The Price Of Progre$$...??

[Aussiejeff]

Whilst sipping a latte in the Land of Milk and Honey and musing the future with rose coloured glasses I spotted this snippet that somewhat clouded the vision...

Indonesian truck drivers stuck in a massive traffic jam for more than a week say they have been forced to sell their belongings to buy food.

In a graphic example of infrastructure bottlenecks in South-East Asia's biggest economy, the jam stretches for 11 kilometres and has ensnared some 2,000 trucks.

It has choked the flow of goods by road and ferry from Merak port in west Java to Bakauheni port in south-east Sumatra, a crossing that should take less than three hours but has stranded some drivers since February 21.

Hungry and tired drivers said they just wanted to go home and expressed fury at the government's failure to ease traffic snarls that hamper trade and business across the sweeping archipelago, including the capital Jakarta.

"I've been stuck here for three days and I'm getting impatient. I've run out of money so I sold my mobile phone to buy food," said 35-year-old driver Surono.

"This is the third time I've been stuck in a traffic jam here this month and I really don't know what's the cause."

Another driver, 45-year-old Endin, said thieves had looted his vehicle while he was taking a nap.

"I was so tired of waiting I fell asleep. When I woke up, my wallet was gone. I'm hungry and tired. Please, I just want to go home," he said.

Indonesia has one of the fastest growing economies in the world, with output expected to top 6 per cent this year.

Yet it is befuddled by red tape, mired in corruption, and its ports, roads and airports are hopelessly inadequate for the pace of growth it hopes to sustain in coming years, according to investors and analysts.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/03/01/3152386.htm

Is this the type of Futureworld that we lust for?

Gawd help us...