"A pundit embed in the Northeast Corridor"

Dan Drezner rides the Acela and channels his inner Tom Friedman.

8:35 AM: I get to Union Station to find much of it being renovated. There are cranes and construction equipment everywhere! What is [t]his, Shanghai?! Of course, in the Far East, they're just building new things, whereas here in the decaying United States, we're trying to preserve our crumbling monuments to modernity [Oh, that is Pulitzer GOLD, baby!!--ed.]

Good for a few chuckles.