Group items tagged

Senators Sinema and Manchin, the two moderate democrats holding up Biden's infrastructure plan, were both pushed to back the bill in semi-private situations. The question is whether or not is a form of political action we should encourage or not

1 in 3 Africans do not have access to electricity. Providers are not reliable due to a lack on infrastructure. New measures may be able to change this helping both the providers and the customers.

I think that it's great that there are these new measures to implement affordable electricity to parts of Africa, but I wish the article went into more detail on when they are planning to take action/what year do they aim to have this completed.

Good point!

Video on infrastructure repair--worst flood in a century

China has poured $900 billion toward revamping Serbia's infrastructure. Serbia will be along the New Silk Road: a transport corridor running from China to Western Europe. The Chinese initiative is an example of their growing sphere of influence. The EU is concerned since its relations with the West Balkan countries is already weak. 

Bolivia is struggling to contain the spread of coronavirus as a result of political turmoil and weak infrastructure. Bolivia's interim president, Jeanine Áñez, announced in late January of this year that she would be running for office, and postponed the election from May to October over concerns that the pandemic would make voting unsafe. Her decision to run for president strained her relationship with opposition lawmakers and officials, which resulted in a disorganized effort to combat the pandemic. Roadblocks and protests by labor unions and supporters of former president Evo Morales have further hindered Bolivia's response. Bolivia's ineffective efforts have left hospitals without the equipment required, leaving many infected without care.

This is a scary reality for many countries in south and central America. I have seen reports of extremely high death rates due to the lack of care available and the weak infrastructure of these countries. For example, Guatemala is dealing with a similar problem. They have had to dig mass graves for unidentified coronavirus victims and the reported death and case rate is not accurate. It would be interesting to look at the history of these countries, the way America had a role in them, and why they are being hit so hard by the pandemic.

I find this example particularly unique to point out the effect of a weak and disunited government on how emergencies are handled. It seems as though the Bolivian government can only blame itself for the civilian lives lost. In my opinion, this parallels with the U.S., albeit to a lesser degree, as political disagreements and disunification have allowed the virus to sweep across the country before plans and safety measures were implemented.

With another rainstorm and hurricane immediately following the aftermath of Ida, we are all seeing how climate change is affecting the world. I am curious what plans politicians can make for future events, in addition to all the relief efforts.

I am also very curios to see what schemes (not using the word in a pejorative sense here) the politicians draw up to protect hundreds and hundreds of miles of coast from flooding. Also, what type of infrastructure can you build that stops natural floods that are simply caused by heavy rain? At a certain point it seems like nature is trying to tell us to get more flexible...

You are curious to see what plans "the politicians draw up to protect hundreds and hundreds of miles of coast from flooding. Also, what type of infrastructure can you build that stops natural floods that are simply caused by heavy rain?" See, that's the thing. The rising tides cannot be held back for long. Millions of people will probably have to abandon their homes. A few will be able to afford structures that are capable of floating when necessary. . .

Intelligence officials are saying that even after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, the biggest threats to the US are from other countries. Because we can't go to war with everyone (and the number of people that wars hurt fuel anti-US sentiment) I wonder if a more effective strategy against these threats will be developed.

Such an astute observation and good question. Empires have fallen on the swords, so to speak, from spending too much on their militaries at the expense of infrastructure and "human infrastructure."

This is more light hearted...but also important for infrastructure

South Africa is a water scarce country. Its water resource are comparatively small for a nation with its population, and this deficit has caused water scarcity many times in the past. However, this time the water shortage is not due to low supply, but rather poor management. South Africa has woefully insufficient infrastructure spending, and facilities have not been majorly improved since the seventies. Current estimates put the share of municipal non-revenue water as high as 41%, i.e. 41% of the water that leaves reservoirs and treatment facilities is lost to leakage before it reaches consumers.

Question that might require research to answer: WHY does South Africa have woefully insufficient infrastructure spending? And WHY have facilities not been majorly improved since the seventies? The answers to these questions might point to solutions or to deep seated ways of thinking that get in the way of South Africa's ability to provide basic services to its population.

In the past 16 years the World Bank has committed more than $2 billion to education in India. Attendance of primary school, which was the first goal, has dramatically improved, however secondary education is still struggling, so India is now turning its focus to that.

