Bonner blamed the counterfeit letters on a temporary employee who they allegedly fired promptly after the incident. And, even though the coal industry feigned outrage over the bogus letters, their reaction did little to squelch the suspicion of foul play.
While deceit seems to be the order of the day, running rampant through the streets and boulevards inside the beltway, the rest of the country suffocates under strong-armed tactics from public utilities. These monopolistic energy providers, so threatened by rooftop solar installations and other decentralized renewable energy systems, which they fear will erode their domination of the $130 billion residential electricity market, are, in some cases, taking Machiavellian steps to thwart the adoption of clean technology.
Not long ago, Colorado-based utility Xcel attempted to place a surcharge on homes and businesses that used privately owned rooftop solar systems. Consumer outrage forced the utility to withdraw the proposal.
Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) recently filed a request with the state Public Service Commission (PSC) to reduce incentives for solar panel installation and, unbelievably, is claiming rights to all solar net metering systems that connect to the existing grid, even if they are privately owned.
To suggest that there is tension between the groups who are attempting to reform our energy infrastructure and the fossil-fuel based organizations who have historically dominated its current framework would be a colossal understatement.
The coal and oil industries have monopolized the energy equation for as long as anyone can remember, but now they're glimpsing an energy future in which their control and profits are drastically eroded. It's understandable that these groups are desperately clinging to their traditional market shares, but whose responsibility is it to make sure that it's a fair fight?
Big industry may still be at the core of our capitalist system, and their hired-gun, special interest lobbyists may continue to wield immense influence over a wide range of important issues and political perspectives, but when their fraudulent tactics brutally violate the very foundation of our democratic process, they victimize every one of us.
Posted: 9/9/2009 12:00:00 AM by
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