Oslo will host "Peace through Trade" conference

The "2009 Summit on Peace through Trade" will be held in Oslo on May 14, sponsored by the Business for Peace Foundation of the World Trade Center in Oslo, the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights, and the City of Oslo. 

The website doesn't have much information yet, so I guess we have to keep checking back to see who the speakers will be and the topics they will speak on. 

The conference theme catches my eye, because peace through trade is very much in line with the thinking behind the Bering Strait Project. A link at the Bering Strait would make it possible to connect five continents (North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa) by surface transportation modes such as railroad and (sometime in the future) highway. 

Yes, there is already trade that uses ocean shipping and air cargo. But U.S. west coast ports are clogged. If there is to be a substantial jump in trade volume, a land-based link through Alaska and Siberia will be necessary. 

Central Asian countries are among those that stand to  benefit from such a link. Land-locked countries will have a much better route to ship their goods to the NAFTA market. 

High speed railroad to Asia

If Americans become more accustomed to using high speed railroad for intercity travel within densely populated regions in the lower 48 states, it can only lead to greater support for extending rail service to Alaska and beyond to Asia and Europe. 

For this reason, the White House announcement Thursday to commit funds to developing high speed railroads in ten areas around the United States is a small step toward eventual freight and passenger rail service from New York and Chicago to Beijing and Moscow. 

Some critics of the new White House plan are flabbergasted by the idea of rail service between Los Angeles and San Francisco. I have to wonder whether these were the same people who predicted that cell phones would never catch on. "Americans will never," it was said back in the days, "make phone calls while walking down a street!" 

The fundamental assumption supporting air travel is that travel time is down time, and so it is always better to choose the travel option that will minimize the time it takes to arrive at the next destination. This assumption is increasingly challenged by mobile phones and the Internet. 

We are becoming less dependent on physical location. More people are working, paying bills and pursuing academic degrees from a variety of locations -- from home, in the park, on a train to New York. Advances in smart phone technologies mean that the office and all its contents will fit into your pocket. 

Soon, more people will begin to ask, "If I can work while I travel, then what's the rush in getting there?" 

This will not make people stop traveling all together. By nature, we want to go more places, meet more people, do more things we wouldn't do at home. 

Here are some advantages to rail travel based on my travels between Washington, DC, and New York.

1. No seat belt

2. When it's time to board, keep your shoes on.  

3. Cell phone and Internet service (usually -- Amtrak needs to improve this point)

4. Get up and go to the toilet anytime -- even during "take off and landing." 

5. Better scenery

6. More leg room

7. Stations are in the city, not an hour or more away. 

8. Your ears don't pop. 

9. Crying baby in row behind you? Move to another car.

10. You'll never have to land in the Hudson. 

Tough times help Russia, U.S. be friends

There is nothing like hard times to help people understand the importance of transcending differences in pursuit of a common prosperity. 

An article in the Financial Times Wednesday describes how, in comparison with last year, a more "pragmatic" approach to bilateral relations has taken hold on both sides of the Bering Strait. Last year there was U.S. and EU criticism of over Russia's military action in Georgia. Russia was voicing strong objections to a U.S. plan to place anti-missile defense installations near its borders. 

Now, both sides are taking a calmer approach, based on an understanding that the Russia and the U.S. need each other. 

This blog's position is that a fixed transportation link between the two countries at the Bering Strait would go a long way toward stablizing bilateral relations. Linking Chicago to Yakuhtsk and Moscow to New York would provide the infrastructure needed for the two countries to vastly increase their volume of bilateral trade. 

Let's not have good relations just during hard times. Let's have them all the time. 

UIA-Approved Ideas Contest

An international contest on ideas on how to connect the continents at the Bering Strait is currently being sponsored by The Foundation for Peace and Unification in Korea, with approval from the International Union of Architects. 

According to information on FPU's website, 295 teams from 56 countries have registered to compete for the $80,000 first prize. 

The competition is open to teams headed by professional architects or students of architecture. 

Teams are scheduled to submit their ideas by May 26, and an announcement on the results is due on June 11.