I think this has always been the way we've paid for infrastructure. I remember reading an article about Japan. They've stopped taking on massive infrastructure projects, because the population isn't growing -- they don't want immigrants and people aren't having kids anymore. Without a future tax base to pay for infrastructure, they can't build it anymore. So things like the Tokyo subway system are "done"; no money will ever be available again to build anything.
I think we're beginning to see this in the US. In a few years, you won't be able to live in New Jersey and commute to New York City, or take the train from Boston to Washington D.C. The North River Tunnels will have collapsed, because we can't find any money to repair them.
Ultimately, it's a little disingenuous to say this is "selling your children". Yes, if we keep buying stuff, someone will have to pay for it. If society takes on projects that need to be paid for over 100 years, people that aren't born today will be spending some of their taxes on it. But with the right investments, it's almost certainly worth it. We can look back at some of the achievements over the last century and find that they probably grew the economy more than they cost, which makes them good investments when paid for collectively. In 1920, we didn't have an Interstate Highway System, we didn't live in the suburbs and commute to the city, we couldn't fly to the far corners of the world in 16 hours, we didn't have all of humanity's knowledge available in our pockets. There is no reason to believe that 2120 won't be just as good as long as we keep investing.
I think we're beginning to see this in the US. In a few years, you won't be able to live in New Jersey and commute to New York City, or take the train from Boston to Washington D.C. The North River Tunnels will have collapsed, because we can't find any money to repair them.
Ultimately, it's a little disingenuous to say this is "selling your children". Yes, if we keep buying stuff, someone will have to pay for it. If society takes on projects that need to be paid for over 100 years, people that aren't born today will be spending some of their taxes on it. But with the right investments, it's almost certainly worth it. We can look back at some of the achievements over the last century and find that they probably grew the economy more than they cost, which makes them good investments when paid for collectively. In 1920, we didn't have an Interstate Highway System, we didn't live in the suburbs and commute to the city, we couldn't fly to the far corners of the world in 16 hours, we didn't have all of humanity's knowledge available in our pockets. There is no reason to believe that 2120 won't be just as good as long as we keep investing.