Mr. Pelto said, "The problem is we've seen a fundamental breakdown of our operating system, inflamed by political paranoia over voting for the income tax."

That's where the fundamental breakdown occurred.

"There is a fundamental breakdown in basic railroad operating procedures and practices essential to a safe operation," the study said.

Regulators called UP's safety record "a fundamental breakdown," and things have not improved since then.

Spock felt sure that there had been some fundamental breakdown here, that the untried protective systems in the center had failed when they were needed the most.

"If you have a fundamental breakdown where you literally can't speak to each other, there is a real problem."

It was, Joe Schilling thought, like a fundamental breakdown of the act of perception itself.

This was a basic, fundamental breakdown in his ability to manage the facility.

In the procedure in this communication there is a fundamental breakdown, following the June Council.

This is not just a debate about a set of accounts, but a fundamental breakdown in trust between the institutions represented here and the people we represent back at home.