The Power Grid: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO) 

"Are you better off now than you were 4 years ago? Well, I don't give a shit."

More than a century later after Tesla died, and the corporate media aka HBO, continues to repeat lies and propaganda about him to trash his image, just because he wanted to provide free wireless electricity for everyone, but Edison (a crook) and corrupt friends, didn't want that.

@@thekaren1111 That was less about global warming and more about stopping our planet from becoming a horrible plastic hellscape where all living things were choked or poisoned to death. There is some point where ordinary citizens should think of the bigger picture because not everything hangs off the backs of corporations like it does with climate change.

@@mexuscentral Elon musk would be working in a gas station if our fed government didn’t bail him out and give him millions to get his business up and running. He’s also ensuring there is no real competition to his company or he’d lose billions. Poor guy couldn’t sell trips to space if he had to put taxes. Give me a break. Stop being daft and defending an overly rich a hole that could solve all of our infrastructure problem if he wanted. If the 15 richest Americans paid taxes equal to a full time worker we’d be evolved to 2021 in every way. Y’all demonize China but they invested a huge percentage of their GDP on infrastructure including their grid. That’s why they are so far advanced in every way over Murica. We are a joke on a mass delusion pretending we are #1. Only in guns per capita, mass shootings, school shootings, gun deaths, police killings, and incarceration of people

"We choose let powerlines go boom in this decade and do the other things. Not because it is easy for me, but because it is hard for you. Because that goal will serve to stick it to you libs and throw away the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are unwilling to accept, one we are willing to postpone, and one we intend to lose." - Also not JFK

You mean you should help each other? Act social? You're not communists, are you?!

It isn't actually. Americans help each other every day. That guy's comment could have -- and probably has been -- said by any citizen in any country anywhere in the world. People like that exist everywhere. And America is known for coming together to help others, especially in times of crisis, more than folks in other nations.

@@candacen7779 Clearly not anymore. Watching Faux news isn't helping you.

@@madpoetsociety2917 What are talking about? I don't watch Fox News, sweetie. And obviously it's not clear since you don't seem to notice all the poor and working class people out here helping one another every day.

@@desktopdesign7196 its funny because americans are blabbering about community this and community that all the time but second you mention universal health care or parental leave you are marked as evil communist

we can remove this stereotype by teaching and learning this shit costs money, an ex-girlfriends sister came home from snowboarding and turned the thermostat up to 98 degrees, because daddy only paid child support. they were rich conservatives, i told her nicely, you could have blown up the furnace but explained to her, heating and cooling works differently than the temperature of a human body.

It's outright ridiculous that white people be like yeah you can have that land then white people do the "Indian giving" and take it back. It's absolutely ridiculous. A friend of mine recently befriended a native and he recently became dehomed for that exact reason. I've now taken it upon myself to help my friend come up with things to send him because of the white man being like I know you've lived here your entire life but it's apparently still my manifest destiny to take this land. I'm very close to scalping passive racist white people. I hate how cruel we are to one another.

Have you ever considered that the natives want them to because they are paid?

And they receive 20 billion in direct subsidies every year.

@@RandoBurner Lemme play with basic common sense here in a form of a simplified dialogue A: Hey B, I am sorry but you need to move out from your room, we need it to expand the Kitchen. B: No way, where do I move from my room? I have stayed here since my childhood A: Well, you can go to the Toolshed... Plenty of space there B: The Toolshed? Really? That place has no power outlet, no air conditioning, no heating, no window, and no bathroom; not only that, it's full of Mosquitos, plagued with rats and raccoons, and as structurally sound as a deck of cards... Heck, that place is filled with your tools that only you can use! How do I suppose to live there?! A: Here's fifteen bucks for you to get whatever you need to live there... I'll give you monthly if you moved there B: WHAT??? Fifteen bucks?? What do I do with this? I need to get heater, Air cooler, And even more stuff to make the Toolshed barely livable... And you gave me Fifteen bucks? A: What more do I need to give? Either live there and take the money or get out from the house! Oh also, We will also need to pass the Gas line for our new kitchen from the Toolshed as well... You can't complain tho, you got fifteen bucks Have fun with that analogy...

