From the American Society of Civil Engineers, its annual Infrastructure Report Card for 2009:
Aviation D
Bridges C
Dams D
Drinking Water D-
Energy D+
Hazardous Waste D
Inland Waterways D-
Levees D-
Public Parks and Recreation C-
Rail C-
Roads D-
Schools D
Solid Waste C+
Transit D
Wastewater D-
America’s Infrastructure GPA: D
Estimated 5 Year Investment Need: $2.2 Trillion
So, with interest rates around 3% and construction unemployment at 16.3% in May of 2011, wouldn’t it be a smart thing to borrow a ton of money and start repairing all that failing infrastructure?
Construction workers tend to get pretty decent wages, too, and they spend them in local communities. There would be a nice big ripple effect all over the country if we could just see our way clear to starting on these projects.
So why aren’t we doing this? If we did we’d be investing in our future as well as putting people to work and revitalizing the communities in which the work got done. The President and the Congress, however, are fixated on deficit reduction rather than unemployment. It’s a damned shame and it’s dumb. Deficits drop as employment rises and taxes are paid. It’s common sense, a commodity in short supply in our political class these days.
Because borrowing more would mean we would be spending more than we take in, whereas with big tax cuts we’re…. spending more than we take in. But making sure the wealthiest have more to accumulate is better for us than making sure middle class people have jobs rebuilding our infrastructure.
I do declare! I think there’s a bit of sarcasm in that paragraph, Harry. Say it ain’t so!