Don't set your welcome mat out for the barbarians just yet.
# The transition to renewable fuels won't take place overnight. Back in the throes of the Industrial Revolution, coal replaced wood and dung but not completely. In fact, the use of coal allowed the forests of Western Europe to regenerate, and more wood became available to burn in fireplaces and bonfires. Nowadays folks burn Presto-Logs in their fireplaces as a prestige thing. I'll bet more wood is burned in Western Europe today than in the 19th-century. Wood is renewable if it isn't overused, but it's still wasteful and contributes to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
# Oil and natural gas has replaced coal in many instances but not in others. As the 21st-century matures, we'll see a mix of renewables and fossil fuels. The percentage of renewables in the energy equation will rise but never come near 75%. And many rural folks in India will still cook by burning dung.
# Road maintenance.
# If policymakers let engineers build roads properly, you wouldn't need to raid the piggybank to make repairs. The secret is in the roadbeds. The Romans knew and understood this because roads were crucial for their rapid response to bandits and barbarian raiders. The legions had to move quickly to catch the culprits red-handed. If all the interstates in the USA and Canada laid down Roman-style roadbeds (ten yards deep), the roads wouldn't experience frost damage and wouldn't experience sinking and upheavals due to underground water saturation or lack of it.
# Moreover, road building and maintenance was accomplished by the legionaries, not slaves as Hollywood would tell us.
# Imagine a compulsory Peace Corps for domestic purposes. Young folks between 16 and 23 would be drafted to work at least one-year building and rebuilding highways. The modest salary would be saved and contribute to University education. It would diminish the high unemployment of young folks and absolve many of crippling debts that young folks pay to keep their footballs teams in the Cotton Bowl.
# Resistance to such a plan is a sign of cultural decadence. USA had everything (all the gold and undamaged economy) after WW2. You can't expect to stand still on top of the global mountain. Your ball will (and has) rolled downhill.
# Same thing happened to UK after WW1. Britain was relatively undamaged, and added more colonies to its lion's share. But UK rested on its laurels, and it never evolved from the 19th-century model that made it the dominant beneficiary of the Cotton Empire. While Britain celebrated its steam-engine heritage, Germany was designing diesel tanks and bomber aircraft. USA could exploit a wealth of natural resources from within its borders without the hassle of pulling teeth from obdurate colonials. After WW2, UK became a 2nd-tier player, a throw-in after USA and USSR.
# Australia and Southeast Asia will carry much more weight in the 21st-century. Add the Indian subcontinent, and you have way more than 50% of the potential consumers worldwide. USA will still carry the brightest global torch, but it will be one of many and no longer the lone margin of influence. Eat your hearts out, Donald The Sheik and Betsy Crocker.
# Road maintenance is continuous in urban milieus. The problem is the surfaces are fused asphalt which lasts no more than 25 years on well-traveled avenues. In the summertime the asphalt melts and deforms, especially on downhills before stop & go lights. Heavyweight vehicles such as trucks and buses dig tires in the asphalt and create waves. After 15 years the smooth roadway resembles a lake during a windstorm in these special instances. As well, the old bugaboo of frost damage takes its toll on roads with shallow beds.
# Bridge maintenance is an inexact science because structural engineering is an inexact science. It hasn't advanced in theory since the Roman arch. But wait. Help may be on the horizon. Micro sensors can be placed in critical portions of the structure. In time, hard data will emerge as to how certain materials withstand load-bearing stress. Once officials can predict with confidence how long a bridge will remain safe for travelers, they can divvy the right amount of funds for maintenance. Less guesswork, more efficiency, and the public purse will stretch further.
# It could be I'm not informed concerning bridge maintenance as well as you are, but I did notice the surprise of USA tourists when they saw a couple of the newer suspension bridges in metro Vancouver. Apparently, very few bridges have been commissioned during recent decades in the USA. Policymakers are using outdated models to forecast future costs.
# For instance, you can save a lot on materials by using rigid struts versus vertical struts hanging from a cable. I suspect twice as many new-generation bridges can be built from the same amount of iron and steel. Combine this with better forecasting of wear & tear, and you get longer-lasting infrastructure at a much lower cost.
# Developing nations are using the latest technological innovations, and they are building and refurbishing bridges at a greater rate than here in North America or Western Europe. They will soon have the next generation of infrastructure installed and running. Well ahead of old fogies like USA or UK. The new kids on the block will be using the proceeds from all the treasury bills the Fed has printed to pay off tycoons like Donald.
# Did you know Donald is a model Muslim according to the Koran? He hasn't taken no more than four trophy wives, and he has provided enough for all the them. Win or lose the election, his ulterior motives are Trump Towers in Moscow and Tehran.
