Your personal digital dictator

No, really.....

Lets start at the start, with smart meters, part of an overall strategy of a "smart grid". On the surface, the 'smart meter' will function as a way for you (and the utility provider and the government) to monitor how much electricity you use and when. Below the surface, one of the functions of the smart meter is automated remote shutoff. That means the meter allows someone other than you to shut off any appliance you are using at any time, from a remote location.



Now why would anyone from any remote location turn off your air-conditioner in the middle of a hot summer day, or shut off your tv in the middle of your favorite show, or your microwave in the middle of heating up dinner?

The answer, at least in Pennsylvania is Act 129. Act 129 requires electric service providers (the power company) to reduce consumption by 1% by May 31, 2011, 3% by May 31 2013, and 4.5% by May 31 2013. The power companies are to implement these reductions through the use of smart meters which will tell the consumer, the power company and the government exactly how much power you use and when you use it.

The initial idea is to "facilitate" voluntary reduction in consumption by making electricity used during peak hours more expensive than electricity used during off-peak hours. If this doesn't work, and there is no reason found so far that it will work, at all, then the Power Companies are to move from "facilitating" power consumption reduction to coercing power consumption reduction. What that means is that for every hour you have a different specific limit on how much electricity you can use (buy), and if you go over that amount, the Power Company will simply shut off your power.

Make no mistake, if you use more electricity than they want you to use, they will shut you off. They will either shut you off or they will receive massive fines for missing their consumption reduction goals.

If you think I am kidding check out this information from Utility Service Partners the Federal Energy Policy Act of 2005 and the National Council on Electricity Policies guide to State by State implementation of the Federal Energy Policy Act.

This will affect the entire country. By the way, it was signed into law by George W Bush, so don't think that the little (R) or (D) next to a name means a damn thing. It really doesn't.