Exactly my point. We (royal we, referring to a large proportion of US inhabitants) pay a privately owned corporation for services essential to living. They are allowed to extract profit via rate hikes and service cuts and are additionally allowed to develop monopolies. Dead people are a sacrifice private industry is willing to make in pursuit of profit (see: American death ensurance).
The “separate but equal” Texan electrical grid is a textbook example of why utilities management should remain under the purview of a publicly-accountable governing body. My quip is dark because people died. Its also true. Its meant to quietly challenge the concept that a government levying taxes is tyrannical.
What do you think “investor-owned electric utilities” means? My WHOLE FUCKING POINT is that “competition” and “investor-owned” in the context of public utilities and services kills people.
Yep, soon enough we’ll all be just as fucked as Texans during a cold snap.
Idea: put the data centers in Texas. They have their own grid separate from the other two. It’ll be fun.
What’s the difference between Texas and taxes?
Taxes keep you warm in the winter
But we pay for utilities separate from our taxes.
Exactly my point. We (royal we, referring to a large proportion of US inhabitants) pay a privately owned corporation for services essential to living. They are allowed to extract profit via rate hikes and service cuts and are additionally allowed to develop monopolies. Dead people are a sacrifice private industry is willing to make in pursuit of profit (see: American death ensurance).
The “separate but equal” Texan electrical grid is a textbook example of why utilities management should remain under the purview of a publicly-accountable governing body. My quip is dark because people died. Its also true. Its meant to quietly challenge the concept that a government levying taxes is tyrannical.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Utility_Commission_of_Texas
Did you even care to read that article?
What do you think “investor-owned electric utilities” means? My WHOLE FUCKING POINT is that “competition” and “investor-owned” in the context of public utilities and services kills people.
Here, have a Wikipedia article;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture
Maybe Texans should elect someone who won’t appoint stooges to the PUC
Maybe the United States should pass laws that force public utilities to be owned by the public and operated as a nonprofit?
Tax dollars are/should be used to fund and improve the grid