(At Least) Two Reasons Why California Utility Companies Should Be Nervous About a Growing Public Backlash

Posted on April 25, 2011 by Josh Hart

People are pissed off and we're NOT going to take it anymore!

People are angry.   There’s no question about that.  And they should be.   Look at Syria.   Look at Wisconsin.  Look at the UK, where riots against corporate supermarket parasite Tesco engulfed the City of Bristol last week.  Look no further than California, where a corrupt Public Utilities Commission- led by Michael Peevey- a former Southern California Edison executive who Gov. Brown has allowed to remain chairing the Commission, has failed to rein in the greedy, reckless, and dangerous tendencies of the utility industry.  It is no exaggeration to say that this lack of oversight is killing people.  Gas explosions, a ‘smart’ meter debacle that is exposing millions to microwave radiation that violates FCC limits, and continued operation of the ticking time bombs- Diablo and San Onofre Nuclear Power Reactors- are just some of the rotten policies that are raising hackles.

Despite the greenwash and the lies, more people are waking up every day and realizing that- as the ‘smart’ meter debacle demonstrates- the people who are running the show don’t know what the hell they are doing and that corporations- like a 2-year-old running through the house with parents out to lunch- are actually very much in charge and monumentally mucking things up.  But the wild west is coming to an end, and the people are rising up and demanding a government that actually puts health and safety first (what a novel idea!).

Here are at least two reasons why the utilities and their cronies should be concerned at the latest developments:

1.   Partisanship is being set aside as the fight against Health Destroying SpyMeters Spreads South. This Thursday evening, Joshua Hart, our director, is honored to be on the panel at a major smart meter forum sponsored by the Santa Barbara Tea Party and other community advocates.  When the Tea Party joins the ‘liberal left’ and a growing number of disaffected Democan/ Republicrat party refugees to demand our inalienable right to health, safety, and privacy, you know that ‘the powers that be’ have gone too far!  This will be a large and significant event- potentially sparking a serious Southern California backlash.    Event to be held this Thursday, April 28th 7pm at Fess Parker’s resort in Downtown Santa Barbara.   Spread the word to friends in So Cal. More info here.

2.  Plans are on for a Major Occupation of the Capitol starting May 9th.  Stop Smart Meters!, Code Pink, the Teachers Union, and a whole lot of other folks from around California are calling for a GENERAL STRIKE starting on May 9th.  There will be protests on May 1st, and a march to Sacramento.   You are welcome to join for all or part of the march, but be sure to make plans to come to Sacramento on May 9th, as there will be a hearing of (Huffman’s seriously watered down ‘opt out’ bill) AB37 at the Utilities Committee in the afternoon and it’s time we pack the chambers and VOICE OUR RAGE AGAINST SMART METERS.  Bring your tent and sleeping bag and we will build a ‘Smart’ Meter Refugee Camp as part of the larger occupation of the State Capitol.  Amtrak runs regular Capitol Corridor service from San Jose and Oakland to Sacramento.

Through these protests, marches, teach-ins and strikes, we will build bridges and stand united in opposing cuts to critical public services, an end to nuclear power, an immediate moratorium on stupid meters, and higher taxes on the wealthiest individuals and corporations in California.  Let’s take our power back from Wall Street and demand that our utility companies be placed under public control!

Howard Glasser‘s words that appeared in the Lake County Record- Bee a couple of weeks ago:

“I think it’s high time we stood up with one, large voice and said “NO” in no uncertain terms and if that means marching on Sacramento in numbers that simply can’t be ignored and making news to get the attention of those we put in office, then so be it.”

We’ve all got our work cut out for us- commit to being in Sacramento (or at your local city hall) and spread the word to your friends and family over the next week.

With many ripples we are making large waves.

Posted in Citizen rebellion, Climate Change, CPUC, Democracy, Environmental Concerns, PG&E, Safety | 1 Comment

PG&E CEO Darbee Resigns- Peevey Next?

