No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No.....

[OmahaBlueDog]

http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/03/roads-and-highw.html

"The Department of Transportation, under this Administration, has made no secret of its desire to lease highways to private companies, to use tolls and congestion pricing, to auction off fast access to those willing to pay and to otherwise let free markets drive transportation. Under this view, breaking up the government monopoly on transportation could lead to innovation and more choices for the public. "

[gateley]

1. Do they EVER fucking learn? nt

[ThatsMyBarack]

17. They don'wanna.

[gateley]

25. Apparently. Assholes. nt

[MichiganVote]

2. Wait till they have to repair Michigan's roads....toooo funny

[Iris]

18. won't the government just give them some huge tax incentive to do it?

Maybe make them immune from taxes for 100 years or some such corporate style welfare.

[MichiganVote]

21. Yeah and then spend it on oh...toga parties?

[MrCoffee]

3. Wow is that a monumentally stupid idea

Which is saying something about this misAdministration

[trof]

4. We have a new expressway WITH a privately owned toll bridge.

And there are plans for another privately owned toll road in my county.
Public/government backed financing though.
:grr:
Hey, let's just privatize EVERYTHING.
:-(

[alfredo]

5. Wait until they start cutting deals with specific companies, giving them

an advantage over their competition.

[Uncle Joe]

6. There literally selling America away, they're nothing but Ferengi.

Next up is the air you breathe, just imagine what their mega corp cronies could make on that!

[lunatica]

22. And, of course, resistance is futile

:scared:

[spanone]

7. it never fucking works..and free markets my ass, bu$h* just facilitated the bear sterns deal

[MrCoffee]

9. Free markets are great until the marketeers stand to lose their shirts

that's when the shirtless are asked for their pants.

[hootinholler]

8. Already doing it in Northern Virginia. n/t

[cornermouse]

14. Talking about doing it in Missouri.

Forget Branson and the Ozarks unless you have a very thick wallet.

[lpbk2713]

10. Don't tell me ... BushCo wants to sell the Interstate Highway system to Dubai?

Am I close? I wouldn't be surprised.

[Hekate]

19. Very astute. Read this 2006 article.... as in, read'em and weep...

http://jonesreport.com/articles/150706_foreign_buying_roads.html

Foreign companies buying U.S. roads, bridges
AP | July 15, 2006

WASHINGTON — Roads and bridges built by U.S. taxpayers are starting to be sold off, and so far foreign-owned companies are doing the buying.

On a single day in June, an Australian-Spanish partnership paid $3.8 billion to lease the Indiana Toll Road. An Australian company bought a 99-year lease on Virginia's Pocahontas Parkway, and Texas officials decided to let a Spanish-American partnership build and run a toll road from Austin to Seguin for 50 years.

Few people know that the tolls from the U.S. side of the tunnel between Detroit and Windsor, Canada, go to a subsidiary of an Australian company — which also owns a bridge in Alabama.

Some experts welcome the trend. Robert Poole, transportation director for the conservative think tank Reason Foundation, said private investors can raise more money than politicians to build new roads because these kind of owners are willing to raise tolls.
<snip>

[MzNov]

11. What the hell is a "government monopoly?"

The highways in this country are part of the commons. We pay taxes to keep the roads. Selling them off seems illegal. Thom Hartmman has been talking about this for a long time.

My question is, if these bastards are privatizing all of our commons, are we going to get a huge tax break?? If our taxes are not going to schools, roads, the Post Office, then where the hell are they going??

(a rhetorical question, I could take a few guesses)

:mad: :mad:

[New Dawn]

12. First they sent our jobs overseas, now they want to steal our roads too.

The super-rich never stop wanting more and more. And because they control the government, they can get whatever they want.

[Maggie_May]

13. If they do this no more slowing down in construction zones

[KaptBunnyPants]

15. Good. Let the country burn.

America cannot be saved. Half the country is ready to vote for more Iraq, more economic ruin. The only cure for that level of stupidity is death.

[Elspeth]

16. Just part of "privatization." I hope the neo-knuckleheads who have supported the neocons

are unable to pay the high fees to drive on highways.

[Iris]

20. So, now it'll be gas AND toll fees.

[lunatica]

23. Bush's scorched earth policy

It'll get much worse. He's not happy with us for not making him a bigger god than Reagan. For not apperciatin him and all that hard werk presidentin is.

[alarimer]

24. Wouldn't it be funny if no one used them?

I can think of many ways to get places that do not involve using toll roads, private or otherwise. Unless they plan to eliminate all public roads, I think we can voice our displeasure by not giving these corporations our money.