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Similar great article on this about why building a subway in NYC is so expensive https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/05/new-york-infrastructure-costs.html http

Similar great article on this about why building a subway in NYC is so expensive https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/05/new-york-infrastructure-costs.html https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/05/new-york-infrastruct... They will have multiple “studies” by politically connected firms that go straight in the trash as they have no value whatsoever (among many other scams). A friend of mine was interested in opening a coffee shop with a wine license in Boston near the common, and the consultant she hired said that the best way to make this happen was to hire this specific law firm at $1000 per hour, and all the permits would sail through committees. If she hired any other firm it would be delayed, and delayed, put on extra reviews, cost her more and take years to complete. Corruption in a less overt way. Big government types have their heart in the right place, but the reality of human nature and the dirty business of politics is why we can’t have nice things. Some people in government are good, but those that seek and gain power are not the type of people you want guarding our treasury. It’s a tale as old as civilization and it never changes.

throwawaysea 6y ago
This sounds a lot like what’s happening in Seattle. There was a recent controversy with the “Black Brilliance Project” (https://sccinsight.com/2021/03/08/black-brilliance-research-project-wraps-up-with-allegations-recriminations-but-no-city-investigation/ https://sccinsight.com/2021/03/08/black-brilliance-research-...) that seems to have been just blatant corruption that took advantage of the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement. A bit further back, the city has been giving away taxpayer owned property to favored nonprofits instead of selling them (https://durkan.seattle.gov/2020/11/mayor-durkan-applauds-city-councils-vote-to-transfer-the-central-area-senior-center-and-fire-station-6-to-black-led-community-organizations/ https://durkan.seattle.gov/2020/11/mayor-durkan-applauds-cit...), and justifying it using vague progressive justifications. If you go back further there are examples of corruption in the city’s “homeless-industrial complex” (https://roominate.com/blog/2016/anatomy-of-a-swindle/ https://roominate.com/blog/2016/anatomy-of-a-swindle/).
perl4ever 6y ago
What I have seen in government is that there are lots of constraints laid down by politicians that are ill-considered, and the bureaucrats work around them such that in practice, things function more like a private business. How do you know the consultant wasn't lying in order to get business for the law firm?

throwawaysea 6y ago

This sounds a lot like what’s happening in Seattle. There was a recent controversy with the “Black Brilliance Project” (https://sccinsight.com/2021/03/08/black-brilliance-research-project-wraps-up-with-allegations-recriminations-but-no-city-investigation/ https://sccinsight.com/2021/03/08/black-brilliance-research-...) that seems to have been just blatant corruption that took advantage of the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement. A bit further back, the city has been giving away taxpayer owned property to favored nonprofits instead of selling them (https://durkan.seattle.gov/2020/11/mayor-durkan-applauds-city-councils-vote-to-transfer-the-central-area-senior-center-and-fire-station-6-to-black-led-community-organizations/ https://durkan.seattle.gov/2020/11/mayor-durkan-applauds-cit...), and justifying it using vague progressive justifications. If you go back further there are examples of corruption in the city’s “homeless-industrial complex” (https://roominate.com/blog/2016/anatomy-of-a-swindle/ https://roominate.com/blog/2016/anatomy-of-a-swindle/).

perl4ever 6y ago

What I have seen in government is that there are lots of constraints laid down by politicians that are ill-considered, and the bureaucrats work around them such that in practice, things function more like a private business. How do you know the consultant wasn't lying in order to get business for the law firm?