Stimulus II

I think all our stimulus monies, at the end of all this financial drama, will only have provided us with new road building. So much for Obama's plan for a "21st century overhaul" of our infrastructure. We're gonna get more relics of the 1950's. Faster, yes, and improved upon, yet fundamentally a worn out paradigm.

Smart electric grids...have you heard that one? Even I don't know what that really entails, and neither does anyone else. So if we can't understand it, we won't build it. One more reason to build new highways, 'cause everyone understands them.

California Delta Waterway -- Something else that needs to be addressed but no consensus has ever been formed on what to do. A peripheral canal? Remove/relocate the Tracy pumps? New levees, or removal of delta island tracts? If we can't agree, we won't build it. One more reason to build new highways, 'cause everyone understands them.

Sacramento light rail is begging for expansion, yet RT recently received a $15,800,000 cut in funding from the state, forcing an increase in fares. This is before we've even dealt with the $40,000,000,000 state deficit, so more cuts are sure to come. Think about this; the poorest residents we have who can't afford to participate in our perpetual motoring utopia are now called upon to pay more in fares and to work for companies whose taxes are paid to build more fucking roads. Rail (and transit in general) creates 20% more jobs than road building. But we don't see it fit within our autocentric shithole we've built, we find it to be extremely expensive to shoehorn it in through existing suburban sprawl. If it costs too much, we can't build it. One more reason to build new highways, 'cause everyone understands them.

California's wish list for "shovel ready" spending is 61% loaded with road spending. You'd think that would be excessive until you realize that Florida's stimulus wish list is 98.9% road, most of which is new construction.

We will emerge from our economic hibernation having spent a winter growing more emaciated by squandering all our wealth and energy on roads. All it will do is perpetuate poor land use and automobile use. We are building ourselves into a poorer nation.