When Infrastructure Attacks! (a special you won’t see on Fox)

Elana Levin

When Infrastructure Attacks! (a special you won’t see on Fox)

There was an explosion in Midtown Manhattan yesterday. I found out about it because 10 people were text messaging my cell to make sure I was okay - each with varying levels of fatalism about my prospect of survival. (Maybe they want my apartment? It's New York so who knows...)

As you've all heard the explosion wasn't caused by terrorism; rather an underground steam pipe constructed in 1924 had too much cold rain water leaking on it, causing it to explode like Old Faithful-- except flinging more mud and some asbestos into the air. I know the air has been declared clean but the dust and debris spat out from the explosion do contain asbestos and what with air movement and, you know, gravity, I can image the carcinogenic dust will get airborne and be inhaled endlessly until it's cleaned up. Remember how the EPA told the public that the air around Ground Zero was safe to breathe - when it actually wasn't? You'll have to excuse me for being a bit concerned over whether the same thing will happen here.

I should probably explain this blog post's title. When chasms in the earth open up near Grand Central the media tends to report it. Even Fox. But what you won't see in the media by and large is a discussion of why it is that these accidents take place. Sure they'll explain how the explosion was caused by water hitting an antediluvian steam pipe but they just won't make the connection between the lack of investment in our country's infrastructure and things going kablooie. You see it takes money to keep any locality running. And localities get that money through our taxes.

Infrastructure is quite literally crumbling beneath our feet and to paraphrase Rick Perlstein "it's not the terrorists, it's the tax cuts." You see you can't have modern society without infrastructure like emergency services, a working sewage system and a power grid. And if your only goal as a society is to cut taxes eventually you are left with asbestos-covered steam pipes from 1924 that explode and kill people - and yes, damage business interests.

One thing I really like about Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC is that his plan seriously addresses infrastructure as a longterm investment for our city. As a major economic engine for the country we all need to be concerned about NYC having ongoing access to clean water, the ability to safely meet (and reduce) our need for electricity, and get all of our roads into safe condition, just to name a few tasks highlighted in the plan. It's not just NYC that needs to plan ahead -- it's the whole country.

Recently there was a poll on a New York entertainment magazine's website that asked what NYC should do with its budget surplus. There were two options: A. tax rebate or B. save the money for a rainy day.

I was frustrated. Was the hypothetical tax rebate in question going to be divided between all taxpayers and end up only putting a few dollars back into my wallet, like the Bush tax rebate did? My money can do a lot more than pay a month's cellphone bill if my money is working in concert with other people's dollars. In fact, that's what we need to do to keep our country functioning like a developed nation. So in that little poll I'd like to vote C. put that money into building public infrastructure right now. Smart investors know you need to spend money to make money.

Comments

I think you are absolutely right. It seems like so much of the agenda of this president's administration, and the republican lead congress of the past 6 years, has been to cut every kind of infrastructure-related program that keeps this country running. Be it our school systems, our health-care system, our roads, low-income assistance, whatever. And, of course, the trickle-down effect of that results in poor services in our states and cities, and run-down infrastructure, which eventually will trickle-down into a grinding economy. We're spending so much money now to 'fix' the infrastructure of Iraq so we can hold on to the illusion that there can be a victory there, and in turn are letting this country fall apart, piece by piece. You would think the near destruction of New Orleans would have reset our focus on what is a priority - that is, taking care of our own backyard. Well, at least it's good to see that Bloomberg is willing to invest in the important - albeit non-glamorous - projects that keep the wheels of New York City moving. Now, can we get the public officials in the rest of our government offices to follow suit?

Excellent post. We have nationally trillions in repairs that need doing. But hey, at least we are spending money trying to rebuild things in Iraq.

We are not only NOT willing to pay for the upkeep of our crumbling infrastructure, we are selling our infrastructure to foreign owners who are willing to invest where we wont. An outstanding example is the Australian firm Macquarie Bank, which is energetically buying US highways and water systems. We will pay taxes or we will pay tolls, we will pay one way or the other.

Lou (Dobbs) take a breath. The Australians have no intention of repatriating the North Dallas Expressway to Sidney.

We are running short of electrical generation and electrical grid capacity. The problem isn't just capital, we can raise the necessary trillions. The obstacle is NIMBY (not in my backyard.)

It reflects poorly on our political leadership, and the maturity of our electorates, that we are unable to recognize the need to maintain and expand our infrastructure so that we don't lose a major contributor to the dynamism of the US economy.

Why was this comment deleted -- is the truth too hard to handle?:

I know this might be hard to believe, but another forum was talking about a false flag mini-nuke operation that would occur on July 18th... and the thread was started just 4 days before (on July 14th)...

... You have to read this entire thread:
http://snipr.com/1oi63

Your assertion that this country’s infrastructure “is quite literally crumbling beneath our feet” is only a slight exaggeration. What happened in New York City pretty well illustrates what is happening virtually every day in many of our large cities.

In 2005 the American Society of Civil Engineers concluded that it would take just about $1.6 trillion simply to repair our existing sewers, highways, dams, drinking-water plants, and other public works. The projected tab doesn’t account for any new construction necessary to support the daily lives of the 100 million new Americans we’re expecting by 2040.

You can read about America's infrastructure problems for yourself at http://www.asce.org/reportcard.

I once heard that 80% of London's GDP is spent on maintenance and repairs. Old cities that have been industrialized for a long time are immensely expensive to maintain: their infrastructure is likely to be piecemeal, having been laid down in many stages; they have had plenty of time to develop blighted neighborhoods with abandoned buildings and unused pipelines and roads; and their previous spurs of development now stand in the way of new projects.