Really cool ideas being shared on how a modern city-state can develop its economy.

Interesting to see how just the geography of a country can shape its economic growth and international trades importance. Also how improving internal infrastructures affect international trade and domestic econmies.

An uncomfortable article about the UN in Congo. It talks about how the UN has spent billions of dollars and more than a decade on trying to keep peace, but they've accomplished very little.

These rapings are atrocious, and I'm surprised that its coverage on the media has been so meagre, considering the long history of the crisis in the Congo. While the U.N. has not been able to improve the Congo significantly, I'm wondering if the problems lie in the desolateness of the area (no lines of communication, etc) or in the management of the U.N. bases there. I believe that the U.N. could be doing more, but I don't think they should be the only solution; the local economy and infrastructure must improve as well so that better communication and control can be established.

What was most shocking to me about this article was the scale on which this is happening in Congo and how open the attackers are about it- raping an 80 year old woman, raping women with UN peacekeepers right up the street. The rapists have absolutely no limits. Scary and very sad. It was equally shocking that the Congo government (police, law enforcement etc) has been unwilling or unable to do anything about this (the article cited them as often "too drunk" to do much about it). It's sad and heart wrenching that the UN has so far been unable to come up with a plan to help these people, and perhaps even more sad that their own government hasn't done anything. It's notable that Congo is being called the "UN's crowning failure" and their greatest failure so far.

The EU plans to increase next years budget for infrastructure and other projects while taxes and pay cuts increase across European borders. Some say this will curb austerity and keep the shaky economy afloat, but others argue that the EU's headquarters in Brussels is too remote to understand the impact this has on each of the 27 countries. Many are fed up that national governments must cut down on public spending while the EU increases their own budget. This article showcases one of the many difficulties in the management of a transnational body.

The lack of infrastructure in the developing world is both a liability and a potential asset. We are already witnessing a surge of activity in the introduction of solar, wind and other renewable energy technologies that will boost the development trajectories of countries with enormous potential.

Instead of requiring strict social distancing measures and lockdowns like the United States, France and many other European countries have encouraged citizens to go back to their normal lives. The countries are confident that with widespread testing, medical infrastructure, and mask availability, they will be able to control a surge in cases and limit hospitalizations. This move is still controversial, as many think that letting the virus "run its course" would disproportionately impact immunocompromised and the elderly. Yet, the majority of recent cases have been in young people, likely due to their increased socialization. I think this is interesting and possibly a more practical COVID response than lockdowns, which people rarely follow. I wonder if an approach like this could work in the United States, but the pandemic response remains highly political here.

I feel like this strategy used in Europe is much more likely to succeed than if it was used in the US, as I agree with you that in Europe the coronavirus response is less of a political issue and more of a health crisis. Therefore, in Europe, people more vulnerable to the virus are more likely to stay home and carry out social distancing protocol for their own and others' safety than the US, where coronavirus safety guidelines are sometimes seen as an encroachment on people's individual freedoms. In the US it is much more unclear as to whether this kind of approach would really work, not only because of the pandemic response being politicized but also because of many refusing to wear a mask and US covid-19 testing issues.

Under the Northern Ireland protocol, Northern Ireland will continue to follow the EU's customs rules on product standards even after Brexit. The purpose of this is to keep the UK-ROI border free from any border post infrastructure, so as to not create political instability. As a result of the protocol, tariffs may be charged on goods being shipped from the rest of the UK into Northern Ireland, but as long as the goods stay in Northern Ireland, the tariff would be refunded.

It is interesting that all of these different protocols are necessary to maintain political stability. I am still a bit confused as to how this tariff will keep political stability, but I think that is a function of my lack of knowledge regarding Brexit and what happened with Northern Ireland. As such, I would be interested in learning about this on a deeper level so I can have the context necessary to understand this article.

This is a bit of a longer read, but it's an interesting one. It examines the intersection of a multitude of political and infrastructure based issues that could lead to a large scale disaster.

This really illuminates how interconnected our world is; a political decision by a single group in a particular country can impact the entire world.

I love new yorker reads! This one in particular does a good job of the classic multi view style!