Friday, September 05, 2008

PSC: What's Wrong With This Picture? 2

The saga from Tuesday's post continues. Per the Rochester D&C, the PSC OKs the sale of RG&E's parent, Energy East, to Iberdrola.
Rochester-area business leaders, who lobbied ardently for approval, expressed relief.
Same old story: Well-connected "business leaders" use their positions to line their pockets. The lobbying Rochester-area business leaders are most likely former stockholders in RG&E (Rochester Gas & Electric) . . . stock holders who will cash in big when the NYSEG-Iberdrola deal gets finalized.

What do the citizens of New York get? While some may see "green renewable power," I see acres and acres of hillsides covered with windmills . . . and more acres consumed by power lines to get the power to market.

I also see another utility, vital for day to day life for many New Yorkers, run by decision makers in some far off foreign city. . . . unconnected to the reality of every day life in upstate New York -- except where profit is concerned. Is it any wonder why Upstate is in decline?

We stockholders are willing to throw our fellow citizens under the bus just to make a few bucks. And our state agencies are oblivious to the practical ramifications of what they are approving because the ramifications fall outside their area of purview.

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