Indeed

It's almost like the term "public service" is lost on actual public servants, elected into office by the public for the improvement of public life.

Congress people should have term limits

Return on investment was a legitimate point! We the people foot the bill while energy companies continuously raise rates. What Mr. Johnson was getting at was a rate cap but that doesn't fit the narrative. As for the expansion of the power grid, John glossed over the obvious answer. Build along side railroads and freeways. Everything else was just filler material. Yawn. No mention of Thorium reactors?!?

@@halcyon_echo42 I find it scary that Republicans claim they are for the people yet mostly work to be in favor with only one little man. It feels like the Republican party is all about themselves and taking care of their donors. Not the general public and all Americans. It’s sickening what the GOP will stand for yet not do what is right for American.

Awesome

Underrated comment!!

Best comment under this video 🙌🏿

The smile after the comment makes me so happy

Thank you for being you

I appreciate you so much for that hahahahahah....Wild Force for lifeeeee

You dont touch the thermostat because men all men can tell if the tempature changes by a degree and it immediately makes us uncomfortable I dunno why we are so sensitive to temperature but we are and if it's outside our control we deal with it silently like men but when it's your home your laying the bills and ultimately in charge there is no way in hell anyone mother wife child is going to make us uncomfortable in our own paid for area lol that is why your grandad was insistent.

@@dc1842 Sure, that's understandable. If you pay the bills, you control the heating system. Thing is, I pay the bills. Grandpa always complained that he was too cold. Then he'd get furiously angry that I touched the thermostat. Even if he just asked me to turn up the heat. He had dementia, so his actions sometimes didn't make logical sense. The thing about guys being more sensitive to temperature is debatable. Everyone feels too cold or too warm for different reasons. It's not really a gender thing.

@@astralminstrel well if he's old and feeling cold or young and feeling too cold more than likely an issue woth circulation when your older but when your younger which I assume your grandad was when he was moaning About the thermostat in your memory and still fairly young I can imagine he did sense it. I know when there's a change in my environment very quickly and it's a stereotype so it has to be popular enough to be a stereotype

In my case I don't like when somebody touches the termostat is because my wife will feel a bit cold in the morning so she will turn it up, and then when the sun comes out you have to open all the windows because it's too hot, letting all that money wasted on heating it up out the windows. Or if you have floor heating then changing the termostat won't do anything for the next 12 hours because it takes time. When I take care of the temperature in the house, I monitor the average in-house temperature, and the weather forecasts for the next couple days and set it up so we don't sweat during the day and freeze at night and we don't dramatically overspend on the bills. If I let people touch termostat, they will be unhappy with the results. Like letting a person, who doesn't know how to drive, to drive a car. They will have a bad time, it will be a rough drive and in the end they will say that my car is crap because it doesn't do what they want it to do - because they don't know how to operate it.

@@dc1842 Men are not any more sensitive to temperature change than women are. You're making that shit up.

Ah yes. Court rooms that famously don't have metal detectors when you enter. I totally believe this

​@@H0uxdubxstonI think they mean the police in the courtroom take their guns out.

It really is 🤣 Im hungry....

"Why would I pay to feed and clothe my children? How much do I make from it?"

the guy's not stupid, he's getting paid by an old and dirty power plant to act stupid... just so we're clear :} *i'd take a stupid person w/ decent social skills over someone who's acting stupid on purpose any time

Exactly my thought. But if anyone is a dollarvore (eats dollar bills to stay alive), it is probably Bill Johnson.

@@duroxkilo I used to think the same way, but stupid people create outcomes where nobody wins (i.e. lose-lose outcomes). At least thieves help themselves. Stealing is inevitable; just have to make sure they are doing their job well and don't steal too much.

@CalvinV7 If anything, colonialists made their problem, that most of them were the dregs of society back in Europe, the problem of Native Americans by killing them with bioweapons

It's due fox propaganda network! Me,me,me, mindset has been fostered for 40years!

Yet we are one of the most charitable nations on earth. We almost always fall in the top 2 by every group who calculate it.