Posted on April 21, 2011 by Josh Hart
Peter Darbee–Today

Michael Peevey Tomorrow? Up to Gov. Brown

News in today that Pacific Gas and Electric CEO Peter Darbee has tendered his resignation effective April 30.   For the occasion, we’ve posted the video below.  At 4:40, we interrupt Darbee’s (greenwashed) speech to present him with a Dumb Meter on behalf of the dozens of CA governments opposing the forced installation.    Oh well, enjoy your $35 million retirement package.   I guess with that amount of (our) money, you can actually afford to ‘opt out’ from having a ‘smart’ meter after all.

Posted in CPUC, PG&E, San Francisco | 2 Comments

Smart Meter Antenna Damage Reported in Santa Cruz County- In Light of Government Inaction, Some Taking Matters Into Their Own Hands

Posted on April 18, 2011 by Josh Hart

As part of the heavily censored internal e-mails released by PG&E to the Bay Area media late last year after their ‘Smart’ Meter Program Director William Devereaux was caught snooping on customers’ e-mails, we discovered from the above correspondence that the utilities are not only dealing with widespread local government resistance and civil disobedience, they are apparently also facing a homegrown monkeywrenching campaign.  Some residents appear to be so fed up with the ongoing unsolicited intrusion of wireless into their neighborhoods that they are willing to risk going to prison to rid themselves of health- harming microwave radiation.  This is an indication of how desperate people have become while state government twiddles its thumbs.

“DCU” means ‘data collector units’ or antennae that have been illegally installed throughout California, violating franchise agreements that the utility has with local governments.  (See pic of gas DCU mounted on a utility pole below).  The DCU’s collect data sent by the ‘smart’ meters and then relay this to a local Verizon cell tower.

It’s hilarious that they would say that anti-smart meter activists are ‘losing traction with local governments’ when if anything the movement is stronger than ever.  Thirty-eight cities and counties in CA are now are demanding a halt to smart meter installations.  In addition, every single local government in Santa Cruz County is united in opposition to ‘smart’ meters.   The fact that the state legislature, governor, and impotent CPUC are failing to reflect public opinion is an indicator of how much they have become servants of industry and forgotten the people they are meant to represent.

One has to ask- who is the greater threat to public safety?  A utility that is exposing people to illegal levels of microwave radiation in their own homes- causing widespread health problems and fire safety risks– or people who are peacefully blocking trucks and those who are disabling unwanted health damaging infrastructure?

 

Posted in Citizen rebellion, CPUC, Democracy, PG&E, Police, Safety | 21 Comments

Stop Smart Meters! Disrupts FCC Chair’s Talk in Silicon Valley

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Josh Hart

https://www.indybay.org/uploads/2011/04/14/fccprotest.wmv

Stop Smart Meters! and friends held a successful protest both outside and inside the Computer History Museum in Mountain View on Thursday as Julius Genachowski, Chair of the Federal Communications Commission, spoke about the need to increase wireless capacity, ignoring the millions who are suffering ill health as electrosmog pervades nearly every last corner of our nation.

Bracing for heckles (this is Silicon Valley after all) we were pleasantly surprised by many honks of approval and support from passing drivers.   Several even stopped and joined our demonstration, showing that the growing resentment against corporate intrusion into our private lives and the backlash against wireless technology is alive and well even in the midst of the world’s tech capital.

A driver of an SUV- license plate “DNS” swerved into the driveway at a high rate of speed, narrowly missing several protesters on the sidewalk.  Perhaps this was a Silicon Valley exec who was not too keen to see us out there.   This individual’s dangerous actions echoes how little the industry cares about human health or safety.  (If you know who this vehicle belongs to, please let us know.)

We smuggled a Stop Smart Meters! banner inside the talk and just when we thought everyone in the audience was about to go to sleep, we stirred things up a bit with the classic banner drop disruption that was also caught on film by some tech bloggers.

Apparently we weren’t the only ones upset by FCC policies.  Almost immediately, a woman whose husband has a brain tumor from his cell phone use spoke up, and another woman who is being forced from her home because of smart meters told Julius how she felt.

We don’t relish or enjoy disrupting public proceedings like this but these kinds of protests are inevitable when the democratic system breaks down and an agency like the FCC becomes virtually an arm of industry rather than a public servant.

