Yes. But then so is President Clinton, Bush the first, members of Congress, members of the House.
As I understand it the upkeep on the roads and highway system is two-fold. The states use a portion of the funds received from things like automobile registration and toll roads to fund the upkeep. They also receive federal funds. I-35 is a major highway running from Texas to Minnesota so it wasn't a state highway.
Our government doesn't think twice about funding for the war in Iraq but yet doesn't feel that it is necessary to keep its own citizens safe. Who do they think is paying for all this? You are and I am so is your mother and father, brothers and sisters and friends.
Maybe it's time to remind the "powers that be" in Washington of that.
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It's really sad that we can't fund the services that government should provide.
Get a grip. It's our fault, not the Democrats or the Republicans. We're getting the government we seem to deserve. If the quality is abysmal who has the power change it? Look in a mirror.
Second as an inspector said in an interview, the deterioration can be anything from stripping the rust and old paint off from the bridge and repainting it to keep it from rusting away, to the concrete bases needing to be replaced.
The bridge was being worked on at the time this happened, but no red flags had been sent from the inspectors to warrent and emergency. In fact there had been a statement a few hours earlier not to use the bridge sent on all radio stations and tv in that area. I would guess someone failed to have the bridge blocked while the work was being done, or what ever the reason was the messafge had been sent out.
From what I have heard, unless there is an emergency, it can take 3-5 years to get a crew out to work on one of these bridges. And if there are red flags raised by the inspector's inspections, then it can still take 1-2 years.
It has nothing to do with any president, it has to do with the level of degradation of the bridge and how backed-up the companies are that can work on them.
I just wanted to touch basis with you on the writing group you thought you might be interested in.
I know I could send this through Gather e-mail and I may do that too, just to make sure you get the info.
I did start a writing group.
Readers' / Writers' Unite
Are you a reader or a writer?
Would you like to earn money for your time and referrals?
If you answered yes to any of the above questions then the following web site is for you.
http://www.jewels-ebooks-4-u.com/page6.html
If the web link does not click through please try to copy and paste into your browser.
Once you get to the Readers' / Writers' Unite page, you will see the full details of how this new site is going to work.
If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me at:
R.W.U.Group@jewels-ebooks-4-u.com
Thanks,
Jewel
ps I see the links did not follow through so you can copie and past into your browser, or click on my name and see my last article I posted.
It's obvious that there was either something that wasn't apparent to the most recent inspectors or that something got a lot worse since the last inspection.
In the 80s there was a hotel in Kansas City that had a catwalk two stories above the lobby collapse. It turned out that the people who inspected the welds had been "influenced."
Any company that works on a bridge, has to have certain certifications for the safety of those that use the bridge. So there are not many companies out there that can actually work on the structures of bridges. Working on the pavement, painting, and such can be done by anyone qualified to do the job, but to work on the structure it is very different.
I think we need more companies to do this work, but without changing the certification protocols.
I could go for a war on cars falling into the river, and if a president wants to wage such a war on unstable bridges, I'll be the first to go trade my shame in for some fresh patriotism. What could it cost, a trillion dollars? I think we can find that kind of money for finally doing something constructive.
Everyone wants to vote for tax cuts, not stopping to think what those tax dollars are needed to pay for.
There is no magic wand of hidden pool of money from which needed things like infrastructure inspection, maintenance, repair and renovation can come out of. We have to pony up and pay the piper.
Or you can vote for lower taxes and watch your country fall down around your ears. Literally.
they were never intended for the huge amounts of traffic they now see
it was a matter of time and it's not the last of tragedy we will see regarding the aging system
I have driven over that bridge thousands and thousands of times. It's an extremely heavily used main artery into and out of Minneapolis. I take it to get to my parents house, my brother's house, shopping, and my volunteer job (luckily my full time job is the other direction). Driving around MPLS is going to be hell until the bridge is rebuilt, which I'm certain will take at least a couple of years.
Hard to believe, that something as basic as bridge safety could be compromised in the land of 10,000 taxes. It's something you kind of take for granted when you live in a state like MN, which places a high premium on public services and infrastructure.
"Dan Dorgan, the state bridge engineer, speaking to reporters at the site yesterday, said a recent study had raised concerns about cracks. The state had a choice of adding steel plates or carrying out a further inspection, and had opted for the latter.
"We thought we had done all we could. Obviously something went terribly wrong," he said."
The state had a choice... Said nothing about President Bush had a choice.
http://www.minneapolisbridgedisaster.com
I am thinking that this country needs to take care of our own before going outside our boarders (which need to be closed up also but that is another issue!).
Seriously, would you feed people in your neighborhood before your own family eats? I wouldn't but that is what it seems that is what our government is doing. I say we vote all of them out and start over!!
Perhaps there is enough blame to go around.
What is clear is that someone was responsible
and failed in their duty to keep that bridge safe.
Whether it was someone at MnDOT,
a politician or politicians, or whomever
it was, there should be a thorough
investigation and someone should,
at the very least, be fired.
So let's stop pointing fingers shall we
and wait until the investigation runs
it's course.