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Charlie Hamilton

@chas.us
120 followers 132 following 270 posts

Web Developer, Manager, Writer, Trainer, and Rail Advocate. Mostly at rail.chat/@chas

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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 27/07/2026
I'm ok, but sad news. www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...
seattletimes.com
Live: Shooting at Bite of Seattle: At least 2 dead, 5 wounded
A mass shooting left two people dead and at least five wounded, including a toddler, Sunday evening at Seattle Center. Check back for updates.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 26/07/2026
We all know the story of the Declaration of Independence, right? Some of us can sing the songs from 1776, the musical. But Michael Auslin's 2026 book National Treasure has some eye-openers, about the document, and about our society. A surprisingly page-turning account. - From rail.chat/@shortestrevs
rail.chat
Shortest Reviews (@shortestrevs@rail.chat)
14 Posts, 6 Following, 0 Followers · Shortest reviews ever. Well, Mastodon allows more characters than the old place did.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 20/07/2026
A semi-giant leap for raccoon-kind. Happy Moon Day!
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 17/07/2026
Look at this date! I'm proud to have been one of the pioneers. Washington Talking Book and Braille Library 1993 Managed development of online catalog for those with disabilities. Installed and set up access to reference materials through PC equipped with speech, large-print and Braille output.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 17/07/2026
Highly recommended. Great to see Anna's book produced by my former employer WTBBL.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 04/07/2026
Happy Fourth of July! www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZYH...
youtube.com
Ray Charles - America The Beautiful (Official Video)
YouTube video by Ray Charles
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 03/07/2026
July 4, 1976, Washington, DC. Gerald Ford was president, having taken over from Nixon after he resigned after Watergate. We were overrun with Scouts, on the way to their Jamboree. The Air & Space Museum had just opened. King Tut was in town.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 01/07/2026
@ponderbeaver.bsky.social Happy Canada Day!
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 01/07/2026
To our northern friends. Have a happy day! Thank you for reminding us that the whole world isn’t crazy. As for us, we’re working on it. #CanadaDay #FêteduCanada
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 26/06/2026
Om Malik was my boss, even though I never met him. I only met a couple of the writers I worked with in person. But my colleagues at GigaOm are still friends -- some of the most insightful and interesting people I know. Thanks, Om, for bringing us together. boingboing.net/2026/06/25/o...
boingboing.net
Om Malik, 1966-2026
Om Malik was a great tech blogger in the times when tech was fun. "Blogging is not about opinion but it is about viewing the world in a certain way…
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 23/06/2026
How Many People Do Not Drive? At least 30%, and probably more. allaboardnw.org/blog/how-man... @nondriver.bsky.social has more information.
allaboardnw.org
How Many People Do Not Drive?
Our transportation decisions are often made with the assumption that everyone drives. But what about those who are too young, too old, too poor, disabled, or choose not to drive because of concerns ab...
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 23/06/2026
I've been reposting a few of my trip reports from Amtrak Unlimited to my own website, since who knows what will happen when they move to a different platform. See my writing page at chas.us/writing/ My favorite report is Four New Trains and a Ferry chas.us/writing/four... (2015).
chas.us
Writing
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 22/06/2026
I’m no longer posting on AU, but you can find reports of my travels at discuss.amtraktrains.com. Today, I’m the Executive Director of All Aboard Washington @aawa.us the rail advocacy group for Washington state. We need your participation and support.
rail.chat
Rail.chat
Discussing passenger and freight rail, its connections to transit and other non-car options, and the economic, environmental and equity benefits of seamless mobility.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 22/06/2026
While commuting on MARC in 1977, I read the National Association of Rail Passengers newsletter posted at Baltimore Penn Station, and became a member. Once I moved to Seattle in 1990, I was traveling more on #amtrak so when #narp held their regional meeting in #PDX I attended.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 22/06/2026
During the 1980s, I started traveling by #Amtrak again, mostly to science fiction fan conventions in places like Boston and New York. Philly was particularly convenient, as the host hotel was connected to Suburban Station, a free transfer from Amtrak's 30th Street Station.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 22/06/2026
When I went back to school at the University of Maryland-College Park in 1985 to work on a PhD, I used ShuttleUM, driven by very well-trained and professional students.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 22/06/2026
By 1979, Amtrak and MARC had improved, and the DC Metro system was actually useful for getting places. For the next few years, I commuted from Capitol Hill to the Forrestal Building, and then to 16th & M Street.
