Obama Stimulus Spending Will Target Roads, Bridges, Public Transit, and Energy Projects

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Companies must work on increasing revenue, cost cutting measures and restructuring debt. A plan that does not consder all three is doomed. Simply provinding more liquiting to compies that are not making a profit only delays the inevitable.

D. Fred Martinez of RI 11:31AM January 29, 2009

The government keeps giving all these big corporations all this money to get BAILED OUT like AIG. But where does the money go? To the CEO'S. Give the money to the people of the United States. Let us pay off our houses, our cars, our credit cards, and our hospital bills. Help us help ourselves. The big corporations just keep laying off people and that makes it harder for the people of America. We the people can make America strong again, not Corp. America.

John Messer of MO 2:54PM December 27, 2008

Our socio-economic-political system and way of life, left alone, without proper ethical regulation, check and balances, will self distruct. The concept that free enterprise left alone will self regulate,is down right dangerous and irresponsible. History has proven that. Free enterprise is left to man's free will, greed and the history of the culture. Our capitalist culture and history has been lased in some respect with unbriddled greed, nepotism, selfishness, crime ridden processes, corruption, self preservation-underlined with the presumption that the strongest will survive when slavery and outright slatter of natives and a racist prisson system, has been and is used to enrich some, mussle and impoverish others. Left alone without ethical-moral regulation, it will self destruct. The poor, the unrepresented, the dissenfranchised, even when highly educated, have and is still left out and not permitted from realy attaining, accomplishing or realizing his or her God's given life's potential; even after trying at great perril; because of a system that structurally excludes most people where it realy matters; if we are realy honest with ourselves. The legal system is directly tied with the political, economic, social to the extent that the poor and rich do not pay the same price for their crimes nor permitted the same opportunities as the well connected, the old boy network, nor the so called powerful families of the land; that is the reason why, we have the likes of Herbert Madoff, Enrons, Bush, Chaney and Kennedy, Bill Gates families; who in great ways have enrichdd themselves at others demise and perril; even when it seems that some great meteoric single occurence has occured like the election of Barack Obama.

Dr. Brooks Hamilton of CA 1:52PM December 26, 2008

Our North American electrical grid, once the envy throughout our world, remains very much in the same state as it has been for the past several decades. This electrical ecosystem connects virtually every home and business and is without a doubt our nation's most precious, yet grossly inefficient asset. Much of the energy derived from our carbon-emitting fossil fuel plant is lost as it traverses our outdated transmission and distribution infrastructure before it even gets to our homes and businesses. Yet with R&D of high-tech management systems and two-way communications to sensors and numerous other intelligent devices to optimize our grid, our energy industry is working diligently to create the tools and applications to help the nation’s electrical utilities realize the "Smart Grid" vision of the 21st century. Yet to be fully appreciated, renewable wind, solar and stored energy will make a dramatic contribution toward this vision. In addition, industry continues to improve upon high-tech residential (and commercial/industrial) metering with built-in two-way communication from the home area network (HAN) to electric utility data management systems, empowering customers with choices to more efficiently manage their energy consumption and ultimately lower their monthly bills. With these enablers, the utility and society benefits greatly through the avoidance of new fossil fuel plant construction and running peaking power plants when demand is high, thus reducing the expense and preventing additional carbon emissions.
This Smart Grid model is very promising and we're all in this together, but it's going to take investment – huge investment. In a stressed-out economy such as ours, the last thing we citizens want is a 15% to 50% utility rate hike to cover this critical but badly needed investment. This is where I believe Obama's stimulus spending can have enormous and historical impact on the greater good of our society, strengthening our nation’s most critical technical asset, dramatically improving reliability to prevent billions each year in lost revenue, and perhaps most importantly - creating quality, sustainable jobs for a large cross-section of skilled workers across our great nation.
If we citizens hold our representatives accountable to ensure nonsense pork stays out of the Obama stimulus package, we can achieve this and other great endeavors with regard to our national infrastructure.

