I'm trying to work up a White Paper on the Smart Grid... and am in that stage of writing where I'm desparately trying to educate myself on the subject and feeling like a big, stupid, dopey, graduate of a sub-standard liberal arts program.
Oh...wait...
But I've become enthralled with Samuel Insull. Here's the skinny...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Insull
Now I'm going to assume that you've just clicked off my blog and read that entire wikipedia article. M'kay?
Wow. Talk about rags to riches to rags! This is the man who created the modern electric grid. Who created the BUSINESS of selling electricity. And want a quote:
"For my own part, I cannot see how we can expect to obtain from the communites in which we operate, or from the state having control over those communities, certain privlages so far as a monopoly is concerned, and at the same time contend against regulation."
Right there...black and white... the FATHER of the modern power grid pretty much spells out that electrical infrastructure... with declining costs for production, high capital expenses, and intensive scrutiny by government and politicians... would NEED regulation.
And what did we do over the last 20 years? Deregulated the electrical system. Made it "for profit." Like anything that's for profit... the basic business premise is to sell as much as possible to as many people as possible at the highest price you possibly can.
Exactly opposite most of the goals of the Smart Grid. Limiting GHG emissions... creating supply stability... promoting efficiency... it's counterintuitive. We shot ourselves in our collective feet on that one...didn't we?
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