@@flagrarus The "bioweapons" story is a complete lie.

@@SirPatrickMackofMaplethorpe that's not really relevant to the power grid issues, champ

It's almost like it's intentional...

Because the so-called innovation of capitalism is actually on "efficiency" to do bare minimum

Money

John pretty much said it. It's the republican party. I guarantee that grassroots movements was backed by right wing organizations.

One could argue that US military hegemony has led to 75 years of Peace and Prosperity in the West. And now with China having its window of opportunity to to challenge that it might be unwise to cut funding now. That Ship has sailed between 1990 and 2010

Where psychotic egoism is a virtue!

The goal is always to make them care before it becomes their problem too...but its hard to change anyone's mind these days before its too late, and the problem has grown exponentially...

I mean, wouldn't "America in a nutshell" be more like "Let's make our problems their problems?"

@@cy-one I guess u could say that too

@@TreyDoe I mean, a big part of the issues in the Middle East are caused by the US directly and indirectly. Same goes for the refugee crisis in Europe.

Sad

negligent

Don't know where you are but I've had power outages and went through the ice storm that hit Southeastern Ontario. Wherever you are, thank you for your amazing skills! 👏 👏 👏 😊

Man, I come from a family of electricians, regular and high voltage workers, and I know that you guys are taking risks every day to keep that power flowing. Very much appreciated by me and mine here in BC! Thanks!

Cheers from Bulgaria :) i worked as an ISP technician for some years, we also 'reward' the annoying, not respecting customers like you do in Canada!!

Forgot to say I am also thankful for what you do, it should go without saying! I sometimes even went to fix a neighbours' connection outside of working hours because i genuinely care for people, and still when you call them for help half of them wouldnt bother.. However the other half would respond in a kind way ... Because of those people i enjoyed this kind of work. I bet your heighbours call you if they have some sort of power issues :) Also you work with very high currents which makes your job constant danger, and your sacrifice is incomprehensible for most people, i can imagine :)

you better be on some adderall if youre working 22 hrs straight on god damn electrical shit wtaf...

Precursor to the TV remote

i swear my dad can sense when i touch the thermostat even though i live 3 states to the west... ring-ring, you guys having a hot day over there, how's life?

Dude. Think of how many little pieces of life that we think are just “how it goes” that was based off those American/nuclear family informational propaganda movies. Our great-grandparents (or older) spent their school years watching those. Movies about why your credit score is important, how men and women are supposed to interact, how dating is supposed to progress, how a family should look and act. It’s fucking wild to think about.

That apartment looked pretty sweet though, I'd rather be living there than the dump I bought.

ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-5fr-IBiJ3Ts.html

But defense spending... Will sadly be the response

This.

@@Xeretov Yet in all these nations where these conflicts pop up, you don’t exactly see M4’s and US armored and air assets. These nations use, surprise surprise, Cold War surplus. AK’s, Migs, ect ect. If we are the world’s armory, we are doing a pretty shitty job of it.

@@Xeretov Fair enough. Lmao.

@@Xeretov nobody asked the US to do that....... you may want to check how profitable war is and see the real reason.

Rural heartland "Red State" farmers have been subsidized by the urbanized "Blue States" they so despise to the tune of hundreds of billions for multiple decades now. Hearing these parasites talk about "don't make your problem my problem" is brain-melting. They would truly rather die than allow reality to puncture their white-supremacist fantasy-land. The question is, are we going to let them take everyone else with them?

@@michaelccozens That’s why it’s infuriating to hear things at right wing rallies like, “Liberals are trying to fund planned parenthood, public healthcare, green energy and new public transport.” Yeah. We’re *trying,* but it’ll never happen, because we have to pick up the tab for Old MacDonald and his hick buddies. States that’d go broke without our tax dollars literally spit on the hands that feed them. When was the last time Mississippi (27% federal tax dependent) or Alaska (28% federal tax dependent) did me a favor?