Michael Henry of FL 8:19AM December 19, 2008

I really dont think it's going to help we the pepole, where is it said it will help the one's that have been hit the hardest, I my self have a auto loan that at the time was a good price for the disel truck but know it is worth nothing im 30,000 in dept and fuel is much more, I need help I need a bailout to help me pay my food cost fuel I donot have the money comming in to keep this up I have had to use credt cards my credt score has went from 760 to 640 do you think I can get help hell no , I am ready to lose every thing I worked for for 40 years while we sit and watch ceo get large amonts and have nice trips on the american people. How many people live in American what has been given to top ceo big company could have put me and others out of dept and able to start over . Screw the people again leave us in the cold to take us down once again.

Steve Bordeaux of FL 6:49PM December 16, 2008

I will wait until I see what he does,not speculate. Speculation, talk is all worthless. I will believe it when projects begin construction. Our nation is in a terrible state to compete with the likes of China. We need to make sure we are still a first rate nation, with a first world infrastructure, not a third world one.

Jack of CA 6:15PM December 08, 2008

ten thousand sounds nice. show me the money obama!

everett bowman of VA 3:19PM December 08, 2008

The question before Congress is not whether we should branch out in some bold new direction (read public transit), but whether or not we can find enough money to keep the rate of decay from accelerating.
Right now there is enough transportation revenue to cover about half of maintaining the current system at current levels of service.
New transit projects must pay for the roadway, the rolling stock, the fuel, the maintenance and the operator with all associated benefits out of the public treasury. Private vehicles require the public treasurey only to pay for the roadway. This public transit has a much higher initial cost and higher maintenance cost to the public treasury. Yes transit is overall cheaper per person, but it is more expensive to the public since for cars, the private citizen picks up all non-raodway cost (car, fuel, operator etc) themselves.
We do not have enough money to maintain the current system. Conditions will continue to get worse. The only debate is the rate of decay.
The amount of money needed to launch new directions in transportation isn't even being discussed, let alone on the table.
The gas tax does not change with inflation, and has only been adjusted twice (Clinton around 1993 and Reagan around 1982) in the past 30 years. Adjusted for inflation we have about one fourth of the money we did in the 1980's
Until more folks understand the real magnitude of the problem we are not going to get any meaningful discussion of the way forward.
Without a profound shift in culture, values and priorities transportation levels of service will continue to get worse. The real questions facing us are how to best manage the resources we have to slow the decline. There is not, and will not be enough money to do anything else.

CalifTransPlanner of CA 4:26PM November 21, 2008

Peter Drucker said, “If you don’t know where you are going, any plan will do.”
One element of where we need to go – and a big part of how we are going to get there! – is to create a sustainable transportation system. We need to define the characteristics of such a system (e.g., multi-modal, resilient, environmentally sound, energy efficient, health-friendly, etc.) and develop a strategy to take us from where we are to where we want and need to be.
How do we maintain our infrastructure while we rebalance our portfolio of service options/choices? What kind of investments should we make in new/different service options and capacity to help achieve key goals (e.g., GHG reductions)?
Right now there is a major opportunity – and need – to set a sound, new direction for transportation: the pending reauthorization of the Federal transportation program currently known as SAFETEA-LU. We should not respond to the current economic crisis with knee-jerk public works projects; rather we should challenge our transportation sector – as some are now challenging the big-three automakers – to come forward with a strategy for re-tooling our whole transportation system to meet the demands of the future and serve the broad needs of “we the people.”
We should not pour billions of dollars into the same kinds of projects and priorities that have produced the transportation challenges we face today. It is time to adopt a new vision for transportation, to head in a new direction, and adopt a plan and make the investments needed to get us there.

Bill Wikinson of MD 11:31AM November 21, 2008

The real question is do we have a plan to address the economic problems today? Bill Clinton claimed he had a plan. Obama must at some point soon that he has a team and plan to meet the needs of our future.
Our roads are in need of repair, but who get the jobs? Where are the side effects. What other jobs come from this infusion of cash? America needs smart investments. What will make the Big Three for competitive with our money? Will this be a loan?
What about health-care and education? Fear is a powerful word. We do not need it now. President Obamna must give the world confidence. Why not give everyone a Ten-Thousand Dollar to buy insurance, an American car and help with our educational program.
America dose not need a wish list as a plan. We need some sound analysis as to what must be done, how we must do it and when we can expect good news. This will make everyone happy. Why not. America has been on an elevator pointed downward and no one said a word.Now is the time to address our problems candidly. The only words to save us is God Bless America.

Jim of IL 8:51PM November 19, 2008