More coverage of yesterday’s protest on Indymedia.

Posted in Cell phones, Citizen rebellion, Democracy, FCC, Health studies, interference, Obama | 5 Comments

‘Smart’ Meters Explode, Cause Fire in Santa Rosa Mall

Posted on April 13, 2011 by Josh Hart

What was initially reported simply as an "electrical fire" in Santa Rosa's downtown last Thursday turned out to be a huge bank of smart meters spontaneously combusting

SANTA ROSA–  It was confirmed today that an electrical fire which led to the evacuation of downtown Santa Rosa Plaza last Thursday evening was caused by a bank of newly installed PG&E ‘smart’ meters.  Reported by the Santa Rosa Press Democrat last Thursday, the mainstream media has so far neglected to include that the source of ignition was indeed at least 3 ‘smart’ meters within the utility room.  Reached for comment, Santa Rosa Fire Dept. battalion chief Jack Piccinini told SSM! that ‘all the electric meters within the room where smart meters.  An electrical arc occurred that started the fire.” The Press Democrat reported:

“When firefighters arrived, they found smoke and flames coming from a room of electrical panels on the mall’s east side, near the Third Street underpass.

Three of the panels that supply power to the Disney Store, Eddie Bauer and a vacant room “literally blew up,” said Jack Piccinini, battalion chief with the Santa Rosa Fire Department.

‘Whatever shorted them out was quite significant,” he said. “I’m not an electrician so I won’t guess what it was.'”

The official report from the Santa Rosa Fire Dept. states:

“On investigation, ME01 found 3 PG&E meters that had blown off the electrical panel causing damage to the interior wiring of the electrical panel.  A fire was still smoldering but left in place until the arrival of PG&E.”

The Santa Rosa Fire Department’s incident report cites ‘arcing’ caused by ‘failure of equipment.’  Whether the cause of the arcing was related to faulty installation or inherent flaws within the ‘smart’ meters themselves is not known at this time.  In a Stop Smart Meters! exclusive interview in January with the ‘Wellington Whistleblower’, a former employee of the firm contracted to install PG&E’s ‘smart’ meters alleges unsafe installations:

Though the procedure is relatively simple, if you get it wrong this can lead to arcing, shorts- even house fires.  The blades on the back of the meter have to be aligned properly with the jaws on the socket the meter gets placed in.  I kept hearing one of the managers say, “you guys weren’t trained properly.”

In light of the series of cost cutting (and profit boosting) measures that led to the San Bruno blast last September, questions are sure to be forthcoming regarding the Public Utilities Commission’s actions regarding this incident and the many other fire safety issues that have been reported in connection with ‘smart’ meters both here and abroad as compiled by the EMF Safety Network.  There is also growing concern from firefighters as well as electrical engineers that the ‘smart’ meters indeed pose a fire hazard.

At press time, neither PG&E nor the CPUC  had returned calls seeking comment on this incident.

April 16th: report of an electrical fire in San Rafael– not known at this time whether smart meters were to blame- sounds very suspicious though.

Here is a video of a smart meter fire in Ohio:

Check this page as any developments or updates will be posted here.

May 4th 2011 update:

The Santa Rosa Fire Dept. is now yielding to PG&E who (of course) insists that the fire wasn’t caused by the ‘smart’ meter.   This official version of events has been repeated without further investigation by the Cal Coast News.  In the meantime, more reports have been coming in of other suspicious fires.  For example:

A man died in a house fire in Vacaville on July 9 2010.  Reports were that a Smart Meter had been installed a day before, and led to humming sounds, snapping sound, burnt out lap top. The fire apparently started in the swamp cooler, which has a variable speed motor. The motor in the cooler was apparently ‘burned to a crisp’. PG&E was called and they shut off the power to the house. Official report:

http://www.ktvu.com/news/24208641/detail.html

The EMF Safety Network is keeping track of additional smart meter fire reports.  You can follow these reports- that have been coming in from Maine, Australia, and elsewhere here.

Posted in CPUC, PG&E, Safety | 11 Comments