I mean, your facetious point is valid, but to be fair long term, big picture solutions rarely benefit them anyway. For example, do you know why there are so many dairy farms in California, where there isn't nearly enough water to graze that kind of cattle? Because some idiot numpty in the 1930's decided to scale the federal dairy subsidy (well, the minimum market price guaranteed for milk) by how far away a farm was from Eau Claire, Wisconsin. So California got a rush of dairy farms it couldn't support and Wisconsin lost what was at the time its biggest domestic industry. How's that for a long term big picture.

They are subsidised by Food Stamps and other government programs. The purpose of food stamps is to prop up the domestic market so farmers know they will be able sell their harvest, so they can make plans to plant the next year's food. The federal government coerces what we need to ensure the food supply and prevent famine. As bad as food prices might be this winter, there's enough food for every American.

@@petervanschepen8809 considering cali is in the top 10 GDPs in the world i think theyre doig fine

Not all heroes wear capes, I hope you get all the funding you need.

Yes, the grid does feel like something from another era... Because it is. In the age of semiconductors and electronics, dealing with power mains feels pretty much like rubbing sticks together to get fire to me, a non-professional...

Would be cool if somwone documented some of the oldest still used today

@@tabethahowell5859 I've seen transformers that were built where my grandfather worked when my dad was born (mid-1960s). I think the oldest thing I've seen was probably mid-1950s?

you got any jobs for a recent EE grad?

They could have a huge variety of designs, Dancers, animals, trees, words, , the possibilities are endless. There was an era when public works had to have some aesthetic value. Lets do that again.

*Supresses Attack on Titan flashbacks* Those do look incredible!

ya

No, they reminds me of those titans in attack on titans

@@macrumpton i like triangles, but some cleaning of the shape could be nice

So because a lot of people are born unto a location that they will never be able to leave, that means that no one chooses where they want to live? Try again...

@@codymoe4986 Did you actually READ their post? "...can't afford to move anywhere else, nor have support system anywhere else..." I had support on the other end so I was able to move to a better situation 2,400 miles away. Some people don't have that and no, they cannot choose another place. They don't need anyone's condemnation. Try again.

Tell that to the countless millions who have walked tens of thousands of miles through jungles and deserts to sneak into our country. I can't imagine feeling as trapped and helpless as you. You are living where you choose to live

More like, I guess you don’t need gas, food, electronics… since that isn’t here either

Very good points. Also, it's not like they "chose to live there" at a time when these problems are manifested. And I bet good money that that guy "chose where to live" as an accident of birth. His argument is rubbish in so many ways.

And those people who chose to live over there do business with people who chose to live over here thus being part of what keeps our economy going and people able to make a living. Ya know, on top of those people over there helping fund things like roads, clean water, insurance pools, disaster recovery, and oh yeah THE ELECTRIC GRID YOU ALL RELY UPON. Argh, that guy had me seeing red. NIMBY in action right there.

Relax, his hunting license is paid up and he knows all the best places to bury the bodies.

@@starventure "this land is my land, this land ain't your land, I got a shotgun, and you ain't got one..."

Thats freedom

i do not want it to sound smart-alecky, but i'd say the most American thing about it is not so much the "if it doesn't help me" but the fact that he doesn't realize that it is for his own good aswell? sorry, don't want to be too harsh but had to point it out.

Yeah. I still can't understand why anyone would voluntarily immigrate to the United States. What are those people thinking?

Helping people is communism.

@@duanebarry2817 democracy and equal opportunity

You are talking about a country with 325,000,000 people across thousands of miles compared to Japan, a small country with a small population. There is a difference between Japan and USA. The real question should be why do we have outages when bigger countries like us don’t

@@colechapman3382 : Japan isn't a small country, nor does it have a small population. You're mistaking your bigotry for facts.

@@colechapman3382 Japan is hardly small. It's nearly 2000 miles long, and, with 125,000,000 people, it is the 11th most populated country in the world (the US is third, after China and India).

@@pywaketpilot Japan is the size of California. All in all, it's a medium size country physically. Economically and Politically of course it's one of the most powerful countries in the world.

