Talk:Freighthopping

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[edit] Books and movies

I have a suggestion that the sections on books and movies for both the Freighthopping and Hobo articles should get their own article, say, "Hobos and freighthopping in media". The reason for this is I can think of dozens more books to list and several more movies but if any more were added it would overwhelm the main articles. What does everyone else think about this? Kaibabsquirrel 29 June 2005 04:40 (UTC)

I went ahead and put all the books and movies in their own article. List of books and films about hobos and freighthopping. Kaibabsquirrel 5 July 2005 09:39 (UTC)

[edit] Comments

This article has some big problems. It's more of a guide to crime than an objective account of this despicable act. It should be fixed.

It's not a dispicable act you bourgeois idiot. I think the article is just fine the way it is, and it's more informative as a pseudo-guide than as a straight article with few details.

Regardless of whether or not it's "dispicable" it doesn't read very professionally as it is. It needs to be changed. - furrykef (Talk at me) 01:06, 2 September 2005 (UTC)

The problem is that Wikipedia is an encylopaedia,not a How-to guide, unlike most of this article. Also, I beleive that it is completely illegal, at least in the UK. Thryduulf 15:37, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

however old this discussion may be, i'm stunned as to how trainhopping can be considered "despicable"; i think that's a bit much. cma 09:30, 2 January 2006 (UTC)

Indeed, I don't see how this could be seen as dispicable. I can sure as hell see the attraction in it, even if I think it's probably a little bit too dangerous for me to ever try.Mattm1138 07:01, 23 February 2006 (UTC)

Any article which advises on how to avoid getting caught by the police for an illegal act is morally dubious, regardless of any namecalling. If the article was written in a purely factual tone (e.g., “Many freighthoppers do this...”) then it might be OK, but as it stands it is an endorsement of crime and must therefore by against some Wikipedia rule. Scott197827 2/3/2006

If it is endorsing anything then it violates the NPOV policy - articles should neither promote nor do whatever the opposite of promote is (I can't think of the word) the subject. They should present factual information about the subject in a neutral manner. i.e. the article should not say "this is great" but equally it should not say "this is despicable" - even if it is illegal, although that fact that it is illegal should be mentioned, as should the fact that it is dangerous. Thryduulf 00:25, 3 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] How bad of a crime is trainhopping?

How bad of a crime is trainhopping?

Every state has an applicable statute on it and it's usually a misdemeanor. However if locomotives or rolling stock are tampered with, railroad police can charge the trespasser with a felony and pursue federal terrorism charges, depending on the case. Equinox137 06:46, 15 January 2007 (UTC)

Most of the time when your caught you get a charge of criminal tresspassing this is from expirence

[edit] The decline of freighthopping

The article seems to suggest that the image of the old hobo "riding the rails" as a Great Depression stowaway is fading due to better economic times. I'd suspect this is only part of the story - the railroads themselves have been losing ground to trucks and freeways, as much cargo that used to move by train now rides the motorways on eighteen-wheel lorries. A loss of passengers from the old freightcar-stowaway status to hitchhiking the motorway instead would fit this trend, no? --carlb 20:08, 26 March 2006 (UTC)