Apr 30 2009
Civil Engineers Give American Infrastructure a “D”
This is a rebroadcast.
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In monitoring the state of American Infrastructure, the American Society of Civil Engineers have assigned an overall grade of D to our crumbling highways, levees, and waterworks. The latest report by the ASCE paints a dismal picture: since it’s last report card in 2005, US infrastructure has actually worsened, particularly in the areas of aviation, public transit, and roads. The group monitors 15 areas of infrastructure, from water works, to schools; the highest grade assigned was only a C+ – in the area of solid waste. They estimate that a $2.2 trillion investment is needed to dramatically improve American infrastructure. While this recommendation comes at a time when federal coffers are being emptied to bail out the financial industry, it also comes at a time when government …
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With the crashing economy making life difficult for many Americans, college students in particular are finding fewer ways to make ends meet. Tuition has risen dramatically over the past decade: in California, the average college tuition rose 37% between 2000-2007, and in 2008, it rose a whopping 9%. Obviously wages haven’t kept up with this dramatic increase. But neither have financial aid grants. Now, college students across the country may see small relief in President Obama’s new budget, which aims at dramatically increasing the number of students eligible for Pell grants. Government Pell grants were originally designed to cover 80% of the cost of going to college. But given the sharp rise in tuition, they now cover barely a third of the costs. Obama’s budget increases the amount …
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Oil prices have fallen to $37 a barrel today, dropping 27 percent since last week. The low prices reflected at the pump are a welcome relief to car drivers across the country but few are paying attention to the global and domestic implications of those prices. According to author Michael T. Klare, low prices mean that oil producing countries are losing revenues, leading to cuts in their social services and public unrest. Low oil prices may also put research and development of alternative energy sources on hold. Which of course ensures that oil remains the dominant energy source for even longer. And, because of high surpluses as a result of a sudden drop in consumption from last year’s high prices, new oil …
On March 8, 1857, hundreds of New York based women working in garment and textile factories staged a strike protesting low wages, long working hours, inadequate pay, inhumane working conditions and the lack of voting rights. It was an historic event that laid the foundation for International Women’s Day, a yearly commemoration of the struggles of women worldwide. It’s fitting then, as we head into International Women’s Day weekend, for us to focus on how women are faring in these tough economic times. Even before the recession hit, women were earning 76% of what men earned on average and only a quarter of all businesses were owned by women. Among women, racial disparities showed that African American and Latina women earned less and had …
The Labor Department announced an unexpected jump in first-time claims for jobless benefits at the end of January. Initial unemployment claims increased by 35,000, the highest level in 26 years. The total number of people collecting jobless benefits has climbed to a record 4.79 million. According to veteran journalist and frequent Uprising guest, Chris Hedges, “the daily bleeding of thousands of jobs will soon turn our economic crisis into a political crisis.” Companies are laying workers off faster than expected, in an attempt to survive the recession. But the growing controversy over excessive CEO pay and incentives, particularly those receiving government bailout money, has angered Americans. In response, President Barack Obama announced a salary cap for those companies yesterday as he struggles to make …
U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announced yesterday a new one trillion dollar plan to purchase toxic assets from failing banks. According to Geithner, the newest bailout is designed to generate investment; however, Nobel Prize winning economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman sharply criticized the plan saying that it will be ineffectual. President Obama’s key economic adviser Christina Romero responded publicly in the media disagreeing with Krugman about the joint public-private sector plan while expressing confidence that the U.S. economy will shows discernable signs of recovery in twelve months. With the economy constantly in the news, from AIG’s controversial bonuses to the latest Department of the Treasury bailout plan, Media Matters has launched a new project to keep financial news accountable. The longtime …