# The transition to renewable fuels won't take place overnight. Back in the throes of the Industrial Revolution, coal replaced wood and dung but not completely. In fact, the use of coal allowed the forests of Western Europe to regenerate, and more wood became available to burn in fireplaces and bonfires. Nowadays folks burn Presto-Logs in their fireplaces as a prestige thing. I'll bet more wood is burned in Western Europe today than in the 19th-century. Wood is renewable if it isn't overused, but it's still wasteful and contributes to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
# Oil and natural gas has replaced coal in many instances but not in others. As the 21st-century matures, we'll see a mix of renewables and fossil fuels. The percentage of renewables in the energy equation will rise but never come near 75%. And many rural folks in India will still cook by burning dung.
# Road maintenance.
# If policymakers let engineers build roads properly, you wouldn't need to raid the piggybank to make repairs. The secret is in the roadbeds. The Romans knew and understood this because roads were crucial for their rapid response to bandits and barbarian raiders. The legions had to move quickly to catch the culprits red-handed. If all the interstates in the USA and Canada laid down Roman-style roadbeds (ten yards deep), the roads wouldn't experience frost damage and wouldn't experience sinking and upheavals due to underground water saturation or lack of it.
# Moreover, road building and maintenance was accomplished by the legionaries, not slaves as Hollywood would tell us.
# Imagine a compulsory Peace Corps for domestic purposes. Young folks between 16 and 23 would be drafted to work at least one-year building and rebuilding highways. The modest salary would be saved and contribute to University education. It would diminish the high unemployment of young folks and absolve many of crippling debts that young folks pay to keep their footballs teams in the Cotton Bowl.
# Resistance to such a plan is a sign of cultural decadence. USA had everything (all the gold and undamaged economy) after WW2. You can't expect to stand still on top of the global mountain. Your ball will (and has) rolled downhill.
# Same thing happened to UK after WW1. Britain was relatively undamaged, and added more colonies to its lion's share. But UK rested on its laurels, and it never evolved from the 19th-century model that made it the dominant beneficiary of the Cotton Empire. While Britain celebrated its steam-engine heritage, Germany was designing diesel tanks and bomber aircraft. USA could exploit a wealth of natural resources from within its borders without the hassle of pulling teeth from obdurate colonials. After WW2, UK became a 2nd-tier player, a throw-in after USA and USSR.
# Australia and Southeast Asia will carry much more weight in the 21st-century. Add the Indian subcontinent, and you have way more than 50% of the potential consumers worldwide. USA will still carry the brightest global torch, but it will be one of many and no longer the lone margin of influence. Eat your hearts out, Donald The Sheik and Betsy Crocker.
# Road maintenance is continuous in urban milieus. The problem is the surfaces are fused asphalt which lasts no more than 25 years on well-traveled avenues. In the summertime the asphalt melts and deforms, especially on downhills before stop & go lights. Heavyweight vehicles such as trucks and buses dig tires in the asphalt and create waves. After 15 years the smooth roadway resembles a lake during a windstorm in these special instances. As well, the old bugaboo of frost damage takes its toll on roads with shallow beds.
# Bridge maintenance is an inexact science because structural engineering is an inexact science. It hasn't advanced in theory since the Roman arch. But wait. Help may be on the horizon. Micro sensors can be placed in critical portions of the structure. In time, hard data will emerge as to how certain materials withstand load-bearing stress. Once officials can predict with confidence how long a bridge will remain safe for travelers, they can divvy the right amount of funds for maintenance. Less guesswork, more efficiency, and the public purse will stretch further.
# It could be I'm not informed concerning bridge maintenance as well as you are, but I did notice the surprise of USA tourists when they saw a couple of the newer suspension bridges in metro Vancouver. Apparently, very few bridges have been commissioned during recent decades in the USA. Policymakers are using outdated models to forecast future costs.
# For instance, you can save a lot on materials by using rigid struts versus vertical struts hanging from a cable. I suspect twice as many new-generation bridges can be built from the same amount of iron and steel. Combine this with better forecasting of wear & tear, and you get longer-lasting infrastructure at a much lower cost.
# Developing nations are using the latest technological innovations, and they are building and refurbishing bridges at a greater rate than here in North America or Western Europe. They will soon have the next generation of infrastructure installed and running. Well ahead of old fogies like USA or UK. The new kids on the block will be using the proceeds from all the treasury bills the Fed has printed to pay off tycoons like Donald.
# Did you know Donald is a model Muslim according to the Koran? He hasn't taken no more than four trophy wives, and he has provided enough for all the them. Win or lose the election, his ulterior motives are Trump Towers in Moscow and Tehran.
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