Quote:
Originally Posted by ChiMIchael
My issue with this narrative is that most of these areas aren't particularly prosperous at this moment.
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Come on. That's like saying the farming in California's Central Valley doesn't benefit the whole United States just because Bakersfield and Fresno don't attract tourists. The eastern US "imports" almonds, etc., from California in the same way that the west coast and east coast "import" all of the crops and beef/poultry/dairy that is produced cheaply in the Midwest and moved cheaply away from it via
many cross-country railroads and modern highways.
The US transportation network has very few pinch-points that are privately controlled. The Ambassador Bridge in Detroit is a rare example, and it is being bypassed. Meanwhile, many other countries are hamstrung by oligarch-type characters who control ports, bridges, tunnels, airports, etc. The U.S. is just way too big for one bad actor to have significant influence.