them and then go to the cash
> register. Then they go to booths or tables to relax with their friends.
> Very space effective ... probably takes twice the space per person as it did
> back in the 1950s. But they have the important things like a television
> studio and a planetarium.
> >
> > Your taxes at play John.
> >
> > On Oct 16, 2010, at 6:49 PM, John Swindler wrote:
> >
> > >
> > >
> > > Don't colleges already offer remedial courses for students who didn't
> learn the basics in high school??
> > >
> > > Cheers
> > > John
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >> Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
> > >> From: fwschneider at comcast.net
> > >> Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2010 13:13:19 -0400
> > >> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > >>
> > >> This is really off base for the nature of the website but I agree with
> education and the need to do it. I am also getting to that point where I
> am thinking that we need to provide a university level education for our
> kids as a benefit of just living here.
> > >>
> > >> When only college was needed by only 10% who went into management and
> executive positions and a college education was cheap enough that the
> average kid could work his way through if he wanted to, then I might not
> have felt that way. But today with a huge chunk of the jobs requiring a
> post high school education in infuse a technical background into our kids,
> seems to me its in the public interest to train them or pay welfare.
> > >>
> > >> Foreign languages? Most nations acknowledge when they have more than
> one language. We have a problem admitting that close to 20% of us speak
> Spanish and the number is rising because every nation to the south of us has
> lower incomes. You can put up all the walls you want but it isn't going to
> keep people out if they can earn 3 or 4 or 10 times more money here. Maybe
> we simply need to recognize that anyone willing to risk his life getting
> over or around the wall has some ambition ... maybe more than our own kids
> (certainly more than mine).
> > >>
> > >> The ability to navigate around the internet did nudge one toward
> English. However, it is my understanding that other languages and
> alphabets are now possible???? However, some of my friends in other
> countries solve the problem by writing in multiple languages. Dwight Long,
> on this site, knows very well a mutual friend who works for German rail ...
> name of Christopf Grimm. Chris writes notes to friends around the planet.
> He often sends out photos with two accompanying notes, one in German and one
> in English and I might add that I've noticed that they are not necessarily
> the same messages ... one does not translate to the other.
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> On Oct 15, 2010, at 12:32 PM, John Swindler wrote:
> > >>
> > >>>
> > >>> Hi Fred
> > >>>
> > >>> Of course I am aware of the British colonies. I have second cousins
> scattered in many of them. And as for British colonies, don't forget the
> British settlements in South America. There is a Andes Highlanders pipe
> band in central Chile. (And the Germans' settled in Chile's lake district.)
> Surprising what comes up when browsing youtube for the '79th farewell to
> Gibralter'.
> > >>>
> > >>> But that was then. What about now? If I lived in a foreign country,
> the ability to navigate around the internet would tend to nudge me towards
> English as a second language. Sure there are multi-language websites, there
> is content in other languages, and there are translators, but so much seems
> to be in English. There are also many opportunities to travel overseas to
> be an English instructor - even for just a couple weeks. If the opportunity
> in Prague still exists in a couple years, I'd be tempted.
> > >>>
> > >>> Concerning Gates, the problem with the internet is that it is
> difficult to determine if someone is commenting or the commet is in jest. I
> was jesting - but also throwing in something outlandish to ponder.
> > >>>
> > >>> As for German students coming to the US to improve their English,
> > >>> the piece of information you don't have is the relative cost for a
> > >>> semester/school year in different countries. Sure, I could think
> > >>> of other places, but as a hint - the US is cheap. The problem is
> > >>> finding host families in the US, not foreign exchange students
> > >>> with parents willing to spend around $10,000 for a school year in
> > >>> America. Check website for Experiment NV. (if I remembered it
> > >>> correctly)
> > >>>
> > >>> This strays totally beyond the site topic with no hope of recovery.
> > >>>
> > >>> Cheers
> > >>> John
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>> Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
> > >>>> From: fwschneider at comcast.net
> > >>>> Date: Tue, 5 Oct 2010 17:28:42 -0400
> > >>>> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > >>>>
> > >>>> You are blaming Bill Gates?
> > >>>>
> > >>>> Come on John. Remember your mother's heritage.
> > >>>>
> > >>>> Think of all those paces the British colonized: Canada, the United
> States, Hong Kong, South Africa, Rhodesia, Jamaica, India, Pakistan,
> Bangladesh, Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, St. Kitts and Nevis, the
> Falkland Islands, Ireland, Grenada, Gold Coast, Zulu, and so on and on and
> on. Close to 2 billion people in the world speak English because Britain
> colonized them.
