Originally Posted by Sassy!
These security issues on Amtrak are not about race but class. The people milling about the train and street near the train in Salinas were not passengers ready to board or there to meet someone arriving but a underclass that were visibly angry at the display of wealth and privilege that the Coast Starlight represents.
When we're talking about an "underclass" there's not much difference between race and class. I don't know if the people in Salinas were black, hispanic or "poor whites," my only point was that the act of closing the curtain is, in itself, derogatory and I doubt you were in any true danger.
Besides, the idea that an Amtrak train is a "display of wealth and priviledge" is, in itself, kinda funny. I haven't been on the Coast Starlight, but the long distance East Coast trains are anything but.
So why would people throw rocks at the trains (or fire guns at them)? I grew up in a rural area, beside a train tracks, and we occasionally threw rocks at passing freight trains. I've also waited on a tee at a swank golf course, with a friend, our intention to see if we could nail the passing NJ Transit train. Granted, guns are serious step up, but I doubt the train symbolizes anything but a moving target. (Of course, it's also possible those "bullet holes" were made while the train was empty and stationary. Seems like the Chicago train yards are quite open.)