AIArchitect

so informative, thanks to tell us.

helpful post.

Felix Rohatyn’s proposal for a National Infrastructure Bank with $60 billion of capital doesn’t go far enough, and even worse, appears to rely heavily on private capital. The Congress could, and should, just as easily exercise its constitutional authority to create money by requiring the Fed to lend $600 billion or more for the same purposes.

In the past year, the Federal Reserve Bank has increased its balance sheet by over $1.2 trillion for the express purpose of propping up a morally bankrupt, clearly corrupt, and probably criminal, private banking system.

Also last year, the Fed returned 85% of interest paid on government debt to the Treasury (as it has done since the mid-1960s), essentially lending money almost interest-free given the low 3% interest rate on Treasury securities. The State of North Dakota has remained in better financial condition than almost every other state in no small part because it has a state-owned bank.

And, rather than being ripped-off by British bankers who would have lent the U.S. government money at 36% interest, (the greed of bankers is obviously nothing new), Abraham Lincoln financed the Civil War by issuing Greenbacks, successfully using the government’s power to create its own money.

There is no reason, other than the increasingly loud screams of crooked capitalists warning of creeping socialism, that our country cannot create its own money to fund its own infrastructure.

Positive change is usually not targeted at specific bodies of work or advantageous to the few at the expense of the majority. An Infrastructure Bank is an idea that needs close examination.

Prevailing wage rates ARE the crisis! Low wages have crippled the consumer and capital markets. No money means no sale and results in no profits. Wage earners ARE the consumer market. So paying people well, so they can buy houses to raise their families in, is GOOD for architects not bad.

The number one barrier to architects in the 21st Century is unlicensed practice. It is not rational that the bulk of the built environment is being designed by those least qualified. The AIA should work to change this current practice.

Architects get stronger and can best accomplish the professional mission, when we have possesion of more market share for the professional services we deliver.

An Infrastructure Bank will not dramatically change anything for architects who do not engage in public works projects. For those who do, it may be a good thing.

Government did not create this economic crisis. The private sector created the crisis in pretty much the same way the private sector created the great depression. In this case; excessive high risk lending took place by irresponsibly exploiting substantial regulatory gaps for fast profits by creating high risk loan products, selling them to borrowers, that were then turned over to other institutions, converted into securities by Wall Street insurance corporations and sold.

Separating the infrastructure funding from the "free trade" business as usual norm, may significantly improve built environment in those sectors where architects will enjoy a regulated market.

For those of us competing in the free market price competition with those who are uneducated, unqualified and unexamined, the infrastructure bank will not impact or improve anything for anyone.

Architects need to be able to make money and stay employed to bring a rapid correction to our cities. The current tolerance of unlicensed practice, does not serve the professions interests or the nations. Architects like doctors and lawyers can best serve the public welfare by uniform regulation. Applying regulation to only big projects and abandoning the bulk of the market place has deprived our cities of the best design intelligence available and demonstrably failed to serve the highest and best interest of the public welfare.

Will an Infrastructure Bank which further segments the market be good for most architects?

LOL. Considering all the stimulus money going to "infrastructure" is going to have mandatory Union Labor as payback for our dear leader's campaign, instead of hiring people at the prevailing wage rates, methinks that Nationalization of anything is wrong. Government can't fix the problems it creates or allows to happen, period. The way the bridge in St. Paul was rebuilt was GENIUS and done very quickly without all this hoopla. Read about it, this is how all infrastructure needs to be done, on time and within budget.

A very bad idea indeed. Standard $60 billion? Flexible? Non-partisan?

Have pigs begun to fly yet?