Numbers that don't add up
It isn't easy trying to wrap your mind around some of the huge sums of money expended by government. The annual federal budget, for instance, is $2,500,000,000,000 It makes it that much harder to determine whether money is being spent wisely.
But some of the numbers hit you over the head. In New Jersey, for instance, the state wants to spend $120 million to build a new bridge connecting the Highlands and Sea Bright. The amount budgeted for 2008 -- $35.6 million -- is nearly 25 percent of the funding allocated by the state for all highway and bridge improvements in Monmouth County. To put that sum in perspective, it is only 20 percent less than the amount the state will spend to widen a 17-mile stretch of the Garden State Parkway south of Toms River. The Highlands bridge should be fixed, not completely rebuilt.
Here's another example that makes your jaw drop. A new high school under construction in New Brunswick, originally estimated to cost $97.9 million in 2003, is now expected to cost $187 million. By the time the cost overruns are tacked on, it will probably exceed one-fifth of a billion dollars. The high school has about 1,400 students.
A new elementary school being built in Neptune was expected to cost $42 million. That was before mold was discovered on sheathing used to wall off the building. The state says it will cost an additional $10 million to remediate it, which will involve tearing down the brick facade from most of the school, removing the insulation and sheathing, and then replacing everything.
Ten million dollars is the same amount New Jersey expects to spend on autism research this year. An estimated 12,000 to 18,000 people in this state have the disorder -- a number that continues to grow by leaps and bounds.
But some of the numbers hit you over the head. In New Jersey, for instance, the state wants to spend $120 million to build a new bridge connecting the Highlands and Sea Bright. The amount budgeted for 2008 -- $35.6 million -- is nearly 25 percent of the funding allocated by the state for all highway and bridge improvements in Monmouth County. To put that sum in perspective, it is only 20 percent less than the amount the state will spend to widen a 17-mile stretch of the Garden State Parkway south of Toms River. The Highlands bridge should be fixed, not completely rebuilt.
Here's another example that makes your jaw drop. A new high school under construction in New Brunswick, originally estimated to cost $97.9 million in 2003, is now expected to cost $187 million. By the time the cost overruns are tacked on, it will probably exceed one-fifth of a billion dollars. The high school has about 1,400 students.
A new elementary school being built in Neptune was expected to cost $42 million. That was before mold was discovered on sheathing used to wall off the building. The state says it will cost an additional $10 million to remediate it, which will involve tearing down the brick facade from most of the school, removing the insulation and sheathing, and then replacing everything.
Ten million dollars is the same amount New Jersey expects to spend on autism research this year. An estimated 12,000 to 18,000 people in this state have the disorder -- a number that continues to grow by leaps and bounds.
posted by Randy Bergmann at 3:13 PM
1 Comments:
Once, I wrote a letter to our president about the autism problem. I said "if we do not look into the cause of autism, we may become a country of autistic people". I don't think it's that far-fetched. I believe autism is caused by pollutants in our air and water. Anyone driving to Newark Airport from the south knows what I'm talking about. And it's not jut North Jersey spewing out pollutants. Benzene in our well water in Brick has been talked about too. But what is being done? I'm not sure.
By the way, our president did not respond to my letter. Our next president should be one who can focus on more than one issue...
Post a Comment
<< Home