Andrew Brod argues building roads would help counter the recession.

In a column in the Greensboro News & Record, the director of UNC-Greensboro's Center for Business and Economic Research writes that a "comprehensive public works program" could help the state counter the recession.

He says issuing bonds to repair roads and bridges would "put people to work," while extending Internet service would help "the movement of ideas."

Rural Internet access in North Carolina is higher than in rural areas nationwide, and yet even here we lag behind the many industrialized countries whose broadband networks are superior to those in the United States, in terms of both access and speed. Redoubling the efforts and funding of e-NC would pay dividends well into the future.

The projects, Brod writes, would make North Carolina even more competitive and better able to withstand future economic downturns.

Hat Tip: Ed Cone