It seems that one lesson to take away is that there's more to "public works" than just construction. Technology and science development, for one. However, havi

It seems that one lesson to take away is that there's more to "public works" than just construction. Technology and science development, for one. However, having been to Japan, I can say that, along with all the "waste" in rural areas, they have a genuinely better transport infrastructure than the US. Now, with the advent of telecommuting, maybe that looks less important. But extensive high-speed and local rail are fantastic for business; they literally carry customers straight to you in a way that requires less volition on the part of consumers than driving does. Also briefly mentioned in the article is that the US infrastructure has not been as well-maintained; a lot of this money is hardly "stimulus" but just necessary work that's been put off.