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According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basical

According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basically everything you just said is bullshit ERCOT is a government regulated group, answerable to the Legislature. It's not meaningfully different from the rest of the country. People just assume Texas is a completely unregulated market because of the reputation given to us by Hollywood. Unsurprisingly, media created in a region that disdains us does not represent us truthfully or fairly. I grew up in Appalachia so I'm used to this treatment by the media and by people I interact with as a professional software engineer, including on this board, about where I came from and where I chose to make my home. We know you hate us. It's the main message we receive every time we turn on the TV or any mainstream silicon valley website, including this one, again. That's why I post with a throwaway name. I don't expect people who hate us to represent us fairly.

krapp 6y ago
That reputation doesn't come from Hollywood, it comes from Texas. Anyone who's been to the state knows how proud the culture is of its wild-west rural outlaw image. You're right that it isn't entirely accurate, because Texas is a diverse state bigger than some countries, but being the quirky cowboy state is a lot better for tourism than being the... like... corn state or... whatever the hell a "Sooner" is. Some sort of groundhog I imagine.
- jcranmer 6y ago
  > whatever the hell a "Sooner" is The US decided to sell the land in most of Oklahoma (the parts that weren't Indian territory, in any case) by land rushes. You would line up at the county border, a starting gun would be fired, and the first person to claim a plot of land would get it. Sooners are the people who were in the county before the starting gun was fired, letting them (illegally) claim the land before anyone who was honest and started at the starting line. (Side note: my great-great grandfather was in one of the Oklahoma land rushes, but lost the land he wanted to a Sooner.)
- ipsocannibal 6y ago
  "Sooner" - the bain of UT football existence now that TAMU is playing with the big boys.
nobody9999 6y ago
>We know you hate us. It's the main message we receive every time we turn on the TV or any mainstream silicon valley website, including this one, again. That's why I post with a throwaway name. I don't expect people who hate us to represent us fairly. It's unfortunate that you paint most of the the US with such a broad brush when complaining that those folks are painting you with a broad brush. I hope you can see the irony there. I learned as a child that treating others as individuals is incredibly important. Mostly because it became clear that most folks (of every stripe) are decent human beings, but that there are a small number of people who are assholes. The big problem with that small number of folks is that they aren't one particular group (whether that be geographic origin, ethnicity, melanin content, gender or profession, etc., etc., etc.). Rather they are pretty evenly distributed throughout society. That allows people to point at those very few and ascribe their shortcomings to everyone in a particular group or groups. The long and short of it is that, no "we" don't hate "you." In fact, most folks don't really care much (except in a general, "care about other human beings") one way or another about you or your fellow Texans. Having spent time in Texas (I'm from the Northeast), I've found that just about everyone I've met in (or who is from) Texas are decent, kind human beings. I suspect you'd be much happier if you were less concerned with what other folks think about you, and focused on living a decent life instead of shitting on people you don't know. Just a crazy thought.
- finiteseries 6y ago
  I'm used to this treatment by the media and by people I interact with as a professional software engineer Are the actual groups of people they’ve painted which doesn’t make for a particularly broad brush and certainly doesn’t include “most of the US”. It’s unfortunate that you spend 7 paragraphs explaining a basic concept most children are indeed aware of while the person you’re replying to complains about that exact behavior. I hope you can see the irony there. I suspect you’d be much more effective if you were less concerned with acting out a stereotype, and focused on reading the comment you’re replying to and addressing their point about bias in the media, and software industries.
  - nobody9999 6y ago
cratermoon 6y ago
> ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization Those are voluntary though. It was inevitable that someone would say the problem was that it wasn't deregulated enough, but let's at least stick to what's known. "Instead of taking any regulatory action, we ended up getting guidelines that were unenforceable and largely ignored in [power companies’] rush for profits," https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-failures/ https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-fai...
- rualca 6y ago
  > Those are voluntary though. It should be made quite clear that "voluntary" regulation is no regulation at all, but mere suggestions and tips that anyone is free to follow or ignore. Thus, citing ERCOT is pointless, and would make as much sense as citing regulations of Kazakhstan as they are enforced with the same rigour and result in the same penalties.
craftinator 6y ago
> We know you hate us. It's the main message we receive every time we turn on the TV Jesus this one is whiney.
ipsocannibal 6y ago
"According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basically everything you just said is bullshit" Do you have a link to this claim? If this is true what does enforcement of those regulations look like in Texas? For comparison, THC is still schedule 1 drug according to federal regulations but weed is also a multi-billion dollar industry in states that ignore those regulations. Whats on the books often matters less than what is actually enforced.
- ipsocannibal 6y ago
  Found it. The guidelines mentioned in the parent comment are voluntary. As I stated enforcement matters and in the Texas case there was none. However, in this case the Texas reputation for willful ignorance in the face of honest criticism is well earned. Oh and by the way El Paso's electricity provider didn't have problems, why? They aren't governed by Ercot and their voluntary regulations. El Paso is part of the western international grid and did perform winterization work as required. Outcomes matter not political platitudes. https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-failures/ https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-fai...
locopati 6y ago
so how's that stringent ERCOT regulation working out for you?
throwaway189262 6y ago
> According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basically everything you just said is bullshit Do you have a source for this? The entire purpose for Texas independent grid is to avoid federal regulation, so I find this hard to believe. Also, the idea that democrats hate you is mostly from the right and IMO incorrect. Many on the left hate Trump, just like people on the right hate AOC. But that doesn't extend to the average person. Right leaning media in the US is notorious for fear based reporting. You don't have to look far to see that there's no left leaning equivalence to Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson, and similar right wing icons that sell news largely on fear and outrage. They sell views based on the idea that democrats are destroying America. This is also the basis of the Tea Party, Pizza gate, and QAnon which also have no left equivalent. There's a reason why most mainstream media is sedate and frankly boring. Democrats are the party of change, and Republicans have to keep their base afraid so they go vote against it. A lot more Republicans think democrats hate them than the other way around. Because Republicans need it that way to be competitive. I used to be a republican until I got tired of the constant fear porn. Democrats have been in charge for a large part of my life and the only thing to directly effect me was the ACA which turned out to be a net positive in my life. Nothing scary the Republican pundits always raged about came to pass and I got tired of always being worried about the next big disaster that never came.
ipsocannibal 6y ago
"According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basically everything you just said is bullshit" This a lie. The regulations are voluntary. "ERCOT is a government regulated group, answerable to the Legislature. It's not meaningfully different from the rest of the country." Except this is also a lie as Ercot as no power to enforce any of its regulations which is not the way utilities run in the rest of the country. "People just assume Texas is a completely unregulated market because of the reputation given to us by Hollywood. Unsurprisingly, media created in a region that disdains us does not represent us truthfully or fairly." This is a typical attempt to create a state of victimhood in order shift focus away from the obvious failure of a Republican controlled state onto meaningless culture wars. "I grew up in Appalachia so I'm used to this treatment by the media and by people I interact with as a professional software engineer, including on this board, about where I came from and where I chose to make my home." Irrelevant to the topic at hand. Your personal experiences in this matter have nothing to do with the failures in the Texas energy grid. You are doubling down on perceived victimhood in lieu of an actual argument. "We know you hate us. It's the main message we receive every time we turn on the TV or any mainstream silicon valley website, including this one, again. That's why I post with a throwaway name. I don't expect people who hate us to represent us fairly." And this was the goal of the comment, specifically overriding any consideration of criticism by attacking the motives of the critic. This is as simple as it is disingenuous.

