The National Infrastructure Bill Finally Passes, And Without The Socialism "Build Back Better" Nonsense! How Great Is This For The United States?

[NYCQuestions1976]

If you live (and commute) anywhere in or near a major metropolitan area in the United States, you (more than likely) understand how important the National Infrastructure Bill is to this country. We need new roads, bridges, tunnels, rails, airports, terminals, seaports, schools, and many other long-overdue major construction projects in large cities and surrounding suburbs around the country. In the New York City metropolitan area alone, this will mean well over TWENTY YEARS of high-paying, blue-collar construction jobs.

Is the National Infrastructure Bill expensive? Yes it is. Very expensive. $1.2 trillion to be exact... but we as Americans need to bring our infrastructure into the 21st century and beyond. Let's get to work!

It's a fact that Joe Biden has had a hard time as President; the Afghanistan withdrawal was an unmitigated unorganized disaster, and I'm still annoyed that he cancelled the Keystone XL Pipeline (then asked OPEC to produce more energy like a hypocrite), but I stated many times that I'd give him credit if he managed to get the National Infrastructure Bill passed through the Senate (67 to 32) and the House (228 to 206), and he did (with some metropolitan Republican help, and no thanks to most of the socialists). Thank you, President Biden.

As for "Build Back Better"? Cry me a river, socialists.

Yes it's great, and it's long overdue! Two decades of work, here we come!

Yes it's great, but it's very expensive. $1.2 trillion is a lot of money.

No, because I hate spending money on anything.

No, because I'm a socialist that's throwing a tantrum because I didn't get my way.

No, because I'm from the middle of nowhere and I don't need infrastructure.

Updates

+1 y

Correction: The Senate vote that passed the National Infrastructure Bill was 69 to 30, not 67 to 32.

[legalboxers]

come on bro! give me a break, the Gowanus has been a boondoggle since I been taking the VZ to work and school since 1995. Also, you like driving on potholes the size of craters? I dont like dropping $2000 on a wheel alignment and new tires from them popping from hitting potholes. I dont like sitting in traffic and literally watching my hair turn white watching DOT do patch work on the damn roads. I dont like sitting in traffic for roving pothole repairs.

LaGuardia AirPort was told which looked like a 3rd World Country, they made it nice looking. JFK needs that too but I dont fly out of any (and the same for EWR) .. I dont fly. but regardless..

In order to get to someplace. You need to drive on a road to get from Point A to B or unless you shit gold bricks and piss gold bullion, you have a uber driver to take you everywhere. I like driving on paved roads.. not sitting in traffic

Anyone who thinks this is a BAD IDEA deserves to live OFF the Grid.
You commute to work by rail or bus. Water comes from pipes into your house, electricity comes to your house through wires. Now if those who are so ASS HURT against this, why didn't your Lord and Savior Donald J Trump come up with this and to move forward on this, and not focus on stopping people of color getting ahead, stopping a CHINA VIRUS, and worrying about fucking HILLARYS EMAILS and JOE BIDENS LAPTOP. He would of been re elected...

[NYCQuestions1976]

Actually, Trump and Cuomo (who HATE each other, but both "get it", being from New York) met a number of times outside of the public eye from 2017 to prior to the pandemic, trying to get this done via back channel bipartisan arm-twisting (you sometimes hear things when working in the commercial and industrial construction industry), but Trump was constantly having to turn his attention away from infrastructure to deal with other issues (some legitimate, some self-inflicted, some nonsensically false), and Cuomo apparently had his own issues to deal with in the shadows (prior to them becoming public). If you remember, Cuomo threatened a lawsuit against the Biden administration just as Biden was taking office in January 2021:

www.cityandstateny.com/.../

Why threaten a "politically friendly" administration so quickly? This is something that was in the works behind the scenes with Trump and Cuomo for a very long time, but it was completely delayed and derailed by the pandemic. It's finally been pushed over the finish line by Biden, and it's excellent news. Also a thanks needs to go to the moderate Democrats and suburban Republicans.

[legalboxers]

ty for MHO

[NYCQuestions1976]

No problem. I don't need to agree with someone 100% of the time to recognize a thorough response.

