Foreign Privatization of U.S. Highways

American roads are the hottest commodity in the international marketplace. State and local governments are falling all over themselves to sell off highways, bridges, and all sorts of other revenue-producing infrastructure, to international financiers who are eager to snap up structures Americans have already paid for, and for which they continue to pay maintenance costs through endless taxes.
The Chicago Skyway, for example, brought $1.83 billion from a Spanish-Australian partnership. The 157-mile Indiana tollway, brought $3.85 billion from the same partnership. And the state of Texas has recently concluded a deal to sell a Trans-Texas Corridor for $7.2 billion to the same Spanish company who partnered with a Texas construction company.

What’s going on here? Why are government officials so eager to sell off our infrastructure? Because it’s a win-win deal for everyone - except the people who pay taxes and use the highways. Governments get a pot full of cash up front, and the “public-private” partnerships get a long term cash-cow. The taxpayers and highway users get ______, well, you fill in the blank.


More: http://www.augustreview.com/news_commentary/north_american_union/foreign_privatization_of__u.s._highways_2007052160/

That or we're all gonna be one happily globalized world.

Though for all the talk of "US imperialism", we're selling more than we're buying...

What a scam.
Who gets these contracts? Big donors to politicians.
Boy have we been had.

Norquist got his way after all, Except we are the ones drowning in the bath tub.

this part reminded me of the Iraqi oil law:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-07-15-u.s.-highways_x.htm


I just hope all this globalization goes hand and hand with nationbuilding worldwide. Should other countries' conservative elements not drop their barriers, we could be in big trouble.