krapp 6y ago

That reputation doesn't come from Hollywood, it comes from Texas. Anyone who's been to the state knows how proud the culture is of its wild-west rural outlaw image. You're right that it isn't entirely accurate, because Texas is a diverse state bigger than some countries, but being the quirky cowboy state is a lot better for tourism than being the... like... corn state or... whatever the hell a "Sooner" is. Some sort of groundhog I imagine.

jcranmer 6y ago
> whatever the hell a "Sooner" is The US decided to sell the land in most of Oklahoma (the parts that weren't Indian territory, in any case) by land rushes. You would line up at the county border, a starting gun would be fired, and the first person to claim a plot of land would get it. Sooners are the people who were in the county before the starting gun was fired, letting them (illegally) claim the land before anyone who was honest and started at the starting line. (Side note: my great-great grandfather was in one of the Oklahoma land rushes, but lost the land he wanted to a Sooner.)
ipsocannibal 6y ago
"Sooner" - the bain of UT football existence now that TAMU is playing with the big boys.

nobody9999 6y ago

>We know you hate us. It's the main message we receive every time we turn on the TV or any mainstream silicon valley website, including this one, again. That's why I post with a throwaway name. I don't expect people who hate us to represent us fairly. It's unfortunate that you paint most of the the US with such a broad brush when complaining that those folks are painting you with a broad brush. I hope you can see the irony there. I learned as a child that treating others as individuals is incredibly important. Mostly because it became clear that most folks (of every stripe) are decent human beings, but that there are a small number of people who are assholes. The big problem with that small number of folks is that they aren't one particular group (whether that be geographic origin, ethnicity, melanin content, gender or profession, etc., etc., etc.). Rather they are pretty evenly distributed throughout society. That allows people to point at those very few and ascribe their shortcomings to everyone in a particular group or groups. The long and short of it is that, no "we" don't hate "you." In fact, most folks don't really care much (except in a general, "care about other human beings") one way or another about you or your fellow Texans. Having spent time in Texas (I'm from the Northeast), I've found that just about everyone I've met in (or who is from) Texas are decent, kind human beings. I suspect you'd be much happier if you were less concerned with what other folks think about you, and focused on living a decent life instead of shitting on people you don't know. Just a crazy thought.

