Wall Street's Next Target: Roads and Bridges

[marmar]

via AlterNet:



Wall Street's Next Target: Roads and Bridges

By David Bollier, OnTheCommons.org. Posted September 9, 2008.

The New York Times has jumped aboard the corporate cheering squad for the privatization of America’s bridges and roads.



In a purported news article at the end of August the New York Times business section gave a big wet kiss to the idea of privatizing the nation's bridges, roads and civil infrastructure. In a nearly 40 column inches, reporter Jenny Anderson casts investors as thwarted social workers ready to do their part in helping to fix America's crumbling infrastructure. Nearly everyone quoted in the story is an investment banker or investor. Politicians are quoted only to bemoan the sad state of roads and bridges, cry about their budget deficits, and wring their hands over the lack of viable solutions.

The obvious solution is private investment. Or at least, that's the only solution that the Times explores (notwithstanding a misleading headline on the online version of the story, "Cities Debate Privatizing Public Infrastructure").

Anderson supplies no critical analysis of why governments and politicians are failing to make needed infrastructure investments, or how government might pursue public-spirited alternatives to private equity. Instead, we hear Norman Mineta, a former U.S. transportation secretary and now an adviser to Credit Suisse, blandly explain, "Budget gaps are starting to increase the viability of public-private partnerships."

The Times story amounts to a hot tip to the investor class: "Vulnerable public assets await your predatory attention. Big ROI is assured!"

Republicans and investors have long railed against "big government" while enjoying government's "liquidity backstopping" (Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac) and government borrowing to finance reckless foreign wars. Now that such bleeding of government has led to crumbling infrastructure, Wall Street, in a fine thank you to its benefactor, wants to go in for the kill. Groups like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and the Carlyle Group have amassed some $250 billion to take public infrastructure private. .......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/story/98039/wall_street%27s_next_target%3A_roads_and_bridges/

[lynnertic]

1. tell them to buy bonds and we'll use the money for keeping public roads public. n/t

[The Traveler]

2. Whoa! "The Shock Doctrine"

People really need to read that book carefully before deciding that privatizing of public resources is a good thing. Really. Carefully.

The whole mortgage crisis could be used as the "shock" used to conn us into yet another fire sale.

[Serial Mom]

3. But the mortgage was private, now government is bailing out

Quite the opposite of what they propose to privatize because business can do it better!

They are trying to SHOCK us into getting more money into they pockets of the heads of Corporations - their friends!

[The Traveler]

5. But the **crisis** produced by mortgage meltdown

and saddling the government with even more debt will be used to justify the sell off.

[galileoreloaded]

8. You better read the plan on freddie and fannie again...

The goal is to shore up capital losses, then split the companies into 8-12 smaller units and re-privatize them to recoup the gov't losses/expenditures. This was the largest swindle in history, probably 5 tims larger than the Argentinian one.

[Possumpoint]

4. How Soon We Forget.

Prior to the establishment of the State Road System In the state I live in, Virginia, there were all of these private roads that charged a fee for use. It became so burdensome that for that and other reasons the State Road system was established and the roads became state property under eminent domain. Do we really want to go back to stopping every so many miles to pay a toll. "F" No!

[ensho]

6. they want to sell Alligator Alley - may the alligators win

S. Fl.

[marmar]

7. "may the alligators win"

Amen to that!

[Javaman]

9. Funny how the things that desperately need to get nationalized...

healthcare and energy aren't even a fart in the wind, yet the very things that will cost americans more money and put a heavier thumb on all our necks will get privatized.

funny how that works huh?

so how is the nationalization of the macs good for america? it's not. just more smoke and bullshit.

[Overseas]

10. No more Republicans. No more privatization. Wholesale theft must stop. //nt