statter911.com
40 years ago: Air Florida Flight 90 crash & Metro train derailment in Washington, DC - Statter911
Looking back at January 13, 1982 and two deadly transportation collisions in the nation's capital
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 22/06/2026
I didn’t take train trips while in graduate school in Minnesota, but I rode public transit in the Twin Cities a lot. I made some great friends there, but man, the weather was brutal, so it was a relief to get back to the east coast.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 21/06/2026
I became an Amtrak and MARC rider when I commuted from Johns Hopkins in Baltimore to the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in DC—first on Amtrak’s Night Owl, since MARC didn’t run on weekends, then on the MARC Penn Line on summer weekdays.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 21/06/2026
My first trip on Amtrak was in December of 1973. I was finishing my last year in high school in Vermont, but my parents had already returned to Maryland. I was going to fly there for my birthday, but all the flights had been canceled due to an ice storm. So I got on the Montrealer in Essex Jct.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 21/06/2026
My first trip on the Northeast Corridor was when my mother took me and my grandmother to New York City in the mid-1960s. I don’t recall whether the Metroliners were running yet or not, but even if they were, we certainly wouldn’t have sprung for the premium fare!
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 21/06/2026
My first train trip, at about 4, was from Baltimore to St. Louis on the B&O, then changing trains to the Katy to Oklahoma City. We stayed at the Skirvin (still there!). My parents attended a teachers’ convention and I was looked after by a local babysitter. I loved the trains and the elevators.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 21/06/2026
I’m one of the #30percent that doesn’t drive. But I’ve been lucky to live in places with decent local transit, and connections to #Amtrak. Tell your elected representatives that rail and transit is a major priority, and a tiny percentage of our tax dollars.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 23/05/2026
Happy 23rd of May, but don't buy the liverwurst! www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqTD...
youtube.com
Don't Buy the Liverwurst
YouTube video by SearTrip
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
Grow Trains @growtrains.org · 23/05/2026
"The roughly one-third of Americans who don’t drive—seniors who’ve stopped, people with disabilities, low-income households who can’t afford a car, people in transit-served cities—are subsidizing infrastructure they use little or not at all." www.fastcompany.com/91540490/gas...
fastcompany.com
The way we finance new highways and roads is no longer working
Those who use the roads should pay for the roads.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 15/05/2026
If you are interested in secure email, check out this special deal. go.getproton.me/aff_c?offer_... You can also get mail + drive + a VPN + a password manager + several other features, scroll down and click on Proton Unlimited DEAL. I've moved my own account, and I'm very happy with the results.
go.getproton.me
Private & Secure Email Account with Proton Mail | Proton
Proton Mail is the world's largest secure email service with over 70 million users. Available on Web, iOS, Android, and desktop. Protected by Swiss privacy law.
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
ellen teapot 🇨🇦🏳️‍⚧️ @ellenteapot.ca · 28/04/2026
HM the King’s address to the US Congress in full:
youtube.com
King Charles III addresses Congress
YouTube video by CNN
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 28/04/2026
After a very tough couple of weeks, a friend called just now to share some of their latest good news. I'm feeling better than I have in a long while. Thank you! (You know who you are.) If you have good news, pass it along! You just might make a friend's day.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 14/04/2026
Sad news. Jim Dana died early this morning. His wife Kimi will be converting his Facebook into a memorial page, and will post about his celebration of life when details are available. He will be sorely missed.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 05/04/2026
Hop🐇 you have a Happy Easter!
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 27/01/2026
The end of an era. goodereader.com/blog/digital...
goodereader.com
Mass Market Paperbacks are discontinued
Publishers Weekly last month reported that ReaderLink, the largest full-service distributor of
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 31/12/2025
It's the final day of AAWA's matching fundraiser. We're very close to reaching our goal--please bring us into the station! Donate now at www.aawa.us/support/ Thanks, and we wish you safe travels in the new year!
Fundraiser progress bar showing 94 percent of $35,000.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 30/12/2025
Please donate today to any of these organizations who are advocating for better transportation options. Make a difference in 2026! allaboardnw.org/ran/rccn-org...
allaboardnw.org
RCCN Organization Members
Please donate today to any of these organizations who are advocating for better transportation options. Make a difference in 2026!
