A CASE WHERE VALUES OF THE ECONOMY OF THE USA ARE REVEALED:
Simon Johnson observes in his blog, "The Baseline Scenario": "You cannot design a financial system that is immune to crash – this would be like declaring earthquakes illegal. But in the aftermath of unexpectedly high damage from a serious earthquake, it makes sense to completely overhaul your building code and retrofit vulnerable buildings. In fact, if you largely ignored what the earthquake revealed in terms of structural weakness, wouldn't that be negligence?" (June 25, 2009).
Well, pondering the philosophy of earthquakes, so to speak, has been one of my preferred themes. It is very revealing of the true values of the socioeconomy of the USA, and how one got there.
Speaking of earthquakes, indeed, California is grossly unprepared (building codes are grossly inappropriate). Several big ones are expected anytime, and, if they struck in metro areas (one earthquake of more than 7 Richter is due in the central San Francisco Bay Area), they could kill many thousands (maybe up to 50,000).
And what is being done? Well, the city of San Francisco has admitted that many thousands homes should collapse (due to their pathetically weak garages in front and below). And one is just waiting. Although the irony is that doing something about impending vast death and immense destruction would help the economy right away (there is a 11.5% unemployment rate in California, May 2009). This is a case where a state, and, or, federal mandate for more strongly built homes, would enforce frantic construction, spurring the economy, and saving thousands tomorrow.
So why is nothing being done? Probably because construction by the people for the people does not particularly fascinate the plutocracy. What's in it for the oligarchy? Nothing much (they live somewhere else in better homes). Actually spending money on housing for normal people would be as much money not going to banks, their bankers, and their shadows.
Patrice Ayme
http://patriceayme.wordpress.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment