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Smart Meters? Not so fast!

Bill Tieleman posted on his blog this morning about his objections to the SmartMeter Program that BC Hydro is attempting to foist upon us.

BC Hydro claims the completely safe wireless-transmitting smart meters will save you money and the environment by letting you — and them — monitor electricity usage. Then you can reduce usage and shift it to off-peak hours at lower rates.

That all sounds good — but it’s not accurate.

Here’s the flip side: smart meters will cost you $930 million up front, not reduce energy usage, not save the environment and not stop drug dealers. And they may not be safe.

Read his article here.
It seems the electromagnetic health concerns are being scoffed at by Promedia, one lady was concerned enough to write in to the Vancouver Sun on the issue

On May 31 of this year, the World Health Organization classified EMF as a 2b carcinogen, the same category as lead and DDT. I was flabbergasted since my dad taught electronics at the Manitoba Institute of Technology and we kids were techno dweebs.

Unbelieving, I read everything I could, including original documents by learned scientists all over the world and am now convinced WHO has underestimated the damage by EMF. Many scientists predict cancer rates will soar and the classification will be upgraded.

Studies show increasingly deleterious effects on mice the longer they are exposed to EMF and these effects are cumulative and irreversible. Scientists say we should not wait to see if this holds true for humans and they urge governments to stop installing wireless smart meters (see letters from experts on CCST, sagereports.com)

I am concerned about the two other aspects of the issue, being the invasion of Privacy and the implied consent that they assume you give if you don’t vehemently protest the intrusion.  I watched a very informative video outlining the implications of this issue, fortunately for us, people in other areas are already investigating these issues.
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There is a form letter in the comments section to personalize and send to BC Hydro.
To me this is a growing issue in Canada as the Food Safety Act makes intrusive incursions into these very same rights of Privacy.  In that Act, an inspector may enter your property and search for “contraban”, like raw milk or natural health products without a warrant from a judge.  In a nutshell, this takes away our right to the presumption of innocence and the legal onus of proof is switched from the judicial system via legally obtained and presented evidence of reasonable suspicion to the discretion of an inspector.  You no longer enjoy the assurance that you have the right to quiet enjoyment of privacy in your own domicile.
If that hasn’t got you terrified by the implications, consider the omnibus crime bill that is planned to be rammed down our throats, even with the absense of statistics to back up the whole tough on crime agenda of the Harper base.  Add in all those new prisons, and expect them to be modelled on the controversial (with good reason) Private- Public-Partnerships, or P3′s (Public debt and private profits=welfare for the rich).  So, instead of all these new privatised prisons sitting empty and making the haters look bad, they will fill them with potsmokers, eco-terrorists and people who use hyperlinks on their blogs.
It’s time to discuss these issues collectively, on a large scale.  We are running out of time to wake people up.  Once our Public Utilities are in Private hands, it will be much harder to repatriate them to public ownership.  We have much to lose.  BC Hydro is but one example of the push to steal the Public Trust.  Remember BC Rail?  Remember the HST?  BC Gas?  BC Tel?  The forces of evil are in the guise of BC Liberals, Steven Harper’s Conservative Government and every other governmental agency that is now taking advice from big business lobbies.  Or, for that matter, Government operatives being gifted with board positions on the corporate payroll, aka, the revolving door…as in Stockwell Day’s recent appointment on the board of telus.

3 comments to Smart Meters? Not so fast!

  • I am not sure about the E Rad problem, but Smart meters make sense to change behavior and smooth out power demand. I have had one for about a year.

  • Kim

    I already do everything I can to reduce my power consumption. Wood heat, propane stove, dry my laundry outside. I’m not going to start my housework at 1 AM to save money. It’s just an excuse to charge more money for the same service.

  • Julie

    Smart meters are nothing but, another Campbell rip off. Knowing Campbell isn’t one to pass up a buck, I wonder if there was money involved?

    I can’t afford not, to watch my energy consumption, heat and hydro both. Campbell’s theft and sale of our rivers, will put our hydro up to a 53% increase. Those “stupid”, “smart” meters, are totally not necessary. A stupid waste of tax dollars, in a recession. Asinine is what it is.