Big Oil Dictating to Republicans No Gas tax Raise and No More Mass Transit.

[Nice Squirrel]

http://www.commondreams.org/news/20...est-groups-doing-their-best-kill-mass-transit

Fossil fuel-backed, billionaire-friendly interests are doing their best to kill any increase in the federal gas tax—in turn, hobbling efforts to boost mass transit or fix America's crumbling infrastructure.

Last Wednesday, a laundry list of about 50 anti-government groups, including the Koch Brothers-backed groups like Americans for Prosperity, Freedom Partners, and Club for Growth, sent a letter (pdf) to Congress stating "strong opposition" to raising the gas tax. The tax, which has sat at 18.4 cents per gallon since 1993, finances the dwindling Highway Trust Fund and pays for roads and bridges around the country.

The letter also criticizes Washington for continuing "to spend federal dollars on projects that have nothing to do with roads like bike paths and transit." Or, as Adler put it, "the Koch brothers just kicked mass transit in the face."

 

[Axulus]

http://www.commondreams.org/news/20...est-groups-doing-their-best-kill-mass-transit

Fossil fuel-backed, billionaire-friendly interests are doing their best to kill any increase in the federal gas tax—in turn, hobbling efforts to boost mass transit or fix America's crumbling infrastructure.

Last Wednesday, a laundry list of about 50 anti-government groups, including the Koch Brothers-backed groups like Americans for Prosperity, Freedom Partners, and Club for Growth, sent a letter (pdf) to Congress stating "strong opposition" to raising the gas tax. The tax, which has sat at 18.4 cents per gallon since 1993, finances the dwindling Highway Trust Fund and pays for roads and bridges around the country.

The letter also criticizes Washington for continuing "to spend federal dollars on projects that have nothing to do with roads like bike paths and transit." Or, as Adler put it, "the Koch brothers just kicked mass transit in the face."

crumbling infrastructure

crumbling infrastructure

crumbling infrastructure

 

[Derec]

I am actually in favor of increasing gas tax (or even better, a comprehensive carbon tax) as well as increased funding of transit, especially local rail.
If Obama were smart he'd use energy projects like drilling and Keystone XL as a bargaining chip for those and vice versa. Unfortunately though he seems to have drank the uncompromising Bill McKibbon Koolaid, which is sweetened by Tom Steyer's billions.

 

[untermensche]

Oligarchical control of the economy and government leads the nation and it's resources in the direction the oligarchs desire, not necessarily in a rational direction.

To move the nation in a rational direction requires democratic control of the government.

And a well educated and informed electorate trained to question authority and demand evidence.

The oligarchs want education to be all about conformity and the submission to arbitrary and absolute authority without question.

And that is what a lot of it is as a result.

 

[Axulus]

Oligarchical control of the economy and government leads the nation and it's resources in the direction the oligarchs desire, not necessarily in a rational direction.

To move the nation in a rational direction requires democratic control of the government.

And a well educated and informed electorate trained to question authority and demand evidence.

The oligarchs want education to be all about conformity and the submission to arbitrary and absolute authority without question.

And that is what a lot of it is as a result.

Standard far left canard: the reason more people don't agree with my political viewpoint and vote accordingly is because they are a bunch of sheeple brainwashed by the corporate media and corporate public education. It is a symptom of arrogance.

It's also funny: the far right believes the exact same thing: the reason why the population rejects God and supports "socialism" is because of the left wing media and brainwashing by government education.

 

[untermensche]

Oligarchical control of the economy and government leads the nation and it's resources in the direction the oligarchs desire, not necessarily in a rational direction.

To move the nation in a rational direction requires democratic control of the government.

And a well educated and informed electorate trained to question authority and demand evidence.

The oligarchs want education to be all about conformity and the submission to arbitrary and absolute authority without question.

And that is what a lot of it is as a result.

Standard far left canard: the reason more people don't agree with my political viewpoint and vote accordingly is because they are a bunch of sheeple brainwashed by the corporate media and corporate public education. It is a symptom of arrogance.

It's also funny: the far right believes the exact same thing: the reason why the population rejects God and supports "socialism" is because of the left wing media and brainwashing by government education.

You can go into the schools and see how conformity is demanded. You can go into the corporations and see the same.

What is standardized testing except an expression of desired conformity?

We can see how authority is bowed to by the major media.

And of course the control of the direction of the nation and it's resources is truly in the hands of a very few and they do not respond in the least to democratic demands.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

http://www.commondreams.org/news/20...est-groups-doing-their-best-kill-mass-transit

The letter also criticizes Washington for continuing "to spend federal dollars on projects that have nothing to do with roads like bike paths and transit." Or, as Adler put it, "the Koch brothers just kicked mass transit in the face."

crumbling infrastructure

crumbling infrastructure

crumbling infrastructure

As a person who has worked on several projects that literally involved bridges you could see sky through, while standing under them... the word crumbling isn't exactly inaccurate. The Minneapolis bridge was so bad, it was a risk to even try to rehab it.

So much of our large Interstate infrastructure is also eating deep into the safety factors of their original design. It isn't exactly dangerous, but the infrastructure needs attending too. And that is ignoring below surface utilities that are several decades to over a century old.

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Oligarchical control of the economy and government leads the nation and it's resources in the direction the oligarchs desire, not necessarily in a rational direction.

To move the nation in a rational direction requires democratic control of the government.

And a well educated and informed electorate trained to question authority and demand evidence.

The oligarchs want education to be all about conformity and the submission to arbitrary and absolute authority without question.

And that is what a lot of it is as a result.

Standard far left canard: the reason more people don't agree with my political viewpoint and vote accordingly is because they are a bunch of sheeple brainwashed by the corporate media and corporate public education. It is a symptom of arrogance.

It's also funny: the far right believes the exact same thing: the reason why the population rejects God and supports "socialism" is because of the left wing media and brainwashing by government education.

Great point. The Left think W was a bad President. The right thinks Obama was born in Kenya and is a Muslim. Great comparison.

 

[untermensche]

Great point. The Left think W was a bad President. The right thinks Obama was born in Kenya and is a Muslim. Great comparison.

I don't think he understands the extent of corporate influence on what is taught in the schools.

And of course not all of it is malicious.

A lot of it is just to supply the corporations with workers.

But the effect is that it narrows education and excludes certain types of individuals from education.

It turns education into a capitalist endeavor.

And capitalist endeavors are not endeavors that seek to raise all to the same level. They seek to create rigid hierarchies, and winners and losers.