Bridge collapse in MSP

Sadly, no, there's not.

Should be a discussion, though, considering all of the shitty roads and bridges I find myself driving on during my road trips. I'd love to know where all of the gas tax money goes, especially in Illinois.

 

I'll throw my curmudgeonly $.02 in since I have a burr in my ass today:

These new roads/bridges will be built by the company with the lowest bid, and somecontractors have been known to cut corners to save a few bucks.

Apologies to those who have family members in the construction biz. Not all are like that.

 

Fenian Filosophy: Anything bad happens, Bush/Republicans fault.

 

And where, in this thread, did I say that?

 

Not to mention all the toll road money.

 

Yes... that's the GOP line on 9/11 and on myriad other things.

Wait and watch these assholes when the same sort of shit happens with a Dem in office.

 

Not like I'm terrified enough of bridges (and I have to walk over one to get to work) ...

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=cb27c2a3-7229-46c7-8c8c-386aba68825d&k=36547

The province's booming economy means its 7,000 bridges are carrying more heavy trucks, supplies and people than ever before -- and about half are nearing the end of their lifespan and need urgent inspections, rehabilitation and replacement, says one of Alberta's top structural engineers.

About half of the province's bridges were built in the 1960s or earlier, and structures of that vintage normally have a lifespan of about 50 years, said professor Roger Cheng, head of the University of Alberta's civil and environmental engineering department.

"It's not saying every bridge is unsafe, it's just saying that we do have a problem on our hands," he said Thursday.

 

Well, we already know it's Bush's fault that roads are in such "bad" shape here. What's Alberta's excuse?

 

King Ralph Klein ...

 

Are the bridges elsewhere in the country in tip-top shape? Having just been in Quebec, I can tell you the highways there are abysmal.

 

From Putting People First, 1992 (Bill Clinton):
...The 1980s saw the concrete foundations of the United States crumble as the investment gap widened between America and our global competitors. By the decade's end, Japan and Germany were investing more than 12 times what we spend on roads, bridges, sewers and the information networks and technologies of the future....
As a prominent part of our commitment to put people first, we will create a Rebuild America Fund, with a $20 billion Federal investment in each year for four years....
We will focus on ...
-Transportation, including renovation of our country's roads, bridges and railroads....

Both the Heritage Foundation and the National Review howled about this at the time. And, if that wasn't bad enough, once the deficit-hawks got ahold of Clinton, this was another good idea that went down the drain.

 

Hondo, I think you'd love the back-page editorial written in The Progressive on Dick Cheney.