Spending taxpayers money on infrastructure is socialism? No, more like..

...if its abused, then its more like political pork, not socialism.

I have always been amazed by the arguments of a number of neo-conservatives who argue that, in all cases of government spending, all of it are bad, and all of it are a sign of socialism.

They forget that because the first rule in economics that not all sectors, and not all industries can be completely be covered by the private sector because of the economies of scale, and for realism. For example, to build roads for all to use, only the government can use government's taxpayers' monies to give to road construction companies(which successfully won the bid) to build them on a massive scale to faciliate movement of people quicker, and faster. This helps commerce since time is saved. And private companies can't build such infrastructure because they don't have enough money to build on a massive scale, and they cannot realistically ban anyone from using it if they do have the resources to go massive.

The same goes for the laying of higher quality of broadband internet cables, that helps expand the base of people online to do business online. The same goes for airports and roads and mass transits, where companies like Fed- Ex, DHL, Emirates, American airlines, Virgin, SIA, and Cathay, all profit based, can function well and transport goods and people on a massive scale.

In the end, its pretty clear that government here doesn't serve as a socialist bulwark. Instead its actually a faciliator. It helps to lower the scale of costs of infrastructure that helps the private sector to do business with each other and with consumers. Instead what this is all about is actually about pork and abuse of taxpayers money.

So all of these have to be transparent and clear, and be made available as public knowledge, online and offline. Parliament should have a check-and-balance authority, shared by the judiciary from the lower levels right up to the Supreme Court. And if there's any abuse, then its possible that any citizen who has the justified peeved feelings and have the proof can at least file a suit in that effect to rectify the situation.

This would reduce chances of people abusing the taxpayers money for any initiative, and also restore trust by people towards the system the government is running for them. Political pork shouldn't be in any package of infrastructure or even in any tax credits/cuts and rebates available in the annual budget- and governments from near and far should realise this.