Mangroves, Climate Change, and Mobilization
Mangrove forests as carbon sinks, and measures to restore them when they’ve been damaged.
Read more...Category Archives: Infrastructure
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.
Read more...Public-Private Partnerships Fad Fails
After the failure and abuses of privatization became apparent, public-private partnerships have since been promoted to mobilize private finance for the public purpose. PPPs have socialized costs and losses while ensuring private financial gains.
Read more...Climate Research Must Change to Help Communities Plan for the Future
Climate scientist Robert Koop argues for national investment in universities analogous to that of long-standing cooperative extension programs but applied to scientific climate risk management.
Read more...The New Deal, the Green New Deal, and Flood Control
Review of the Midwest flooding, history of the New Deal and flood control, and the Green New Deal and flood control.
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