Thumbs up: Really fast trains get money
High speed train projects receive $2.25 billion from President Obama. It is estimated that every $1 billion spent will generate about 20,000 jobs. Obama also vowed an additional $1 billion for high-speed rail projects every year for the next five years.
Thumbs down: Health care bill stalled
Sen. Harry Reid and Speaker of the Housew Nancy Pelosi are struggling to keep moderate Democrats on board with health care reform, further evidence that even when we all agree we have a problem, we still can’t fix it.
Thumbs up: Ford finally posts earnings
Ford posts earnings. Ford Motor Company posts earnings of $868 million in the fourth quarter, with a net profit of $2.7 billion in 2009. After years of loss for domestic car manufacturers, there’s hope. Perhaps luck will turn around for the other two-thirds of the
Big Three. 
Thumbs down: Cell phones injure users
More than 1,000 pedestrians visited emergency rooms in 2008 because they got distracted and tripped, fell or ran into something while using a cellphone to talk or text. What does that say about our culture? I guess we should’ve called that one. 
Thumbs up: Measures 66 and 67 passed
In a blow to Oregon’s wealthy corporations, families and individuals, the rich must now pay their fair share. The roughly $730 million in taxes will go toward education, health care and public safety. If Robin Hood could propose a tax hike, this is what it would look like.
Thumbs down: Representatives’ Web sites hacked
Forty-nine House of Representatives Web sites were hacked and shut down, including a personal attack against President Obama on Thursday night. We must defend our nation’s cyberspace. The Department of Defense understands: recruit some more nerds to your staff, Washington.