The dangerous aging of the countries infrastructure

[serryjw]

quote........
A pipeline shuts down in Alaska. Equipment failures disrupt air travel in Los Angeles. Electricity runs short at a spy agency in Maryland.
snip....
The American Society of Civil Engineers last year graded the nation "D" for its overall infrastructure conditions, estimating that it would take $1.6 trillion over five years to fix the problem.

"I thought Katrina was a hell of a wake-up call, but people are missing the alarm," said Casey Dinges, the society's managing director of external affairs.
snip....
Then an instrument landing system that guides arriving planes onto a runway at Los Angeles International Airport failed for the second time in a week, delaying flights
snip....
It noted that half the 257 locks operated by the Army Corps of Engineers on inland waterways are functionally obsolete, more than one-quarter of the nation's bridges are structurally deficient or obsolete, and $11 billion is needed annually to replace aging drinking-water facilities.
end quote.......

We knew this after the east coast black out in 2003. NOTHING has been done...WHERE is this money coming from?
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003226851_fragile26.html

[Realityhack]

1. People definately don't get this.

Conservatives keep talking about government waste and how we should cut taxes. Menwhile our infrastructure is not being maintained never mind upgraded. And thats a very big deal for the country.

[smtpgirl]

2. The problem is that the RW's

want to privatize EVERYTHING.

The issue is big government & infrastructure revitalization or privatization of our infrastructure (roads, bridges, hospitals, police/fire, ......) and receive NOTHING

[Gregorian]

3. In the 80's, studies were revealing bridge problems.

I personally know the engineer who travel the country looking at corrosion in our bridges. His findings were a nightmare. This is old old news. We have abandoned our country in an effort to stay competitive with the rest of the world. That's my opinion on it.

In another post, I mentioned how a railroad line in California has right of ways that are currently being sold off. That train will never run again.

And now, after Bush and Copresident Cheney, we're in deep trouble. Infrastructure is not going to be our top priority.

All this after China just spent on their infrastructure, what we spent in Iraq.

Well, I am always the poster who brings optimism and hope, aren't I? Sorry folks. Well, there is a humorous looking deer taking a piss outside my window right now. Haha!

[serryjw]

4. I challenge you to be a Congressmen

running on the platform of re-building our infrastructure and we need BILLIONS. It's just not a 'sexy' issue and American think this happens by it's self. Just like Katrina, we will have a MAJOR tragedy and thousands of lose of lives and everyone will ask WHY was it not upgraded. That's what is wrong with Americans, they re-act AFTER the all hells breaks lose,not before.

[gratuitous]

5. Gee, I wonder if any of the $500 billion squandered on Iraq

Could any of that money, poured down a bottomless rat hole, have been invested in our country's infrastructure and actually accomplished something? Or does raising that question help the terrorists and expose me as someone with no moral direction?

[serryjw]

6. You mean like the $1.6 BILLION

donated by 60 countries to REBUILD Lebanon?

[Renew Deal]

7. That sounds like lots of good jobs.

Even if this is all owned by the Feds, the work done will come back in tax revenue and new efficiencies.

[gulliver]

8. We need to build the infrastructure in India and China.

Why do we even need infrastructure here any more? The people voted in the Republicans to move jobs out of the country. They should just send the infrastructure there too.

[TahitiNut]

9. Consumerism, savings, or infrastructure??

Somebody (I'm lousy with remembering names) once explained to me that different countries/cultures base their national economic policies on one of these three prevalent priorities - priorities reflected in the habits of the population regarding marginal disposable income. In other words, what do people do with the dollars they have left over after they pay for food, shelter, clothing, health care, and education to whatever degree they deem 'sufficient' for their "standard of living." In China, for example, the economy is focused primarily on infrastructure investments - creating a common public asset (public facilities for energy, transportation, water, sewage, etc.). The Japanese have historically focused on savings, but consumerism (entertainment, appliances, tourism, etc.) has risen steadily since post-WW2. For the majority of the time in America since the beginning of the 20th century, consumerism has prevailed - except during the Great Depression when infrastructure (hydroelectric generation and transmission, roads and highways, parks, etc.) took priority. (I personally find it interesting to view each country partly from this perspective, remembering that many have no significant middle class which makes the phrase "disposable income" an oxymoron for the majority of the population.)