An Infrastructure Boondoggle

Signed nearly four years ago by President Joe Biden, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) was the nation’s largest-ever transportation and infrastructure legislation. Its supporters said that it would fix the nation’s crumbling roads and bridges, which had long been neglected.

With its $1.2 trillion price tag, that’s certainly what many expected. But Americans have seen little change, Judge Glock points out. “The roads, transit systems, and airports most in need of repair remain untouched, and the delays and cost overruns that plagued past projects have, if anything, worsened,” he writes.

The problem? The Biden administration was more focused on climate initiatives and union carve-outs than fixing highways. “The result has been a slow-rolling fiasco,” Glock observes.

Read about where it all went wrong in his summer issue story.

Earlier this week, the judge overseeing Luigi Mangione’s New York State prosecution tossed first-degree murder charges against him. Accused of killing health-care executive Brian Thompson, Mangione still faces a second-degree murder charge; if convicted, he would face life imprisonment as a maximum sentence—not a mandatory one.

What should concern us most, Tal Fortgang writes, is Mangione’s celebrity status. “Even as Americans increasingly worry about violence, some radicals still believe that Mangione is worth celebrating because Thompson, to them, was a symbol of evil,” Fortgang observes. “If enough people come to see the world as being populated by symbols rather than people, our laws will eventually reflect that view.”

Read his take.

Last week, the city of Malibu hosted a workshop for residents about how to protect their property. Back in May, the city council voted to hire private security guards to protect neighborhoods and deter potential looters.

Isn’t this the government’s job?

“As Hollywood slowly dies, so, too, do the public amenities that long ago, I’m told, made Los Angeles livable,” Julia Steinberg writes. “Some wealthy residents of Los Angeles fork over half of their paychecks to a government that cannot provide adequate policing, fire control, education, or public safety.”

Read more about L.A.’s public safety neglect.

Born in Santa Monica in 1936, Robert Redford never wanted to be a movie star. He was intensely private, and an aspiring painter for a time. But when he shifted to acting, he realized he was quite good at it.

“He possessed an enduring American sensibility—a blend of cool and regal, charm and rebellion,” Charles F. McElwee writes. “He broke the generation gap and drew young and old, men and women, to catch a glimpse of him.”

Read his remembrance of Redford, who died Tuesday at 89.

Why are so many young men becoming radicalized online? Rob Henderson, Carolyn Gorman, and Isabella Redjai examine the recent assassination of Charlie Kirk and the radicalization of his alleged killer, Tyler Robinson. They explore how social media and college campuses influence political beliefs and discuss the growing epidemic of loneliness and isolation. The conversation also addresses the normalization of violence and the blurred line between mental illness and political extremism, and what these disturbing trends might signal for the future.

“The answer to increasing violence is strict enforcement of all laws. Broken windows policing. Arrest for littering, public urination, disturbing the peace, blocking streets . . . anything and everything. The rabble-rousers need to understand that the majority will not tolerate their lawlessness. Restore order.”

Photo credit: Pete Marovich/The New York Times/Redux