finiteseries 6y ago
I'm used to this treatment by the media and by people I interact with as a professional software engineer Are the actual groups of people they’ve painted which doesn’t make for a particularly broad brush and certainly doesn’t include “most of the US”. It’s unfortunate that you spend 7 paragraphs explaining a basic concept most children are indeed aware of while the person you’re replying to complains about that exact behavior. I hope you can see the irony there. I suspect you’d be much more effective if you were less concerned with acting out a stereotype, and focused on reading the comment you’re replying to and addressing their point about bias in the media, and software industries.
- nobody9999 6y ago

cratermoon 6y ago

> ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization Those are voluntary though. It was inevitable that someone would say the problem was that it wasn't deregulated enough, but let's at least stick to what's known. "Instead of taking any regulatory action, we ended up getting guidelines that were unenforceable and largely ignored in [power companies’] rush for profits," https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-failures/ https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-fai...

rualca 6y ago
> Those are voluntary though. It should be made quite clear that "voluntary" regulation is no regulation at all, but mere suggestions and tips that anyone is free to follow or ignore. Thus, citing ERCOT is pointless, and would make as much sense as citing regulations of Kazakhstan as they are enforced with the same rigour and result in the same penalties.

craftinator 6y ago

> We know you hate us. It's the main message we receive every time we turn on the TV Jesus this one is whiney.

ipsocannibal 6y ago

"According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basically everything you just said is bullshit" Do you have a link to this claim? If this is true what does enforcement of those regulations look like in Texas? For comparison, THC is still schedule 1 drug according to federal regulations but weed is also a multi-billion dollar industry in states that ignore those regulations. Whats on the books often matters less than what is actually enforced.

ipsocannibal 6y ago
Found it. The guidelines mentioned in the parent comment are voluntary. As I stated enforcement matters and in the Texas case there was none. However, in this case the Texas reputation for willful ignorance in the face of honest criticism is well earned. Oh and by the way El Paso's electricity provider didn't have problems, why? They aren't governed by Ercot and their voluntary regulations. El Paso is part of the western international grid and did perform winterization work as required. Outcomes matter not political platitudes. https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-failures/ https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/17/texas-power-grid-fai...

locopati 6y ago

so how's that stringent ERCOT regulation working out for you?

throwaway189262 6y ago

> According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basically everything you just said is bullshit Do you have a source for this? The entire purpose for Texas independent grid is to avoid federal regulation, so I find this hard to believe. Also, the idea that democrats hate you is mostly from the right and IMO incorrect. Many on the left hate Trump, just like people on the right hate AOC. But that doesn't extend to the average person. Right leaning media in the US is notorious for fear based reporting. You don't have to look far to see that there's no left leaning equivalence to Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson, and similar right wing icons that sell news largely on fear and outrage. They sell views based on the idea that democrats are destroying America. This is also the basis of the Tea Party, Pizza gate, and QAnon which also have no left equivalent. There's a reason why most mainstream media is sedate and frankly boring. Democrats are the party of change, and Republicans have to keep their base afraid so they go vote against it. A lot more Republicans think democrats hate them than the other way around. Because Republicans need it that way to be competitive. I used to be a republican until I got tired of the constant fear porn. Democrats have been in charge for a large part of my life and the only thing to directly effect me was the ACA which turned out to be a net positive in my life. Nothing scary the Republican pundits always raged about came to pass and I got tired of always being worried about the next big disaster that never came.

ipsocannibal 6y ago

"According to a post here on HN a couple of days ago, ERCOT has more stringent regulations on winterization than the Federal regulatory body requires, so basically everything you just said is bullshit" This a lie. The regulations are voluntary. "ERCOT is a government regulated group, answerable to the Legislature. It's not meaningfully different from the rest of the country." Except this is also a lie as Ercot as no power to enforce any of its regulations which is not the way utilities run in the rest of the country. "People just assume Texas is a completely unregulated market because of the reputation given to us by Hollywood. Unsurprisingly, media created in a region that disdains us does not represent us truthfully or fairly." This is a typical attempt to create a state of victimhood in order shift focus away from the obvious failure of a Republican controlled state onto meaningless culture wars. "I grew up in Appalachia so I'm used to this treatment by the media and by people I interact with as a professional software engineer, including on this board, about where I came from and where I chose to make my home." Irrelevant to the topic at hand. Your personal experiences in this matter have nothing to do with the failures in the Texas energy grid. You are doubling down on perceived victimhood in lieu of an actual argument. "We know you hate us. It's the main message we receive every time we turn on the TV or any mainstream silicon valley website, including this one, again. That's why I post with a throwaway name. I don't expect people who hate us to represent us fairly." And this was the goal of the comment, specifically overriding any consideration of criticism by attacking the motives of the critic. This is as simple as it is disingenuous.