Post by jgaffney on Jan 6, 2011 16:46:48 GMT -5
This was in today's PeeDee:
Tea party group decries SmartMeters
PG&E's SmartMeter program took a beating at a tea party gathering in Cotati on Wednesday, with speakers calling the technology a threat to public health, personal privacy and consumers' budgets.
“The more you find out about this, the more scared you are,” said Rob States, a Bay Area mechanical engineer and clean energy activist.
About 150 people attended the meeting sponsored by the North Bay Patriots, part of the national Tea Party Patriots.
PG&E was invited to make a presentation, but decided not to take part, said utility spokesman Jeff Smith.
“We concluded it would not be the best format for us to connect with our customers,” he said.
<<snip>>
At Wednesday night's meeting in Cotati's Veterans Memorial Auditorium, States and two other anti-SmartMeter activists urged PG&E customers to resist the technology.
“It allows PG&E to literally look inside your house,” said Jeffry Fawcett, a radio host and holistic health educator. It also permits the utility to charge more for energy during periods of peak demand, he said.
I'm sorry folks, but this is the wrong stand to make. We all suffered through the blackouts in 2002, to the point that we lynched Grey Davis. But, now, to resist PG&E's efforts to upgrade the grid and prevent blackouts between now and when all that green energy ever comes on line is just dumb.
First of all, the SmartMeter does not allow PG&E to look inside your house. the meter records electrical usage as a function of time of day, instead of just overall usage. So, unless you have many banks of fluorescent lights over your marijuana farm, or an AC unit that you run at 65 degrees all day, you don't have anything to worry about. The idea that PG&E will use your electricity usage to come peeking in your windows is ludicrous. They are more than happy to sell you electricity at their rates.
Second, the policy of charging more for electricity during peak demand hours is exactly what we need right now. The environmentalists are doing everything they can to stymie every effort to expand the supply of electricity, and the uses of electricity (computers, industry, wells, etc.) keep going up and up. PG&E wants you to be more aware of how you use electricity, and when, and their constant exhortations don't have any effect. The best way to get people to change their usage habits is to increase the cost of electricity during the peak demand hours. If you have a water meter, it's a good bet that the water supplier is doing exactly the same thing.
I think this was a setup to disparage the local Tea Party movement. We don't need to join the "tin foil hat brigade" in their protests of the SmartMeters.
Tea party group decries SmartMeters
PG&E's SmartMeter program took a beating at a tea party gathering in Cotati on Wednesday, with speakers calling the technology a threat to public health, personal privacy and consumers' budgets.
“The more you find out about this, the more scared you are,” said Rob States, a Bay Area mechanical engineer and clean energy activist.
About 150 people attended the meeting sponsored by the North Bay Patriots, part of the national Tea Party Patriots.
PG&E was invited to make a presentation, but decided not to take part, said utility spokesman Jeff Smith.
“We concluded it would not be the best format for us to connect with our customers,” he said.
<<snip>>
At Wednesday night's meeting in Cotati's Veterans Memorial Auditorium, States and two other anti-SmartMeter activists urged PG&E customers to resist the technology.
“It allows PG&E to literally look inside your house,” said Jeffry Fawcett, a radio host and holistic health educator. It also permits the utility to charge more for energy during periods of peak demand, he said.
I'm sorry folks, but this is the wrong stand to make. We all suffered through the blackouts in 2002, to the point that we lynched Grey Davis. But, now, to resist PG&E's efforts to upgrade the grid and prevent blackouts between now and when all that green energy ever comes on line is just dumb.
First of all, the SmartMeter does not allow PG&E to look inside your house. the meter records electrical usage as a function of time of day, instead of just overall usage. So, unless you have many banks of fluorescent lights over your marijuana farm, or an AC unit that you run at 65 degrees all day, you don't have anything to worry about. The idea that PG&E will use your electricity usage to come peeking in your windows is ludicrous. They are more than happy to sell you electricity at their rates.
Second, the policy of charging more for electricity during peak demand hours is exactly what we need right now. The environmentalists are doing everything they can to stymie every effort to expand the supply of electricity, and the uses of electricity (computers, industry, wells, etc.) keep going up and up. PG&E wants you to be more aware of how you use electricity, and when, and their constant exhortations don't have any effect. The best way to get people to change their usage habits is to increase the cost of electricity during the peak demand hours. If you have a water meter, it's a good bet that the water supplier is doing exactly the same thing.
I think this was a setup to disparage the local Tea Party movement. We don't need to join the "tin foil hat brigade" in their protests of the SmartMeters.
