CPUC: PG&E Smart Meters Stay Installed

The best way to play SDG&E is to by Sempra Energy (SRE). I don't think SRE wants to dilute its hold on SDG&E by selling any SDG&E shares, but Sempra holding company shares are available for investing, trading, and speculating. Do your own due diligence before burning some bucks... The should be a break-even point where owning enough SRE shares pays one's accumulated monthly utility bills on receiving that rather handsome quarterly dividend check. I'll have to break out the slide rule for computing that one!
— December 20, 2010 11:30 a.m.

CPUC: PG&E Smart Meters Stay Installed

In addition to the points you mention, consider this: Given the electricity crisis history of investor owned power utilities AND the introduction of "dynamic pricing" high peak rates AND utility opposition to human readable output from smart meter, it will be impossible for consumers to challenge smart meter erroneous charges. With smart grid technology eventually allowing power companies to turn our appliances on and off remotely, gaming the grid no longer involves wholesale price manipulation across state lines when our appliances can be run during peak price business hours (when many of us are out of the house) to run up our bills. There would be no way for us to challenge those billings even if we discover the problem and unplug the appliances from the grid: the damage would already be done. In previous posts, I have already written about residential and small business consumers setting up off-grid solar panels to produce on-site electricity that does not involve the local power company. Consumers doing this as an always-on grid failure backup will be able to use their own free electricity during peak rate hours for at least partial powr bill relief. This can be done incrementally at around $150-$250 per square yard of solar panel (where one is enough to run a laptop or 2-3 table lamps) to avoid taking power directly from the grid at full or inflated prices. Here are two blog posts along those lines: http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/encanto-gas… http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/encanto-gas…
— December 20, 2010 5:40 a.m.

Michell Told She Can't Lobby City for a Year

Somehow it all sounds related to that KESSLER V. CITY OF SAN DIEGO mess. After all, Kris Michell is STILL top aide to Mayor Jerry Sanders until January 14, and perhaps hiz honor's testimony offered in deposition reflects that. I'd like to play stupid and ask "Rug burns? What's that all about??" but just I can't do it...
— December 19, 2010 10:29 p.m.

CPUC: PG&E Smart Meters Stay Installed

Also breaking about PG&E... "San Bruno disaster may be focus of federal hearing" http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/…
— December 19, 2010 10:07 p.m.

Gary Aguirre forces hand of SEC

Perhaps moving accounts to a credit union may be a step in the right direction? There does seem to be a consumer trend to paying down high-interest credit card debt since the Crash of 2008. If paid off, then it may be a matter of discipline not to use credit unless truly necessary and with making more than minimal payments.
— December 19, 2010 9:19 p.m.

Escondido Council Approves Ballpark -- with Reservations

I am hoping the people of Escondido are watching this all happen in front of them with their eyes wide open. If not, they may find that the politics of local fiscal collapse has far greater consequences for that municipality than the politics of undocumented immigration into the city limits. Escondido simply does not have the industrial-commercial base to bail out the residents, and the Moorad combination won't be bringing anything worth employing large numbers of residents to the table excepting low-wage service workers who won't contribute all that much to the tax base or for general obligation servicing. If stadium financing proves to be the equivalent for Escondido that the combination of deferred infrastructure maintenance, tax increment diversion from vital public services, and public employee pension problems are proving to be for us here in the City of San Diego, then Escondido could be in for a rough ride for at least the next 40 or so years (per H&S Code redevelopment law). At least the scandals ought to be entertaining...
— December 19, 2010 9:13 p.m.

CPUC: SDG&E Z-Factor Wildfire Insurance Problem Solved At $29 Million

I started writing these blog posts in 2007 for fellow plaintiffs in ENCANTO GAS HOLDER VICTIMS V. SDG&E, people who in some part were already identified as federal crime victims in UNITED STATES OF AMERICA V. SDG&E. After we lost EGHV V. SDG&E in summary judgment, I told them that I was going to keep writing these blog posts because others needed to see this. I also told them that compared to the masses that would rather bitch than begin to do something, they had already done enough and I wasn't going to bother them with any more crusades. This weekend, I discovered our efforts as Attorney General's Proposition 65 private enforcers in the public interest were not in vain. It turns out that besides the handful of regular comment posters here, there are hundreds or even thousands of others who have taken note of our enforcement action, of these blog posts, and of other related writings that happen to show up on search engines. Right now, there's some interest here and elsewhere on the 'net in a rather short ballot initiative to amend the San Diego electricity franchise agreement, putting a limit on things being too cozy between CPUC regulators and the local utility that happens to be headed by a former CPUC commissioner. The $200 or so filing fee for a petition can be found; the signatures can be gathered. I happen to think it can all be done without too much expense, mostly by the unpaid efforts of any part of over a million rather annoyed residential and small business power consumers in time for the 2012 general election. Time will tell as to what happens next. This initial effort may not be a whole lot of anything in the long run, but it's a start.
— December 19, 2010 1:18 p.m.

Robbery Suspects Chased from Ocean Beach to Point Loma

LOL2. I wonder what he'll post about the police when he and his get ripped off, now that others know exactly where to find HIS family stash and are just as likely as a MOA crew to strong-arm him for it later. At least it probably won't be the fringe remnants of the Bird Rock Bunglers with bells and ankle GPS bracelets on... they can't be THAT stupid... can they be?
— December 19, 2010 9:41 a.m.

Robbery Suspects Chased from Ocean Beach to Point Loma

Apparently they did not receive enough parental attention. Only a couple of generations ago, the economics of raising a family allowed at least one parent the time for some community involvement in PTA, scouting, or something that kept our young idle hands busy in the late afternoon and evening hours. Neighbors looked out for the neighborhood, and us kids feared any adult who might yell "Your parents need to be told" whenever we were caught doing something not right beyond the range of our own parental supervision. Things are different now. Two-parent households are rare enough that these "wanna be thugs" have no better supervision and guidance than they provide for themselves via peer pressure. Those same late afternoon and evening hours are now filled with bong smoke, MTV (now Maternity TeleVision) and the latest, greatest versions of Grand Theft Auto. Even with two parents, most families now need them both working just to keep up with bills, sincerely having no time for their own children. Give credit to our civic leaders who keep telling us that more low-wage tourism jobs will solve all of our economic problems. The results as evidenced by this article are not all that surprising. Isn't freedom grand? Maybe not when it is interpreted by the unsupervised and misguided as freedom to fail, ignoring the fact that with great freedom comes great responsibility.
— December 19, 2010 8:09 a.m.

CPUC: SDG&E Z-Factor Wildfire Insurance Problem Solved At $29 Million

Another option: a local ballot initiative applicable only to SDG&E. Because Proposition 16 did not pass, San Diego electricity franchise ordinance language relating to voters changing or even terminating that agreement with SDG&E were not affected. We could gather enough signatures locally without too much cost for a simple initiative within the City of San Diego, requiring that no Commissioner be hired within five years or so of leaving CPUC. According to other language in the electricity franchise ordinance, all terms are to be construed to the benefit of City of San Diego and strictly against franchise grantee SDG&E. http://www.sandiego.gov/undergrounding/pdf/sdgefr… I once posted a possible franchise ordinance amendment raising the annual franchise fee paid by SDG&E from 3% to 20% until all power lines are underground to reduce future wildfire risks from overhead power equipment... it could still fly... : http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/encanto-gas…
— December 19, 2010 7:16 a.m.