[jshm2]

You're confused.

Afghanistan was set in motion by Trump before Biden took office. Biden actually DELAYED the withdrawal by a month. Blame Trump and the overpaid military brass for that one.

Keystone XL was a disaster from the start and not even Trump could lie about it making private firms richer, rather than improve anything in the oil market. You just can't beat Arab oil for quality and price.

You also don't know jack shit about "socialism" to even have an informed opinion of what it is, let alone know what it is. It isn't put on a bumper sticker yet, for you people.

[NYCQuestions1976]

Regardless of whomever set Afghanistan in motion, does that mean President Biden and his military advisors didn't have the ability to implement a course correction before and/or during the withdrawal? Leaving Afghanistan was the correct decision, but performing the operation like lemmings running off a cliff was unnecessary and completely avoidable.

"You just can't beat Arab oil for quality and price."

That comment is so hilariously nonsensical and ridiculously stupid that it doesn't even warrant a proper rebuttal. As for the Keystone XL Pipeline being cancelled, it was going to be another tool for the United States and Canada to use for continued energy independence, prior to the course reversal of the Biden administration. Even Justin Trudeau, who's as liberal as they come, was against the decision to cancel the project.

As for not knowing socialism, should the United States strive to be more like "The Union Of European Socialist Republics"? The economies of France and Germany, via the redistribution mechanisms of the European Union, are keeping the Mediterranean countries afloat. Call it "hidden socialism" and/or "underlying socialism" if you like... but it's still a form of socialism. No thanks.

[Angeldrawers]

Well they are just enacting what Trump planned and they blocked.
Of course they will build it back better with new available technologies and construction techniques. China shouldn't be kicking our asses.

[NYCQuestions1976]

Well hopefully we won't be getting all the construction and infrastructure materials from China.

[Angeldrawers]

US industry started taking off during the last years obama administration.

[Gwenhwyfar]

I’m pretty happy. I think it’s a good compromise.

[NYCQuestions1976]

Yes I agree. It's going to mean a lot of work in this area for a very long time. It's going to take some time to get things started, but hopefully the planning and groundbreaking on some of the New York City projects will start to take place as soon as possible.

[tartaarsaus]

Lmao the bar for something to be socialism continues to reach new lows every week in the USA

[NYCQuestions1976]

Should we strive to be more like "The Union Of European Socialist Republics"? No thanks.

A society reliant on participation trophies is a soft society.

[tartaarsaus]

I can’t think of a single socialist country in the EU lol

[NYCQuestions1976]

The same way people who ride the subway for a lifetime can no longer smell the urine.

[tartaarsaus]

Yeah no. The reality is that there is no socialist country in the EU. The difference is that the word “socialist” in the US has lost all meaning

[tartaarsaus]

Literally all economies in the EU are market economies, for one.

[NYCQuestions1976]

The economies of France and Germany, via the redistribution mechanisms of the European Union, are keeping the Mediterranean countries afloat. Call it "hidden socialism" and/or "underlying socialism" if you like... but it's still a form of socialism.

[tartaarsaus]

It really isn’t lmao. Surely you must know that these debt aid by other EU nations is conditional on repayment and/or reform? The main mechanism with which southern European countries can pay off their debt is the ECB conducting expansionary monetary policy, which is not socialism.

And should I remind you that basically every developed economy (and yes, that includes the USA) intervenes in the market to protect consumers and prevent bankruptcy? Applying that logic, the USA has been socialist for many decades.

I understand that with weird American definitions that anything is socialist, but no EU economy is actually socialist.

[tartaarsaus]

Should I remind you the US government indirectly kept the financial sector afloat just last year by repo’ing trillions? Oh no, socialism!

[NYCQuestions1976]

Repayment? I hear Jesus is coming soon also. You're just describing semantics.

The United States is one country. Europe is a continent of many countries. The United States isn't perpetually bailing out Canada and Mexico they way France and Germany are perpetually bailing out the Mediterranean countries. It's the primary reason the United Kingdom left the European Union. Eventually the people of France and Germany will grow tired of perpetually financing government-sponsored laziness via ridiculous tax rates and vote to do the same.

