I think a major point was missed: The reason for infrastructure projects is the meta effect called "jobs." There are no projects that don't take into consider

I think a major point was missed: The reason for infrastructure projects is the meta effect called "jobs." There are no projects that don't take into consideration how many blue collar jobs get created/maintained. You look at all the road and bridge projects and everything else and those projects are rarely centered around need but rather "how many jobs are preserved or created." That's what Obama's "shovel ready projects" were about. A lot of jobs are a form of welfare doled out by government. Unlike the true welfare recipients, there are people who prefer to work because it gives them a sense of satisfaction but similar to out and out welfare queens, they are recipients of a further form of welfare which they do trade labor for. But, unlike the true private sector, those who oversee these workers make sure that some new project springs up each year to keep them employed. It's a weird system...