> > >>>>
> > >>>> I can think of other places to go if a student wishes to "improve"
> their English.
> > >>>>
> > >>>>
> > >>>> On Oct 5, 2010, at 10:25 AM, John Swindler wrote:
> > >>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>> And there is Beau Graham's story about riding a SEPTA vehicle in
> front of some Korean women making derogatory comments about Americans and
> the US. As he got up to exit, he thanked them for their commentary - in
> Korean.
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>> Beau had spent his Army time in Korea, and unlike so many others,
> had taken the time to learn the language - at least enough to tour the
> countryside looking for steam.
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>> And as for so many in foreign countries knowing English, perhaps we
> should give Bill Gates some of the credit. So much of the internet is in
> English. There are many opportunities available to travel to foreign
> countries to teach English, and many students come to the US to
> learn/improve their English. We are currently hosting our tenth exchange
> student.
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>> Cheers
> > >>>>> John
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>>> Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
> > >>>>>> From: fwschneider at comcast.net
> > >>>>>> Date: Mon, 4 Oct 2010 16:41:30 -0400
> > >>>>>> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>> Thanks for the tip. I didn't see if before. I particularly liked
> the 8th archived video of them rerailing an errant Hague articulated PCC.
> Yes ... PCC. Those red 3000s used trucks from the older scrapped single-unit
> PCC cars.
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>> I went to Lisbon with a now deceased man from Baltimore. It took a
> while for him to catch on that a lot of Europeans spoke and understood
> English even though they might now which to acknowledge that skill. While he
> was astonished at and never ceased to explain to others back home that the
> Central Station information clerks in the Hague in Holland all spoke four or
> five languages (Flemish, English, German, French and one other rotating
> language), it never quite sunk into the poor man that English was the second
> language of choice in those smaller (minority language countries) until we
> got to Lisbon on one trip. And then it bit him in the ass.
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>> We were riding back from a private tour of the car shops. The car
> was being run by a young lady who was a student operator. Dick was making a
> bad mistake. He just could not refrain from telling me what he thought of
> her performance based, of course, on his prior years of experience as an
> operator for Baltimore Transit Co. I kept trying to signal him to shut up. I
> was getting no where. I eventually dragged up finger across my throat like a
> knife. That didn't work. I finally looked at him and said, "Shut your
> f--king mouth." Well, we stopped. The instructor got off the car to make a
> phone call. The student operator turned around. She smiled at me. Then she
> looked at Dick and in most clear and frosty English, said to Dick, "Does by
> performance meet your lofty expectations sir?" You could have scraped him
> off the floor of the car. Perhaps that is why the next day he was in a
> London hospital suffering from a stroke? He did learn his lesson. Not ever!
> > >>>>>> yone in Lisbon speaks only Portuguese and Spanish isn't always the
> second language.
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>> On Oct 4, 2010, at 3:56 PM, John Swindler wrote:
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>> There is also an archives button upper left that leads to several
> videos of Lisbon. Also found the Antwerp video in the archives section of
> interest. Includes PCC mu train in subway.
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>> Some of the Lisbon videos were taken in vicinity of what appears
> to be a large plaza near the town center. What a difference from the area
> around Philadelphia's city hall.
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>> From: fwschneider at comcast.net
> > >>>>>>>> Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
> > >>>>>>>> Date: Mon, 4 Oct 2010 15:06:47 -0400
> > >>>>>>>> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > >>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>> Well, at least Derrick, Herb, Dwight, and Ed looked at something
> furrin on the Pittsburgh list and seemed to enjoy it. I don't feel too bad
> about posting it. My wife gave me hell for trying to educate people.
> > >>>>>>>> Frankly, sometimes I think we need to take a good long look at
> how other people do things.
> > >>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>> On Oct 4, 2010, at 2:30 PM, Derrick Brashear wrote:
> > >>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>> On Oct 4, 2010, at 12:40 PM, "Edward H. Lybarger"
> <trams2 at comcast.net> wrote:
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> I've never seen anything as clean as Singapore.
> > >>>>>>>>>> City...transit...countryside...airport...you name it.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>> Litter, get caned!
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> On the other hand, there are the birds that share the food
> > >>>>>>>>>> buffets...so clean may not always equal sanitary.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> -----Original Message-----
> > >>>>>>>>>> From: pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org
> > >>>>>>>>>> [mailto:pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org] On
> > >>>>>>>>>> Behalf Of Dwight Long
> > >>>>>>>>>> Sent: Monday, October 04, 2010 12:27 PM
> > >>>>>>>>>> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> > >>>>>>>>>> Subject: [PRCo] Re: A Great Brussels Museum Video
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Fred
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> That's an excellent, professionally-done, video. Thanks for
> sharing!