[tartaarsaus]

Should I introduce you to the concept “monetary union”?

And do you then somehow think that giving domestic bail-outs is not socialism? Applying your logic, it is. The USA has a long, long history of using its tax money to bail out failing companies and the financial market.

And also, the very idea that bailing out implies socialism is preposterous.

[tartaarsaus]

And for the record, the anti-EU parties in France and Germany either shrunk massively or have been dumping their ideas of being for leaving the EU.

In France, Le Pen has ditched her exit ideas and nobody has any chance against Macron. And in Germany, the AfD got crushed a sweet month ago.

And mind you, the pandemic was the first time in about 7 years a bail-out happened as well, and by far most governments in Europe have been very eager to support that

[NYCQuestions1976]

Bailouts, corporate and government, ARE socialism, when the bailout bill comes due, and goes unpaid. A loan and/or bailout that goes unpaid by a company and/or government is wealth distribution in disguise. That's socialism.

A novel idea is just not accepting bailouts in the first place. Ford was offered a bailout in 2009, and they said NO... and they bounced back faster and better than all the other domestic automobile companies.

As for France and Germany, the same was said about the United Kingdom prior to them voting to leave the European Union. It may take a decade or score to happen, but it'll happen soon enough. You can't expect productive citizens of a country to continue to send half their annual income out of their own country and off into oblivion. It's financial lunacy.

[tartaarsaus]

Lmao that’s not socialism. Wealth redistribution in itself is not socialism, that’s a ridiculous definition of socialism. And perfectly fits with the US having a preposterously low bar of calling something socialism.

And no, the UK has always been the far more skeptic EU country. In other countries, those against the EU are being crushed or have zero hopes of really forming a government.

[tartaarsaus]

The UK historically has always had various schemes enabling them to have special treatment outside EU rules (such as their own pound). In contrast, France and Germany have historically consistently pushed for further EU integration and only continue to do so.

[NYCQuestions1976]

Again, the smell of urine is all around you... you've just become immune to the stench.

Give France and Germany time. You'll see. Or maybe they're all just used to the urine smell as well. If so, that's sad.

[tartaarsaus]

Again, the definition of socialism is just extremely weird and doesn’t make any economic sense.

[tartaarsaus]

And sure, both are constantly pushing for further integration and electorally punishing those against it.

And that’s smart in that situation

[Joker_]

I've been waiting for that bill to pass since I was 8 years old

[NYCQuestions1976]

Nice.

[OddBeMe]

Investing in our middle class is always a good investment.

[NYCQuestions1976]

Yes. Especially when it benefits the entire country. You need modern infrastructure to move goods and people.

[OddBeMe]

And to pay for it with taxes. From the wealthiest.

[NYCQuestions1976]

Well supposedly they're going to roll over unused Covid money that's already been set aside, and some of the annual money that's already allocated for the Department Of Transportation, which should cover approximately half the cost of the bill. So hopefully they won't need to mess with the tax brackets. If they need more money, they can divert funds away from other unnecessary government nonsense.

[OddBeMe]

Yeah, that’s the thing with emergencies. The govt has to be a bit liberal handing out cash. I received a PPP loan. Saved my business, same for several business associates. But of course asshole companies defraud PPP to get instant cash they use to buyback stocks. Then the govt will ask for it back plus a nominal penalty for the fraud. But the big company will have made extra millions taking needed funding from small businesses.

[NYCQuestions1976]

There's always going to be hands in the proverbial cookie jar. It's baked into the bureaucracy formula. Larger companies shouldn't be applying for loans that they don't financially qualify for, but at least they're paying those loans back to the government and not just defaulting on them. It's wrong, but better than a straight-up government bailout with zero financial return. Which is why I'm willing to bet that the federal oversight on this particular program is "accidentally" minimal at best, even with the regulation-loving Democrats in office. Inappropriate applications + loan repayment + interest + penalties = look the other way. We all live and exist in a giant perpetual DMV building.

[OddBeMe]

Well, if you read “The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy“, it’s pretty scary how empty Trump left the govt. we literally had no regulators minding the store.