That's because East Asian cities actually have decent infrastructure. My grandparents in Taiwan don't have to worry about national disaster, so that's one less thing (considering they're elderly and worried about China invading). Because they're "liberal" where it counts, understanding that skimping on infrastructure at all means taking an arrow to the knee later on. Privatized utilities in the USA only care about shipping the minimum viable product for the highest end price.

We Texans have been needing it ever since ERCOT was established.

Warnings since 1989 but since so many ppl died last winter new laws were passed effective immediately until huge campaign donations showed up for Abbott and friends and now WE'RE paying for it and it'll be done... In the future? Until it's not.

The Texas Governor's mansion has power. Gather everyone without power and go to the Texas Governor's mansion.

*years

@@DavidRichardson153 As I understand it, ERCOT handles distribution, and has no power over the power plants (and natural gas people). So politicians scream at ERCOT to fix the blackouts, ERCOT politely recommends that power plants winter-proof their shit, and the power plants promise to fix things as soon as they can. Then the power plants hang up the phone, laugh, and keep making profit. Ten years later, blackouts happen again, and politicians scream at ERCOT again. What the fuck are they suppose to do? They can't force the power plants to do anything. The politicians can force the power plants to act, but they choose to scapegoat ERCOT instead. It's insanity.

I mean... There's definitely a return when you pay a clown to show up to a child's birthday party.... I think we are just overpaying the clown 🤣

All politicians

As an Ohioan the term "sunk cost" comes to mind.

I know he's enjoying his return on investment for selling out.

Congressional rep salary: $174k. So as long as Johnson finagled more than $174k of pork barrel spending into his district, it's a positive ROI. For reference, Johnson's district (OH-6) took in $3.8B in federal money in 2017.

These people aren’t pro America

"no." - every republican

And would ya look at that? JFK wasn't a republican... odd, that. I thought they were supposed to be the party of the every-man?

"Fuck off" - every Republicunt..

BUT THE STOCK MARKET

And safe bucket loads of money long term, create jobs, etc. etc. I see lots of ROI by investing in infrastructure.

Well said! When oh when will republicans start participating in Congressional activities besides the raising of money and the reception of corporate bribes?

Welcome to America.. A giant fucking fraud. Run by crooks and criminals where your vote doesn’t matter.

Well said my friend. As an American I agree.

I never got this about Americans, how come they have this way of thinking, but at the same time claim they're patriotic. How can you be a patriot and not care about your fellow countrymen?

@@octavianpopescu4776 their claim of patriotism is a euphemism for racism/bigotry. These people are the most unpatriotic idiots in the world.

I reckon the last 15 seconds of that interview weren't recorded - they would have gone something like this - "Ah'm a true-blood American so fuck y'awl. Now ah'm gonna get me a slice o' that there squirrel pah, just made by mah wife/sister". Ugh.

@@octavianpopescu4776 they claim of patriotism when it come to everything else that involved foreign. Whether it trade war with China which bankrupt our farmer or increased in military defense but when it come to Public good they said fuck it. Let our road be damn, our electricity age, our Healthcare shit, and our education underfunded but hey at least we got free refil.

@@octavianpopescu4776 they somehow find a way to reconcile their hyper-individualism with their patriotism creating something which is only patriotism in name.

HA! Well said.

Well "working" is an objective term in this case. Lol.

Oh, yes!

🤔 true, cuz When u elect a ”new” leader over 70 ur not really picking a new president, ur picking a new pope

That congressman sounded like he went to a bible college like 100 years ago.

US is essentially third world country with a super power military.

It's such a dumb question. If your car breaks down you either repair it or get a new one. You don't expect a return on investment in form of cash from that but it's till worth it...

@@thinhvo3893 we’re failing in every other respect because we’re only investing in that military. It’s embarrassing.

@@thinhvo3893 bold words for someone in liberation distance.

BURN. I love it.

That would be asking the wrong question. The corporate lobbyists are getting great ROI from their campaign donations.

I wish the Transportation official was a little quicker on her feet, she could've roasted the Congressman: Sir there is no economy without electricity, and there is no growth without a modernized electric grid. I can't predict the monetary benefit to the individual taxpayer but I can promise longer delay will cost them more to replace when it eventually fails.

