America is rotting from the inside

[Squigglenob]

About 10 months have passed since the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis collapsed into the Mississippi River during afternoon rush hour, killing 13 people and injuring 145. Construction of the bridge's $234 million replacement may be finished in mid-September, three months ahead of schedule, earning builders a $20 million bonus. The Minnesota Legislature and Gov. Tim Pawlenty have agreed on a $38 million state fund to help compensate the victims of the Aug. 1 disaster.

All's well, eh? Perhaps for this bridge in this city. But nationwide, all is not well. Road, bridge and other important public-works infrastructure continue to age and deteriorate as Congress dithers elsewhere. Only disasters move our representatives to act — and in an election year, even those actions seem spotty at best and disingenuous at worst.

The United States has much more than failing bridges to find, fund and fix... read the rest of Dr. Denny Wilkins' post at Scholars & Rogues

[izzie]

1. I do not want to read the rest of this.

All I have to do is pick up the local paper. I know we have to pay taxes to keep up what we have and to pay for new things we want. It takes taxes to do this but it is a dead subject with most. I am sure every knows that the local rich guy is not going to put in a new road or build a fire station unless it is behind his walled home lots. But still no one wants to pay more tax or keep up what we have. Hard to understand this thinking. I grew up in a very GOP family but I also learned that it takes a village to raise a kid and keep the village working in a way that was good for us all. It took taxes from all to do that.