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 30/12/2025
You can still help organizations advocating for better transportation options. Please donate today any of these organizations, and make a difference in 2026. allaboardnw.org/ran/rccn-org...
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 29/12/2025
Ending a difficult year by relaxing with programs from people like @profaliceroberts.bsky.social @daraobriain.bsky.social @chrislintott.bsky.social @jimalkhalili.bsky.social People like them restore my faith in the future.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 24/12/2025
Thank you to all my friends and family for working together towards a positive future. Happy holidays and safe travels!
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 21/12/2025
J. R. R Tolkien, "enemy of the motor vehicle" lareviewofbooks.org/article/isen...
lareviewofbooks.org
Isengard in Oxford | Los Angeles Review of Books
Christian Kriticos explores J. R. R. Tolkien’s long-lost satire of a motorized world.
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
Rail $395 million Public transit $753 million Debt $1.7 billion Highway upgrades $5.3 billion someone who is good at transportation planning please help me budget this. my state is dying
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
All Aboard Washington @aawa.us · 11/12/2025
Reminder: AAWA Annual Meeting, Saturday, December 13, 2025 Zoom meeting, also available by phone 1:00 - 3:00 pm PT Our speaker will be Kirk Fredrickson of the WSDOT Rail, Freight and Ports Division. Please register at www.aawa.us/events/aawa-...
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 06/12/2025
Thank you @nondriver.bsky.social for the invitation!
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
All Aboard Washington @aawa.us · 03/12/2025
We're making good progress! With your help, AAWA can continue to advocate for improved rail options throughout the state. Please donate now at aawa.us/support/
aawa.us
Join, Renew or Donate to AAWA
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
All Aboard Washington @aawa.us · 29/11/2025
All Aboard Washington is busily planning our upcoming legislative efforts. Please help us make 2026 a success by donating generously at aawa.us/support/ Thank you, and safe travels!
aawa.us
Join, Renew or Donate to AAWA
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 27/11/2025
Happy Thanksgiving to y'all!
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 25/11/2025
"Nov. 25 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1990, the original floating Lacey V. Murrow Bridge sank during a Thanksgiving storm in Washington state. The bridge was under reconstruction at the time so there were no injuries or deaths." I discovered this news the next day while moving to Seattle.
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 22/11/2025
Post from @MostlyHarmless@thecanadian.social
Post from @MostlyHarmless@thecanadian.social
Unpacked our Nativity scene yesterday. Removed all the Jews, Arabs and foreigners. Ended up with a jackass and a handful of sheep.
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
A. Zivarts @nondriver.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
Out today, another exciting @islandpress.bsky.social book! Order @carterlavin.bsky.social's If You Want to Win, You've Got to Fight👇
islandpress.org
If You Want to Win, You've Got to Fight
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 13/11/2025
I joined some friends on September 5, 1977 to see the launch of Voyager 1 in person -- a tremendous experience! On November 13, 2026, Voyager will be a light-day away. www.iflscience.com/on-november-... How time flies!
iflscience.com
On November 13, 2026, A Human-Made Object Will Reach One Light-Day From The Earth For The First Time In History
It took the spacecraft nearly five decades to get there. It takes light a day.
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
bethosborne.bsky.social @bethosborne.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
1. Funds were not always used effectively. 2. The law did not always result in less funding for polluting projects. 3. Many IIJA programs reinforced existing inequities by rewarding jurisdictions with greater preexisting resources. www.urban.org/urban-wire/r...
urban.org
The Reauthorization of Federal Transportation Programs Offers Policymakers an Opportunity to Improve Effectiveness, Environmental Sustainability, and Access
Federal policymakers should consider three strategies to guide deliberations around reauthorization and improvement of Americans’ quality of life.
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Reposted by Charlie Hamilton
jseattle @jseattle.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
dlvr.it
Election 2025 — Day 6: Later-voter surge sends Wilson over top but recount looms
A week after the first ballots were counted, Seattle’s 2025 race for mayor has a likely winner. Challenger Katie Wilson claimed her biggest share yet of the daily counts since Election Night and now holds a 1,346-vote lead over incumbent … Continue reading →
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Charlie Hamilton @chas.us · 08/11/2025
"Congratulations! Your ballot has been counted." Good news in a tight election.
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