Alaska's Road to Nowhere

NY Times ^ | August 20, 2005 | HEATHER LENDE

[neverdem]

YOU have probably already heard about the pile of cash going to Alaska from the federal transportation bill. There's about a quarter of a billion dollars for a bridge to connect the airport on Gravina Island to Ketchikan (population 14,000). The bridge will rival the Golden Gate and Brooklyn Bridges in length and height.

Then there's $230 million or so for "Don Young's Way," a bridge between Anchorage and a swampy, undeveloped port, which is named for the man who got us the money, Alaska's lone congressman.

But it's the $15 million designated for a road between Juneau and Skagway that is dearest to me. Haines, the small town I live in, is close to Skagway - separated from it only by the waters of the upper Lynn Canal, which is not a canal at all, but the longest fjord in North America. The transportation money will go toward the first road ever to be built along the canal. Actually, the project will cost about $300 million to complete, but Gov. Frank Murkowski assures Alaskans that he'll get whatever he needs from the federal government.

The communities directly affected - Haines (population 2,400), Skagway (population 870) and Juneau (population 31,000) - have voiced opposition to the road for a host of good reasons: it is a waste of money; with at least two dozen avalanche chutes, it will be too dangerous to drive in winter, which is most of the year; we already have a fine ferry system that gets us just about everywhere we need to go in all kinds of weather; some places are too nice to be paved over.

Oh, and did I mention that the road won't fulfill its ostensible mission? The whole purpose of the new road was to connect Juneau to the Klondike Highway...

[youthgonewild]

Ol' Uncle Ted never fails to bring home the pork. If not for ANWR, Alaska would be a Dem stronghold.

[HostileTerritory]

When Hawaii and Alaska were admitted to the Union in the 1950s, it was with the expectation that Alaska's Democratic votes would balance Hawaii's Republican votes. No joke.

[Paul C. Jesup]

What part of "people who pay taxes, should benefit from those taxes," (in this case a bridge being built) do you not understand?

[Paul C. Jesup]

Let's take that reasoning to the next step. The population of eastern Massachusetts is about 300 times this number (14,000). The cost of the big dig is about 80 times the cost of this project. So, this means that it's self-financing, even though it's four times as costly as the big dig per user.

You forgot to take into to account the LARGE welfare population of Massachusetts.

[HostileTerritory]

Please, tell me more about the LARGE welfare population of Massachusetts. Not many of them commute on I-93. If we didn't have them, we'd be getting even less than 77 cents on the dollar for all of our federal taxes which go to Washington.

[Paul C. Jesup]

Please, tell me more about the LARGE welfare population of Massachusetts. Not many of them commute on I-93.

In the urban cities.

[HostileTerritory]

In the urban cities.

Like I said, tell me how many there are and how our percentage of welfare recipients stack up against the other states in the union. We're still sending a big surplus to Washington, so we must be doing something right. Where do you live?

[Paul C. Jesup]

Like I said, tell me how many there are and how our percentage of welfare recipients stack up against the other states in the union. We're still sending a big surplus to Washington, so we must be doing something right. Where do you live?

That doesn't change the fact that the federal taxes paid by that town will cover the funds for the bridge and then some.

Now, you can either be a greedy socialist New Englander or you can let's them have their bridge. The choice is your's...

[thackney]

Huge areas of single family homes on nice-sized lots, occupying a swath of land as big as downtown. This doesn't look like the Lower East Side to me.

I didn't claim it did. However, there is not enough undeveloped land to keep up with the growing population and not have them commuting more than 40 miles. You seem to advocate taking peoples land away from them, I do not. The average lot size is a lot smaller here than I experienced in Houston, Texas. And the new home construction is primarly multifamily dwelling.

[HostileTerritory]

the federal taxes paid by that town will cover the funds for the bridge and then some.

I'm surprised anyone was even taking that assertion seriously. It's ludicrous on its face.

[Kozak]

The part about getting back nearly 2 dollars for every dollar you guys pay in in taxes. FYI that extra dollar is harvested from the rest of us at gunpoint. don't believe me? Try not paying your federal taxes. I quess you guys in Alaska just enjoy your status of leech too much to give it up.

[thackney]

In 1992, Alaska got $1.26 back for every dollar it spent.

That is selective mathematics. Include all the money the federal government gets from mineral/resource development and see how the figures turn around.

[HostileTerritory]

I would like to learn more about how much the federal government gets from mineral and resource development. Please post some links, and I'll read them.

[HostileTerritory]

Apparently, defense spending and interest on the national debt are for the chumps in the other 49 states to pay for, while Alaskans are sending federal taxes as a down payment on big suspension bridges.

[thackney]

http://api-ec.api.org/policy/index.cfm?objectid=F80F6267-8868-11D5-BC6B00B0D0E15BFC&method=display_body&er=1&bitmask=1D798D14-3258-11D5-9F1A0008C7094D05

[Paul C. Jesup]

I quess you guys in Alaska just enjoy your status of leech too much to give it up.

I am not from Alaska, I live in Georgia US and have never been to Alaska.

[Paul C. Jesup]

I'm surprised anyone was even taking that assertion seriously. It's ludicrous on its face.

It is more lucid than sending billions of dollars (through taxes) overseas to those who hate us.

[185JHP]

"Politics is about who gets what." Sharpshooters and guards at the borders or more Verrazano-Narrows bridges...

[RightWhale]

The Feds own most of the North Slope. They own half of the revenue of Prudhoe Bay, all of the revenue of NPRA, and 90% of whatever revenue eventually comes from ANWR.

[porkchops 4 mahound]

Bite me Heather.

An entire US STATE with no new roads in thirty years, (ALASKA), because FEDERAL permits were not forthcoming. Not to mention the demonRAT b@stards on the East and Left coast who have kept our entire STATE tied up in deference to their Birkenstock wearing bunny hugging poesy sniffing know nothing voters.

You fail to mention the fact that the entire wealth of the Alaskan OIL pipeline, the pipeline that was built on the approved deal of splitting the royalties between the FEDERAL government and the STATE of ALASKA which was to be 10%feds /90% Alaska, in stated recognition that ALASKA is DIFFERENT than the lower 48. This deal that the Feds unilaterally, with the help of an demonRAT Governor and legislature, BROKE, so that now the FEDS get WAY more than 10%, and have for years.

This, (ALASKA), is a STATE, one of 50 equal STATES, the rest of you other 49 can't keep the entire FRIKKING STATE of ALASKA as a nature reserve, so you can feel OK about living in some urban/suburban hives. Or for any reason at all.

"We don't give a D@MN about how they do it OUTSIDE!"

As long as the rest of you other 49 US STATES get Federal Highways moneys, you don't have a d@mned VALID leg to bitch from.

I say again Heather, BITE ME!