Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Hillary's Big Proposal: $10 Billion Over 10 Years

No, really, that's what she said today.
I wouldn't make this up, truly. I'm not a Hillary-hater.

CONCORD, N.H. - Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton is arguing that unsafe bridges, crowded seaports and clogged highways endanger the economy as well as putting the public at risk.

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Last week's fatal bridge collapse in Minneapolis underscores the critical need for infrastructure improvements nationwide, Clinton said in remarks prepared for delivery Wednesday afternoon in New Hampshire.

She proposed spending $10 billion over 10 years to repair and upgrade roads, bridges, waterways and seaports.

"Something is very, very wrong when, at the dawn of the 21st century, in the richest country on earth, people are actually nervous about driving over bridges for fear that they'll collapse. Or they're worried that their levees may burst, or their highways may buckle," she said. "The degradation of our infrastructure isn't just a serious threat to our safety — it is also a grave threat to our economy."



Spending about the same amount over ten years on repairing crucial infrastructure as even she will be FORCED to spend in ONLY ONE FUCKING WEEK OF WAR, even if she's president and bringing troops home (over such eventuality i am holding my breath -- NOT), does not strike me as a particularly generous, or forward-looking policy.
Pinche' would be what we'd call it here in my vecinidad...

A BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR is fucking chickenfeed, when you understand that's one tenth of what the ICORP of IRAQ squanders in a week.

EVEN 10 BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR for 10 years would be only barely scratch the surface, if the priorities of these rat-fucking oligarchs weren't so tainted by generations of in-breeding and excess.

TEN BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR, spend both modernizing, and retro-fitting energy efficiencies onto the aging infrastructure would pay enormous dividends down the road; would provide a bonanza in employment and technological innovation; would revive a sagging economy, might even resuscitate democracy (well, might not go that far; but still)...

Unfortunately, however, it wouldn't mean killing anybody, or expending expensive munitions profligately, or flying very fast all over the place feeling very important and deadly.

It makes one wonder, sometimes, if the oligarchs do not believe the whole charade/shebang is gonna last long enough to repay them their investment, innit?

4 comments:

Spocko said...

I wonder about the money to repair infrastructure. Did the states take over the costs for repair after it was build after Eisenhower? Or is it still Feds responsible?

LLAP
Spocko

Woody (Tokin Librul/Rogue Scholar/ Helluvafella!) said...

US Hiways, like the interstates, or US 101, US 90, etc, are jointly funded, with the states and feds, iirc...

Unknown said...

I agree---$10 billion a year sounds about right.
And pinche' is the other word that sounds right for her numbers.

Mr. Natural said...
This comment has been removed by the author.