PG&E Failed California. Here’s How the State Could Turn Things Around.
How PG&E came to dominate California’s electricity market, plus discussion of options to fix the fiery mess it has created.
Read more...Category Archives: Infrastructure
Electronic Voting Machine Debacle Continues in 2019, Setting Dangerous Precedent for 2020
Bloomberg’s recent story on electronic voting machines is good, but ignores their private equity owners, soft-pedals the role of corruption, and ignores the incursion of the intelligence community into the voting process.
Read more...Phase One of Grenfell Tower Inquiry Released, Towers Not Up to Code, Suggestions for Firefighters
Hot takes on the Phase One Grenfell Towers report, which makes good suggestions for the firefighters and determines that the Towers were not up to code, and what should happen in Phase Two.
Read more...Mangroves, Climate Change, and Mobilization
Mangrove forests as carbon sinks, and measures to restore them when they’ve been damaged.
Read more...Take the (Night) Train Redux
My recent trip on the night train from High Point, North Carolina, to NYC.
Read more...A European Perspective on Boeing’s 737 MAX Debacle: An “Existential Crisis” for a National Champion
Four existential threats to Boeing: Adverse court judgments, losing insurance retroactively, new competitors, and the end of today’s regulatory regime.
Read more...Libra: The Known Unknowns and Unknown Unknowns
The article assesses the information as yet made available about Libra, including the implications for its exchangeability, scalability, privacy, and security. It is clear the design of the currency is yet to be finished, and many questions remain about its governance and structure.
Read more...Who Will Pay for the Huge Costs of Holding Back Rising Seas?
Combatting rising seas is a big ticket item, and one beyond the meane even of prosperous cities.
Read more...Why We Need Publicly Owned Energy for a Green New Deal
Moving to zero carbon output requires a decentralized, publicly-owned energy system.
Read more...Reclaiming the Commons Through State Ownership? Maybe Not
Transnational state capital can be just as harmful as its private counterparts. Local, democratic and sustainable alternatives offer better protection.
Read more...Hit by Epic Construction Downturn, Mexico Faces Reality: New President Tries to Get Folks to Play by the Rules, and Everything Stalls
A sharp fall in construction has helped push Mexico to the verge of recession. The construction industry blames AMLO’s anti-corruption push.
Read more...Trump Promised Massive Infrastructure Projects—Instead We’ve Gotten Nothing
Even budget hawks ought to embrace infrastructure spending, since those projects typically produce $3 of tax revenues for every $1 spent when there’s a backlog, as we clearly have in the US. So what is Trump’s excuse?
Read more...Philadelphia Explosion One in String of ‘Near Miss’ Accidents at Refineries Using Deadly Chemical
Accounts emerging from workers and others on site paint a troubling picture of how close to disaster Philadelphia may have come.
Read more...Private Equity and “Institutional” Investor Owned U.K. Utility Engaged in Massive Fraud, Regulatory Evasions, Worker Coercion, Caused “Catastrophic” Environmental Damage
Abuses like raw sewage on beaches and faking regulatory filings make a U.K. water utility a new low in privatization scandals.
Read more...Victory Gardens in the World Wars (and in the Neoliberal Era)
A random walk through Victory Garden posters, with commentary, and a recommendation that the government mobilize to recreate them.
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