“We’ve been deferring maintenance of our infrastructure since the Reagan tax cuts.”

[xchrom]

http://wepartypatriots.com/wp/2011/06/15/weve-been-deferring-maintenance-of-our-infrastructure-since-the-reagan-tax-cuts/

OurFuture author, Dave Johnson, has championed infrastructure investment all year long. In his latest piece, he stresses the necessity of spending on our nation’s roads, bridges et al., not just because of the jobs it will create, but because the physical structures desperately require maintenance. Johnson also blames Reagan for the void:

The country needs this infrastructure work done anyway. Since the Reagan tax cuts we have been putting off maintenance of our infrastructure. And this is catching up to us.

Experts say $2 trillion of infrastructure work is needed just to catch up. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Infrastructure Report Card, says a $2.2 trillion investment is needed to bring the country up to current standards. ASCE says, “Years of delayed maintenance and lack of modernization have left Americans with an outdated and failing infrastructure that cannot meet our needs.”

[elleng]

1. Has been clear to me for a long time, necessary for safety+economic reasons

for decades.

[xchrom]

2. it's ridiculous that we are not doing it. nt

[OneGrassRoot]

5. It is ridiculous. Makes NO sense to me. K&R n/t

[toddwv]

6. Makes perfect sense to me.

We can't pay for an out-of-control defense budget AND build roads and schools yet still give the upper class a pass on paying their fair shair.

[OneGrassRoot]

11. I should have said no sense from an ethical standpoint...

:(

You're absolutely right.

[Lint Head]

3. Re-Pubic-Rats think the infrastructure can pull itself up by it's bootstraps.

[elleng]

7. 'Disagree.' These rats DON'T think.

kind of :sarcasm:

[FSogol]

4. K & R. Sadly true. n/t

[WCGreen]

8. For christsake, even the History Channel is concerned about the

crumbling of America...

[MatthewStLouis]

9. Who needs decent roads when you can fly over them in your private jet or helicopter? Duh.

[InkAddict]

10. Silly, you don't fix well what you don't own...

nor fix it for the long-term when it would cost much less for a short-term make-do solution. Better yet, just try to get the owners to fix things - with American workers, LOL.

The Chinese own the infrastructure of our currency; foreign entities own much of our utilities, roads, and bridges.

http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/millions-of-unemployed-americans-now-live-as-paupers-even-as-foreign-nations-use-sovereign-wealth-funds-to-buy-up-huge-chunks-of-american-infrastructure

[Swede]

12. Toll booths are the answer!!!!

Imagine $2.2 trillion in change would be like a brazillion coins.

[Kolesar]

13. Higher fuel taxes

Fuel taxes don't even pay for county and municipal roads. We have to pay hundreds of dollars per year in property taxes to pay for local roads.