Coming to America?

The Hugo Chavez dictatorship in Venezuela is starting to cut off power to businesses in the country that don’t meet the state’s demand to reduce energy. According to Reuters:

Venezuela announced on Sunday 24-hour power cutoffs for dozens of companies that have failed to reduce usage in the first punitive measures of a nationwide drive to save energy amid an electricity crisis.

Restaurants, liquor stores, hotels, gyms, car dealerships and a yacht club were on the list of 80 firms in the capital Caracas due to have their power cut on Monday for failing to bring consumption down 20 percent, the state utility said.

Oil rich Venezuela gets about 70% of its electricity from hydroelectric damns. A drought has reduced the electrical output of the system. The state is in the process of building new thermoelectric installations – but these will not come on line for several months … at least.

With the announcement by the EPA that carbon (an essential element of all life) is now an official pollutant, one wonders how long it will be until the United States central government starts handing down similar edicts?

Brave new world … with no electricity. Aren’t socialist utopias fun? We may soon get to read by candle light. (Unless candles are deemed to release too much CO2.) But then who needs to read in a socialist utopia? Just do what you are told and the state will take care of your thinking for you.

The only problem I can see that is not solved by the “Chavez solution” is how we will be able to run our businesses without any electricity. On the other hand, who needs electricity (or private enterprise) when paradise is already here?