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> I was struck by the superb condition of the open track. Eat
> > >>>>>>>>>> your hear out, Pittsburgh Railways Co!
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Also noticed was the fact that not all cars bore the
> > >>>>>>>>>> dreaded Faively "pantographs." Real pantographs, bow
> > >>>>>>>>>> collectors, and--gasp--actual trolley poles still in use--wow!
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Wattman--one who regulates the consumption of watts?
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Now as to cleanth, would you venture a comparison with
> > >>>>>>>>>> Singapore? I would think that it is the measuring stick these
> days.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Dwight
> > >>>>>>>>>> ----- Original Message -----
> > >>>>>>>>>> From: Fred Schneider
> > >>>>>>>>>> Sent: Sunday, 03 October, 2010 20:18
> > >>>>>>>>>> Subject: [PRCo] A Great Brussels Museum Video
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Thanks to Jack May who alerted me to this item ...
> > >>>>>>>>>> No it isn't Pittsburgh. So what.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> It is one rather interesting video of a Traction
> > >>>>>>>>>> Extravaganza in Brussels using museum equipment. Their
> > >>>>>>>>>> local trolley museum has a feature that who do us all
> > >>>>>>>>>> proud. The museum carbarn sits right on a major STIB line
> > >>>>>>>>>> on the Rue de Turvueren. STIB operators who are museum members
> run the museum fleet on the outer end of city route 39 and 42 on Saturdays
> and Sundays.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Their museum fleet is almost entirely former STIB equipment
> from Brussels.
> > >>>>>>>>>> I think they might have one Vicinal car in the museum. But
> > >>>>>>>>>> the video of the extravaganza shows all sorts of wonderous
> > >>>>>>>>>> other stuff ... a red car from Wien (Vienna) (thats 4038
> > >>>>>>>>>> with the Schottentor destination sign), a gold and brown
> > >>>>>>>>>> car from Rotterdam, a cream and green PCC from the Hague, a
> Milan Peter Witt clad in yellow, and that fantastic Liege car in two-tone
> green.
> > >>>>>>>>>> They brought stuff in from all over.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> For people who like running strange cars, the Liege car has
> > >>>>>>>>>> a series - series/parallel - parallel drum controller, i.e.
> > >>>>>>>>>> three running points: (4 motors in series; 2 series pairs
> > >>>>>>>>>> connected in parallel; then all motors in
> > >>>>>>>>>> parallel) It goes like hell. I rode it over that same track
> > >>>>>>>>>> about ten years ago before it was sent to Liege for static
> > >>>>>>>>>> display. He left ahead of one schedule car and before long had
> caught up its leader.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> The interiors of Brussels cars are easy to pick out. You
> > >>>>>>>>>> will see some pictures views of a narrow PCC with do not
> > >>>>>>>>>> talk to the motorman signs in two
> > >>>>>>>>>> languages: Ne pas parler au Wattman (French) on the left
> > >>>>>>>>>> ... and Niet ........ sparken on the right (Flemish). The
> > >>>>>>>>>> old rules used to be that if you wanted a job driving a bus
> > >>>>>>>>>> or a streetcar in Brussels, you had to bilingual or you
> > >>>>>>>>>> simply were not qualified. Can you imagine Dallas or New
> > >>>>>>>>>> York or San Diego or Los Angeles telling bus drivers they
> > >>>>>>>>>> need to speak Spanish and English if they want to drive bus? Or
> the bus drivers serving Alhambra (CA) need Korean, Vietnamese, Spanish and
> English?
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> The final thing I want to draw your attention to ... look
> > >>>>>>>>>> for the clutter and trash on the ground. How much do you
> > >>>>>>>>>> see? Brussels is the capital of Belgium, so why not compare
> > >>>>>>>>>> the litter to our capital. How does it compare to
> > >>>>>>>>>> Washington DC? Now compared to most German cities, Brussels
> > >>>>>>>>>> will be dirtier. Compared to Switzerland, Brussels will be
> > >>>>>>>>>> a lot dirtier. I've seen Swiss people walk a block out of their
> way just to throw a candy wrapper in a trash can.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> Enjoy.
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> http://www.digitaletramfoto.nl/video/2010/201009/20100919-0
> > >>>>>>>>>> 1.htm
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>> http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Brussels_Tramway
> > >>>>>>>>>> _Museum
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>>
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>>
> > >>>>
> > >>>>
> > >>>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>
> > >>
> > >>
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
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