| Infrastructure
Opinion - Privatization is Responsible for Our Collapsing Infrastructure
Although the need for infrastructure to be controlled by the public has always been evident, recent disasters which could have been avoided if private companies were responsible have emphasized this.
By Nicholas Just, May 14, 2021
Title Image: Ted Shaffrey
Last week, the Russian hacker group DarkSide shutdown the Colonial Oil Pipeline, a 5500 mile long line which runs from Houston to New York City and which powers the cars and heats the homes of the East Coast. Despite its importance, when it was held for ransom, Colonial Oil Pipeline Co. executives decided it would be in their best interest to allow their pipeline to shut down and cause a major shortage.
This is not an uncommon occurrence, as nearly everything, from our water reserves to our power grid, is vulnerable to cyber attacks and can be held for ransom at any moment. In Pinellas County, a similar attack occurred at a water treatment facility when a hacker was able to effectively poison the water.
Our nation's infrastructure’s cybersecurity, or lack thereof, is in massive part due to the outdatedness of the technology. “All computers used by water plant personnel were connected to the SCADA system and used the 32-bit version of the Windows 7 operating system,” according to the recent advisory…” Had the private organization seen it in its best interest to update their computers this catastrophe might have been prevented.
Not all of our infrastructures' pitfalls are seen when there is an attack, though. The February blizzard in Texas, for example, was responsible for at least 111 deaths over the course of a week largely due to a major power outage leaving roughly 5 million without electricity for the duration of the blizzard. Many of these deaths could have been avoided were it not for the power grid collapse, which happened because of its outdated and unprepared state.
Mismanagement of the Texas blizzard resulted in tens of avoidable deaths. AP Photo/Seth Perlman
During this disaster people were left with no access to food, water and warmth. Due to their inability to maintain prepared and safe infrastructure, corporations and private enterprises have proven that they are not reliable in ensuring continuity of these necessities.
We as a country know that when we depend on a private corporation to deliver what is necessary for survival, we are sometimes (literally) left in the dark when they cut corners for profit. Government regulation of these corporations works; that is, until the regulations are repealed when the corporations lobby a new politician into office.
Such is the case with the late Robert Murray, the top donor to Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and CEO of Murray Energy. Along with the hefty donation he gifted the former president, he gave Trump a wish list of 16 actions which mostly consisted of repealing regulations and laws that protected his employees’ and the general public.
We are being left in the dark by corporations which control the services we depend on, and that must change.
For more information about the US’s infrastructure, visit https://infrastructurereportcard.org/