Mueller Lake Park Outdoor Amphitheater
Link Between Military's and City's Budget Shortfalls
RECEIVED Sun., June 14, 2009
Dear Editor,
The linkage between military adventures and Austin’s budget shortfalls is fairly easy to pinpoint. Since the original purpose of the Internet was to survive a nuclear attack, the military investment in that technology from 1968 to 1994 was essential to the ordered and timely migration of that technology to the commercial and consumer environment. Once this became a service for “everyone,” billions were spent building semiconductor, computer, software, and networking infrastructure in the Austin area, creating tens of thousands of jobs, many for newcomers. Now that that demand has tanked, the city is left with a hangover. Given that the military is now busily pursuing robotic vehicles that drive themselves, it is clear that at some point in the future Austin’s shortfall will be even larger, after a new round of factory construction, software development, research, and education peters out in some global economic retrenchment. I can think of other regions of the country that would like to trade our problems for theirs.
The linkage between military adventures and Austin’s budget shortfalls is fairly easy to pinpoint. Since the original purpose of the Internet was to survive a nuclear attack, the military investment in that technology from 1968 to 1994 was essential to the ordered and timely migration of that technology to the commercial and consumer environment. Once this became a service for “everyone,” billions were spent building semiconductor, computer, software, and networking infrastructure in the Austin area, creating tens of thousands of jobs, many for newcomers. Now that that demand has tanked, the city is left with a hangover. Given that the military is now busily pursuing robotic vehicles that drive themselves, it is clear that at some point in the future Austin’s shortfall will be even larger, after a new round of factory construction, software development, research, and education peters out in some global economic retrenchment. I can think of other regions of the country that would like to trade our problems for theirs.
Meredith Poor
