If the United States Government is expecting a jump-start in the economy just because we will have new legislators in place to pass more open-ended laws, full of loopholes, then the new incoming administration has grossly underestimated the problem with America's infrastructure.

So many jobs that required a certain artisanship, or skilled trade, have been shipped overseas and outsourced to save on labor costs, that the U.S. is left with a glut of tradesmen with general skills and knowledge, but very few really good artisans left.  Ask anyone over the age of 40 how long it used to take to complete a construction project, and you probably won't believe their answers. 

It used to be an understood practice that construction crews would have to work hard and do a great (not good, but great) job, as quickly as possible, so that the company could add to their reputation and secure that next contract.  Workers were excellent craftsmen, and they knew how to work hard to get the job done safely and efficiently.  Pay was scaled in favor of tradesmen who were experienced and skilled, not for just showing up and turning a flag for $15/hour.  Workers took pride in what they did and still marvel at their accomplishments.

As evidence, just look at some of these marvels of American construction and look at the time it took to build these structures:  the Empire State Building took 1.5 years to complete, Hoover Dam took 4 years, Grand Coulee Dam took 8.5 years, the Mackinac Bridge took 3.5 years, the original World Trade Center took 7 years.  Even the Brooklyn Bridge, which took 13 years to complete in 1883, has withstood the test of time for over 100 years. 

Compare that to the "Big Dig" project in Boston, which broke ground in 1991 and officially was completed in 2007 to the tune of over $14.6 billion ($8.08 billion in 1982 dollars) spent in federal and state tax dollars as of 2006. A July 17, 2008 article in The Boston Globe stated, "In all, the project will cost an additional $7 billion in interest, bringing the total to a staggering $22 billion, according to a Globe review of hundreds of pages of state documents. It will not be paid off until 2038."  Couple this with the fact that there were thousands of leaks in the tunnel and a section of concrete fell and killed a woman, thus prompting the Governor to close the tunnel down for an additional three years to fix the problems caused by shoddy workmanship, and you have the epitome of what is wrong with the industrial and construction sector in the United States.

How did we go from building marvelous, monstrous structures that have withstood the test of time for over 100 years, to simple construction projects that cannot be complete on schedule, and/or within their allotted budgets? 

There is construction project going on near Indianapolis, right now, that has just asked for a three-month extension for a project that has already taken over a year to alter a half-mile section of road.  It is way over budget and has been a thorn in the side to many residents for far too long, already, but now the project manager has groveled to the city council begging for an extension due to unforeseen obstacles and delays.  And lets not forget that all of this will cost more money, too.

Construction companies and project managers have bastardized the system to purposely lengthen projects to run into each other, so that they can keep their labor forces constantly employed.  This practice minimizes having to hire and train new employees for each job and it keeps a constant stream of money flowing through the respective company.  Specialized jobs are outsourced, and construction workers are paid handsomely for their trouble, including shortened work schedules, extra time off (paid of course), and even benefits with some companies.

New laws have been passed to protect construction workers on highways, yet the workers continue to perform unsafe practices, like hopping over barriers in front of oncoming traffic, thinking the new laws protecting them are also some sort of invincibility cloak that allows them to flaunt stupidity in the face of common sense.  No additional safety training is required of these construction crews, and in many cases the workers do not even speak English, so they have no way of knowing what the company's policies and procedures concerning safe practices really are to begin with.

If America is going to bounce out of this economic funk we are currently in, then Congress is going to have to do something about the terrible practices of construction companies and the lack of skilled labor in our workforce.  Wages that are currently assigned to general laborers should be reserved for skilled artisans, only.  This serves as incentive for the general laborer to either become skilled or to seek out higher education.  Either way, that person will be the better for it.  It is an absolute travesty in this country, that a construction laborer, truck driver, or dockworker can start out making more money than a skilled professional like a teacher.  America's priorities and her compensation base are terribly skewed.  It's no wonder we're in the mess we're in.