Having lived in "HDB land" suburbs of Singapore, I do know that cars are expensive there (in the top ten with London) which is to be expected given the limited space. That does not stop more Singaporeans having a car than the roads can support though (see link).

However I was talking about the good town planning at least as far as the car park facilities go. For every X HDB blocks and number of residents they have planned and provided a high rise parking facility that is very reasonably priced Vs incomes there. Despite the limited space and ultra high density living you do not need to creatively park out in the suburbs of Singapore. Most European cities with lots more space and room to grow out in the suburbs cannot boast the same - they just do not seem to plan for cars. Madrid, Spain is one of the more egregious examples in Europe that I know of.

I agree with you on the public transport as well, makes living in Singapore a pleasure. Speaking of Australia, Sydney should be ashamed of itself it has to be the worst city I have ever lived in for commuting by car, and the train system leaves a lot to be desired + no light rail of note (the Darling Harbor light rail is too small to count). Driving to Bondi on a hot afternoon is like taking the road to hell...

When there is no longer the option of "creative parking" - then all that is left would be interest in parking somewhere convenient. Living in European cities I have had to park suburbs away from the apartment, and even then it was a hit and miss affair due to lack of town planning.

Yes, I know. Read my second sentence.

Your right I painted with a broad brush by saying "European cities". All the ones I have lived in (Italy, Spain, France...) but not including Belgium or the Netherlands have the problem I describe. Not all in Italy are so bad either, I hear Milan at least have some inner city congestion control and planning than most.

No I have lived in the center of my fare share of European cities. All your points are correct and also the reason why you can't park there. My point is: Not only is there nowhere to park in the center, there is nowhere to park out of the center, either. i.e. lack of town planning.

You did not read past the first sentence of my post, obviously. Here is the second sentence for your convenience: "I get that they have ancient medieval town centers that are almost impossible to modify - but that is no excuse for not providing adequate amounts of free to almost free just out-of-town parking and efficient cheap public transport into the centers.

What irks me is the lack of town planning for cars in European cities then the incompetent authorities act like it is all the citizens fault. I get that they have ancient medieval town centers that are almost impossible to modify - but that is no excuse for not providing adequate amounts of free to almost free just out-of-town parking and efficient cheap public transport into the centers (efficient does not mean it has to be profitable in the direct sense).

Singapore for example with so little space has pioneered high rise cheap parking for all out in the suburbs and electronic pay to enter town centers that really increased the quality of life in the inner city, or so I hear.

Don't get me started on the last century traffic lights on timers and no trigger sensors of any kind in sight even at the pedestrian crossings. Christmas lights I like to call them. The amount of petrol they must waste stopping scores of cars for no reason must be mind-boggling.

/rant off.

Edward Snowden is not "central" to this debate (if you can call it that). The illegal acts of the NSA are central to the debate - Snowden is just a messenger. Only propaganda spin-meisters want to make the debate about "characters", mainly because it is completely irrelevant. No thanks for trying, Trailrunner7.

Sure, that appears to be the policy answer dictated by the 1% for solving Americas internal problems, why not extend it to our more traditional external enemies as well.

This time they got caught out in a few emails, next time they will just keep it to verbal agreements on the country club golf course. The "exposure" is not going to come from a few or even many Engineers complaining in isolation that there might be some collusion going on as the alternative offers are drying up.

and if you did you would not be able to get a decent higher paying job elsewhere due to collusion like this.

Better start rewriting some chapters in those Texas physics textbooks then...

Where Socialists == anybody concerned with trying to better their community/common good. Especially where such doo-good for the community actions is affecting or even may possibly affect some companies profit now or sometime in the future, maybe. See Town and Community WiFi scandals as one small example.

Never let a good (Snowden induced) crisis go to waste. In this case, they are taking the opportunity to privatize the spy apparatus further than ever before, and Obama has been told to sell it to the population at large as a good thing. Lucky they have all the mass media to help sell that line...

That is not a reason, it is an excuse. They deliberately do not support or work towards decoding any open formats in hardware as they themselves benefit from shepherding (forcing) their captive markets into only used a closed software patent encumbered formats and protocols that they then receive royalties from. Now they are attempting to co-opt the open Web using the poor excuse: "but, but our users can't see or use open free formats and protocols, or decode them in hardware (by design, snicker), so YOU should compromise the openness of the Internet for our monetary benefit".

Note that I saId "Only people that can't play open formats...". Amazon prime hardly qualifies.