Posted by
Vegas George on Monday, October 01, 2007 2:03:33 PM
Apparently parts of California, specifically including Los Angeles and San Francisco, are experiencing power shortages. The article "L.A. Calling for Lights-Out Hour," found at
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-lightsout29sep29,0,3411449.story?coll=la-home-center, reports that that L.A. is calling for everyone to turn out the lights, i.e. stop using power for an hour.
Well, in the first place, this kind of feel good token PC nonsense is worthless. I suppose it's meant to increase public awareness of an energy shortage problem. But, really, what good does that do? None.
This article, and the proposed L.A. hour of darkness, are symptomatic of a rampant stupidity that has infected every level of our modern culture. We periodically face shortages that effect supply and prices. This has happened with gasoline, heating oil, electric power, fresh water, even toilet paper. Always and everywhere the cry is the same: "Use less!" We've come to believe, and even depend upon using less as a solution to shortage. That's not just wrong, it's dumb.
When we have a shortage, we need MORE. That's the solution, getting MORE. Not using less. And, in every instance I can think of, the physical, natural resources are available for getting more. But, we don't. We don't because of Snail Darters, and Spotted Owls, and the fear of promoting (gasp!) growth, and the pusillanimous pussyfooters in the State Department, and a whole host of other reasons that have nothing whatsoever to do with the facts creating the shortage. Oh, I can appreciate the sentiments of these do gooder love children and their earth first, let the U.N. do it attitudes. I just don't want to pay for them. If recycling costs money instead of saving money, I say bury the crap in landfills.
So, L.A. wake up! If you need more energy so that your people can use their lights, build a power plant.