Its bad, I get it. But lets go back to 1968 when baby boomers who would give birth to the millennial generation was born. Vietnam, political assassinations , race riots, anarchist bombings. Throw in watergate and stagflation. The world has always been burning.
The reason it has gotten so expensive is that the lake they use to flood the locks is dangerously low. Thing is that lake is also their main source of drinking water. So there is limited capacity unless you deprive the Panamanian people of drinking water. It is a complex issue, and bluster and threats will not make it any better.