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Amtrak has decided giving away hundreds of thousands of dollars in wine, cheese and champagne wasn't enough. The U.S. taxpayer-subsidized railroad is now giving free rides to itinerant writers.
Two dozen writers will be selected starting this month for the #AmtrakResidency program. Each will get a private sleeper car on a round-trip, long-distance route “to work on their craft in an inspiring environment.”
Writer Jessica Gross offered this advice to Amtrak’s blog: “Don’t be too ambitious with what you plan to get done: Allow for time spent gazing out the window, letting ideas work themselves out in your mind. It’s that kind of deep thinking that the train is particularly good for, and that can be more difficult to achieve in the interstices of busy day-to-day life.”
Amtrak asked for $2.6 billion in federal support this year, and has long struggled to turn a profit. An inspector general’s report last year noted the system loses tens of millions of dollars a year on food and beverage service, including free food provided to passengers on some routes.
‘Sexy Babe’ on state computer
State officials quickly removed a pornographic video titled “Sexy Babe” that was found on an Ohio Department of Natural Resources website.
The Columbus Dispatch reported about the video after the newspaper was contacted by a reader. It was on a page where companies can upload large files such as maps that are used as data for tracking more than 100,000 wells permitted since 1980.
Turns out anyone could upload files to the site. In addition to two porn videos there were music files and other non-official-looking files, the Dispatch reported.
State officials took down the materials and began requiring credentials to upload stuff to the site, the newspaper reported.
Spending dimes to make nickels
As you’re preparing your annual filing with the U.S. Treasury, consider this: Every penny and nickel made by the U.S. government costs nearly twice as much to make as they’re worth.
This is not a new issue. The government has been losing money making pennies and nickels since 2006. The most recent update comes from an article in the Washington Post, which says in 2013 the cost of minting a penny was 1.8 cents, and nickels cost 9.4 cents each to make.
Ironically, the Post points out, dimes cost about a nickel each to make.
Notes the Post: “All told, the Mint (and ultimately, U.S. taxpayers) lost $105 million on the production of pennies and nickels last year. $105 million may be pocket change compared to last year’s budget deficit of $680 billion, but in an era of budgetary austerity it’s enough to make politicians take notice.”
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