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Support Smart Meters
Global warming is a reality. We don't know how serious it will be, but it could be catastrophic when combined with other forms of environmental destruction.
Reducing electricity use is crucial to dealing with global warming. Solar and wind energy replacement of fossil-fuel generated electricity can also help, but that will, at best, be a long process.
Smart electric meters allow electricity providers to better monitor electricity use, and to set pricing structures to better reduce use.
For once, corporate and environmentalist interests would seem to be aligned. Instead, we have scientifically illiterate, confused, neurotic people opposing the installation of smart meters in Mendocino County and elsewhere, notably in Napa County.
The reason the sun can be used for solar power is that it produces vast amounts of radiation. That radiation is across the entire frequency spectrum. It is far stronger than the radiation from Wi-Fi or smart meters.
The wireless transmissions used by smart meters are extremely low power. They are not harmful to anyone.
If someone is ideologically opposed to smart meters, they should go without electricity, or get off the grid by installing solar panels.
I was once in a Green Party meeting and a man walked in to try to get us to put opposing cell phone towers high on our agenda. He burst out saying that someone was using a cell phone, and he knew it because he could feel it, because he was sensitive to cell phone radiation. But not a single person in the room had a cell phone. Usually in a large group of people, someone would have a cell phone, and have to apologize, and at least gullible people would think the man had demonstrated his point. But what he demonstrated that day was that he was crazy. Lunatic. Out of touch with reality.
Governments should have the power to protect our health and safety. True, too often they have failed to do that. But stopping the installation of smart meters has nothing to do with safety. It is all about irrational fear.
I live on the Mendocino Coast, and I would like the County Board of Supervisors, or the California Assembly, or the U.S. Congress to force AT&T to put in modern, high speed, cell phone towers with complete coverage. That would allow us to have broadband Internet access as well as cell phone access. It is too bad PG&E did not think to make their smart meters part of a system that provides everyone in rural areas with high speed Internet.
Of course, democracy should rule. If people want to use this as yet another anti-development issue, they can try to convince voters that their crazy talk is to become the religion of the land.
Help stop global warming. Support the installation of smart meters in Mendocino County.
William P. Meyers
