Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/25133
6A – Daily News – Monday, February 14, 2011 Opinion SmartMeter bleaters and cheerleaders D NEWSAILY RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Greg Stevens, Publisher gstevens@redbluffdailynews.com Chip Thompson, Editor editor@redbluffdailynews.com Editorial policy The Daily News opinion is expressed in the editorial. The opinions expressed in columns, letters and cartoons are those of the authors and artists. Letter policy The Daily News welcomes let- ters from its readers on timely topics of public interest. All let- ters must be signed and pro- vide the writer’s home street address and home phone num- ber. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and cannot exceed two double-spaced pages or 500 words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section of those submit- ted will be considered for publi- cation. Letters will be edited. Letters are published at the discretion of the editor. Mission Statement We believe that a strong com- munity newspaper is essential to a strong community, creating citizens who are better informed and more involved. The Daily News will be the indispensible guide to life and living in Tehama County. We will be the premier provider of local news, information and advertising through our daily newspaper, online edition and other print and Internet vehi- cles. The Daily News will reflect and support the unique identities of Tehama County and its cities; record the history of its com- munities and their people and make a positive difference in the quality of life for the resi- dents and businesses of Tehama County. How to reach us Main office: 527-2151 Classified: 527-2151 Circulation: 527-2151 News tips: 527-2153 Sports: 527-2153 Obituaries: 527-2151 Photo: 527-2153 On the Web www.redbluffdailynews.com Fax Newsroom: 527-9251 Classified: 527-5774 Retail Adv.: 527-5774 Legal Adv.: 527-5774 Business Office: 527-3719 Address 545 Diamond Ave. Red Bluff, CA 96080, or P.O. Box 220 Red Bluff, CA 96080 As PG&E upgrades utility operation by installing "smart" meters for residential customers in the north state the voices of skepti- cal bleaters are reaching a fever pitch replete with Tea Party con- sternation and regurgitated con- cerns about health risks, data secu- rity and a corporate malfeasance. If the Daily News website poll on this matter is an accurate indicator, local bleaters far outnumber smart meter cheerleaders. To help dispel smart meter fears today’s column offers information on the oversight of public utility projects in Califor- nia and highlights smart meter benefits for utilities and their cus- tomers. As a regulated utility Pacific Gas and Electric Company must comply with guidance from the California Energy Commission (CEC) and set rates in accordance with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). The CEC is the state's primary energy policy and planning agency whose responsibilities include forecasting future energy needs and keeping historical energy data, licensing thermal power plants 50 megawatts or larger, promoting energy efficiency, and supporting renewable energy by providing market support to existing, new, and emerging renewable technolo- gies. The CPUC serves the public interest by protecting consumers and ensuring the provision of safe, reliable utility service and infra- structure at reasonable rates, with a commitment to environmental enhancement and a healthy Cali- fornia economy. Each of these agencies is led by five commissioners appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate, who along with their staffs are answerable to the voters of California. Both agencies hold open meetings and hearings to actively solicit public involve- ment, and exercise due diligence in their responsibilities to best serve the public interests. Conse- quently, smart meters have been the subject of much research, demonstration, and evaluation to ensure efficacy and cost-effective- ness for residential, commercial and industrial application. Con- cerns of the potential health impacts of electro-magnetic radia- tion, meter reliability and accura- cy, and data security and privacy have been examined and addressed so consumers can rest assured that smart meter deploy- ment is free of adverse conse- quences. The major benefits of the digi- tal smart meters over their analog precursors are the ability to record energy consumption by time of day and immediately transmit these data for billing and informa- tional purposes. The substantial labor and transportation costs of manual meter readers are saved and the data are more reliably and accurately acquired. Your usage data by time of day are made read- ily available over secure internet connections allowing you to review energy use, confirm accu- racy, and better under- stand and manage ener- gy use. Utilities may offer time-of-use rates to smart meter customers that allow you to reduce energy costs by shifting loads to off-peak hours. By appropriately sched- uling activities like dish- washing and laundering and better controlling your heating and cool- ing systems you might significantly reduce your utility bills. Utili- ties benefit from these actions to help avoid expensive energy Richard appropriate end-users. Further- more since changes in energy use are instantaneously recorded with smart meters the data are use- ful to optimize and evaluate program effec- tiveness in real time. These real time data are also used by utilities to pinpoint customers affected by service interruptions and more promptly take correc- tive action. Mazzucchi Positive Point imports and costly addi- tions to their supply, distribution and transmission systems. These load management efforts keep util- ity rates low, save you money, reduce resource depletion, and minimize adverse environmental impacts. The smart meter data are also useful to utility planners and operators as they forecast energy requirements, coordinate supply, distribution and transmission system operation, and implement cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. By better understanding the time- of-day energy demands of indi- vidual customers these programs can be targeted to the most It is understandable that some folks are uncomfortable with change, mistrust utility companies, and don’t wish to share personal information with others. I hope this summary of "smart" meters advantages, past research, and ongoing oversight by the CEC and CPUC helps to set aside your concerns. For more information about PG&E's Smart- Meter program go to www.pge.com/smartmeter or call PG&E's 24-hour SmartMeter Hot- line at 1-866-743-0263. If you want to learn more about the CEC go to www.energy.ca.gov or for the CPUC go to www.cpuc.ca.gov. Should you still have concerns I encourage you to call the CPUC toll free at 1-800- 649-7570. Richard Mazzucchi can be reached at living-green@att.net. Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Jim Nielsen (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 6031 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 319- 2002; Fax (916) 319-2102 STATE SENATOR — Doug LaMalfa (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 3070 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 651-4004; Fax (916) 445-7750 GOVERNOR — Jerry Brown, State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 558-3160; E- mail: governor@governor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Wally Herger (R), 2635 Forest Ave. Ste. 100, Chico, CA 95928; 893-8363. U.S. SENATORS — Dianne Fein- stein (D), One Post Street, Suite 2450, San Francisco, CA 94104; (415) 393- 0707. Fax (415) 393-0710. Barbara Boxer (D), 1700 Montgomery St., Suite 240, San Francisco, CA 94111; (415) 403-0100. Fax (202) 224-0454. One thing sometimes leads to another Commentary Our U.S. Constitution starts in a straightforward manner: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal … endowed by their Creator with cer- tain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." If those God-given Rights do not encom- pass and define our economic free- doms sufficiently, President Abra- ham Lincoln addressed the subject succinctly: "I believe that every individual is naturally entitled to do as he pleases with himself and the fruits of his labor, so far as it in no way interferes with any other men’s rights." To believe otherwise is to advocate theft. This sacrosanct entitlement to the "fruits of his labor" is certainly ignored, reviled and attacked by our ideological opponents on the left. They’re often read on this page railing at the rich, the millionaires, billionaires, corporations and big businesses; and usually preceded by the pejorative "greedy," or casti- gated by dark insinuations against the "profit-motive," "profit-driven" seeking of "excess profits." You would think that their ill- gotten gain was had at the expense of all of the rest of us, most cer- tainly on the backs of the poor. Most readers hereabouts, pos- sessed of economic common sense, reject such redistributionist, class-envy rhetoric. We, and our Republican representatives, are chastised for wishing to allow peo- ple to keep what they have legally earned, especially when the richest among us already subsidize almost all of the rest. For example, President Obama and his Democratic allies pointed to "the tax cuts for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans," misleading terms echoed on this page. It’s mis- leading because no actual "tax cuts" were being proposed, and it’s intended to hide their greedy desire to tax and spend other people’s money. The truth is that the richest 1 percent of income earners already pays about 40 percent of the Federal Income Taxes that go to Washington. However, they only earn about 20 percent of the income. Get it? One out of a hundred people are earning one-fifth of all the income but are paying twice that share of taxes. And yet, it’s not enough for the big spending liber- als. They pay more income taxes than the bottom 95 percent com- bined. The top 5 percent pays over 60 percent of all tax revenue. Top 10 percent? Over 70 percent of taxes! The bottom half pay no federal income tax and the bottom 40 per- cent actually get money back. "Promoting the general welfare" is not "providing" it. Moreover, the rich have done a pretty poor job of keeping their money because back in the ‘80s, they provided about a quarter of the federal taxes, while the bottom 95 percent picked up the tab for over 55 percent of the revenue. Review the current trend above. In fact, the rich face about the most punishingly progressive tax vs. income ratio of all of the 24 leading economies studied by the Organization of Economic Coop- eration and Development (OECD), due to the many so-called "credits" that reduce the taxes to zero for many lower income people. It turns out that liberals are so irrationally devoted to taxing those they deem "rich" that they, the liber- als, will willingly give up 25 cents to see a rich per- son pay a dollar more. Economists at the Uni- versities of Oxford and Warwick conducted a study in 2001 that found just that level of mind- boggling envy among the redistribution crowd. Poll results: Likely voters favor repeal of ObamaCare by 55 to 40 percent (Rasmussen). Approval of Congress is up sharply since Republi- cans came to town and has nearly doubled since last year (from 17 to 31 percent approval – Real- ClearPolitics). Last month, 1,000 likely voters gave higher trust levels to Republicans over Democrats on the economy, health care, Iraq, immigration, social security, ethics, national security and taxes (Rasmussen). Obama’s spending proposals for education, transportation and technological innovation were not well received by a deficit-weary electorate, also according to Ras- mussen. Likely voters oppose those spending ideas by about 50 to 40 percent. They also say cutting federal spending is better for the economy than raising it. Worse yet for Obama is the Gallup poll that found the President’s approval among the lowest of all presidents for their second year (going back 6 decades). From Sarah Palin (because she’s right and it offends the left): Don Polson The way I see it "Consider what (Obama’s) ‘big government greatness’ amounts to. It’s basically a cor- poratist agenda –it’s the collaboration between big government and the big businesses that have powerful friends in D.C. and can afford to hire big lobbyists. This collaboration works in a manner that distorts and corrupts true free market capitalism … ‘investing’ in technolo- gies and industries that venture capitalists tell us are non-starters," providing lucrative returns for wealthy, connected corpora- tions. Innocent question: Will local liberals find it hypocritical for Democrats at the DCCC to launch a "Drive to 25" that involves "Targeted Dis- tricts" or, as The Washington Post reported, "DCCC targets 19 in first media offensive … against 19 targeted Republican incum- bents"? Also, why did national news media never consider Casey Brezik’s September knife attack directed against Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon newsworthy? No "knife control" angle? Or the fact that he was steeped in environmental extremism, radical Islam, anti- Capitalism, anti-Zionism and Christophobia? Don Polson has called Red Bluff home since 1988. He can be reached by e-mail at donplsn@yahoo.com.