[Peakoil] ACT Government's (Sub)urban Ponzi Scheme

[W & C Steensby]

The bad news about the ACT Government's decision to ignore trams (for the time being) reminds me of a arecent article:

The Growth Ponzi Scheme
http://www.strongtowns.org/the-growth-ponzi-scheme/

Excerpts:

1. "What we have found is that the underlying financing mechanisms of the suburban era -- our post-World War II pattern of development -- operates like a classic Ponzi scheme, with ever-increasing rates of growth necessary to sustain long-term liabilities."

2. "In each of these mechanisms, the local unit of government benefits from the enhanced revenues associated with new growth. But it also typically assumes the long-term liability for maintaining the new infrastructure. This exchange -- a near-term cash advantage for a long-term financial obligation -- is one element of a Ponzi scheme."

3. "The other is the realization that the revenue collected does not come near to covering the costs of maintaining the infrastructure. In America, we have a ticking time bomb of unfunded liability for infrastructure maintenance."

I suspect Australia is different only in not being as far along in the growth & decay cycle as the US is.

If you'd like a slide show, go to:

A Complete Guide To The Ponzi Scheme That Is Suburban America
http://www.businessinsider.com/suburban-america-ponzi-scheme-case-study-2011-10

and click on "Check out the suburban Ponzi scheme>" near the bottom of the screen.

Regards,
Walter