Metric System -- the Best Infrastructure Investment

At present, there are three countries worldwide that have not adopted the metric system (SI). Besides the United States, they are Liberia and Burma. Not the greatest company for the world's preeminent economy.

Barack Obama is calling for a stimulus package that will have immediate impact on employment and a long-term impact on the competitiveness of the country. I can't think of anything better than to begin the conversion to metric. There are a million small expenses. We need to begin with highway signs that display both systems. You could have people at work doing that in a month.

Some things are going to be difficult and expensive to convert. Buildings that have studs spaced in inches are going to be a challenge for decades. Nevertheless, this must be done eventually and there's no better time than when the economy is slow and much of the productive capacity is idle anyway.