3 ms·

Once upon a time power companies refused to provide grid access to people outside of the cities because it didn't make money fast enough, the government stepped

Once upon a time power companies refused to provide grid access to people outside of the cities because it didn't make money fast enough, the government stepped in and made it happen and now not being able to get a power hookup is a ridiculous notion. If this doesn't happen, the government will have to step in again, otherwise those people either become second class citizens or they get really angry at being excluded from society and take violent action.

rayiner 8y ago
It’s not at all similar. There is no alternative to wired electricity. There are lots of alternatives to wired broadband, and they’re getting better every day. A double digit percentage of households earning six figures has no wired broadband (cellular only), and that percentage is growing. Note that water is more important than broadband, and the government doesn’t step in to build/compel people to build water/sewer systems in rural areas. (I live 10 minutes from the capital of Maryland, and we just got city water/sewer in 2015, and I just have to drive another 5 minutes down the road before all you have is well water/septic systems.)
- discordance 8y ago
  Solar + storage is an alternative to grid, although initial costs are high.
  - rayiner 8y ago
    If it had been in 1930, you likely wouldn’t have seen rural electrification be a government policy.
- hedora 8y ago
  The government does compel you to have water and sewerage handling out in the country. You can’t build or get a conventional mortgage without both. Wells and septic tanks scale better in sparsely populated regions, so they require that in places that are outside of municipal systems.
sdfsdfsdfsdf3 8y ago
Not being able to get a power hookup is far from a ridiculous notion. In both Thailand and India big bribes are required to get the utility companies/incumbents to move, or you at the mercy of delays that could stretch for years. In Vashi one company that consults on behalf of some big brand names paid more than the building for the power company to connect them - and this was an IT park of sorts not some remote place.

rayiner 8y ago

It’s not at all similar. There is no alternative to wired electricity. There are lots of alternatives to wired broadband, and they’re getting better every day. A double digit percentage of households earning six figures has no wired broadband (cellular only), and that percentage is growing. Note that water is more important than broadband, and the government doesn’t step in to build/compel people to build water/sewer systems in rural areas. (I live 10 minutes from the capital of Maryland, and we just got city water/sewer in 2015, and I just have to drive another 5 minutes down the road before all you have is well water/septic systems.)

discordance 8y ago
Solar + storage is an alternative to grid, although initial costs are high.
- rayiner 8y ago
  If it had been in 1930, you likely wouldn’t have seen rural electrification be a government policy.
hedora 8y ago
The government does compel you to have water and sewerage handling out in the country. You can’t build or get a conventional mortgage without both. Wells and septic tanks scale better in sparsely populated regions, so they require that in places that are outside of municipal systems.

sdfsdfsdfsdf3 8y ago

Not being able to get a power hookup is far from a ridiculous notion. In both Thailand and India big bribes are required to get the utility companies/incumbents to move, or you at the mercy of delays that could stretch for years. In Vashi one company that consults on behalf of some big brand names paid more than the building for the power company to connect them - and this was an IT park of sorts not some remote place.