Stop Kicking the Can

 I was returning home from a friend’s house to go to work on 880 North, I had a bad run with a pothole which really messed up my front tires and lead to my delay checking in for work.  Every time I go on the San Francisco Bay Area roads there is broken asphalt, potholes, and cracks which happened to ruin my car’s tires.  I am tired to see roads that come from a third world country.  A lot of people complain on this issue, they should have themselves to blame along with the politicians. The United States Highway System was built for defense businesses in the Cold War in the 1950s as a way to provide fast evacuations in case of a nuclear strike.  The road system resulted in economic benefits and a change in life style for Americans.  It was well funded and provided a quality of infrastructure that made America an economic superpower. However, these roads have stopped being maintained in the last four decades with anti-tax revolts and a dogmatic unwillingness to support these massive highway structures form sea to shining sea. This mentality of kicking the can which is delaying maintenance for future generations to pay for it later has resulted in sub par roads.  As a consequence, roads are decaying to the point that it is costing American lives.  The incident in Minnesota in which a bridge collapsed led to the deaths of many people was no accident. Ironically another bridge that is in similar danger is the Brooklyn Bridge.  I wonder a bridge of that much fame might cause us Americans to recognize that kicking the can mentality will result in more deaths.  We have to acknowledge the can cannot be kicked anymore. If you want good roads, you have to pay for it. It will require higher taxes to pay for the roads and firmer commitment to establishing on the state and federal level to properly deal with the back log of roads that need fixing. However, if we do not change, people will have to pay for it in their car bills, and people will die in horrendous situations that should not have been happening.  I think this a solvable situation.

We just need to show people that spending a little money will do a world of good for their lives and their cars.

Dogmatic

–adjective

of, pertaining to, or of the nature of a dogma or dogmas; doctrinal.

asserting opinions in a doctrinaire or arrogant manner; opinionated.

Horrendous

–adjective

shockingly dreadful; horrible: a horrendous crime.