I cannot like this comment enough.

Representative* windbag. Ohio’s senators are Sherrod Brown (D) and Rob Portman (R). Don’t give the windbag more prestige than he deserves.

I bet if we started talking about the return on investment for the military though all suddenly that Congressman from Ohio would change his tune.

@@bishop253 Does my memory fail me or did America not just lose a tremendously expensive 20-year long war? I'm wondering what our "return on investment" was in that?

@@boxadorsrus5991 Not going to get into Afghanistan, because clearly it's a shit show to put it lightly, but the point I was trying to make is that the Congressman's arguments were clearly in bad faith and if the topic was instead the military instead of clean energy, then chances are he wouldn't care that it doesn't have a ROI for taxpayers.

@@boxadorsrus5991 The ROI on Afghanistan was tremendous for the rich who profited off of it.

Libraries have existed for thousands of years ,example (library of alexandria) your idea that libraries are somehow socialist, and the fact that libraries wouldn't be created is rather ludicrous in the first place, and you have no statical evidence to back this and probably any of your claims from extensive knowledge of American culture from your bedroom and the interent.

All nice nice until you get eminent domained or manifest destinied.

@@richarddevenezia8186 wait what

Full access to 50 state mail in voting, end voter ID laws, make it a paid national holiday, and make it mandatory,end gerrymandering and overturn Citizens United FOR STARTERS.

@@kitcoffey7194 while I agree that most of your statements would be a tremendously good idea, mandatory voting is one of the red flags indictive of a dictatorship.

@@torinnbalasar6774 Just because it's been in fascist countries, does not make it a fascist policy. Australia has the mandatory voting law, and you don't see them pledging to the 3rd Reicht. I think it more or less has to do with what the political scene looks like when it is enacted. In most fascist countries, mandatory voting is usually enacted well after the press, and civil disobedience are cracked down on. Currently the press isn't censored, and while civil disobedience is disincentivized right now, that's primarily because of the pandemic instead of a moral demonization of going against the state.

Exactly. And it's down to a general distribution of traits that make you more or less empathic towards others that we can't really change. But societies can influence it with their general approach to laws and government, and unfortunately, capitalism without proper pricing in of long-term effects tends to favor those who care more for the dime than for the man. And the US is the king of capitalism, so...

Best stated by Mr no backyard power line. So many people refuse to change anything in their lives unless they see a direct, usually financial benefit. That mindset is what's going to doom us all in the end.

It's awfully sad really.

@@cirkmannzirkel8229 lol blaming capitalism, too funny

@@chrisprilloisebola Explain how it's funny. Because it sounds like you think it isn't capitalism the leads to PG&Es deadly decisions. I'll bet you believe in trickle down economics, lmfao!

"Clue" (1985) - Great mix of mystery and humor. Larry Blamire's "Dark And Stormy Night" (2009) is also hilarious.

@@RandomPerson13 Just gonna put this out there. But an alarming number of humans worship some creature(s) called “God”. Said creature(s) historically say humans are bad, evil, and unworthy of worship. I’d argue that has something to do with why we don’t see so much humans are awesome look what we can do imagery. I’ve found religion hates it when people glorify what humans can do, and if some human does do something great it gets attributed to an act of God.

Just imagine a bunch marching across the desert or along the interstate highways. You can't tell me that wouldn't look hella cool

@@LochNessax3 some horses running in a line 🐎🐎🐎

Yeah, I loved that design. Spooky, yet also strikingly evocative of a sense of wonder. The designers of those towers did really well for themselves.

@@sorenkazaren4659 in the spirit of bona fide argument, there are a couple things fundamentally wrong with what you said... first, theologically, God isn't a creature in any religion that I'm aware of; creatures are created, God is a creator, and there is a categorical difference there which is what makes the god or gods different from animals... second, the claim that God says humans are bad is ENTIRELY dependent on the specific theological traditions of a particular religion -- Buddhism does say that humanity is fundamentally evil and we need active effort to overcome our nature, Abrahamic religions say that human nature is fundamentally good but flawed through choice, and I'm not aware of any native American religion for example that would say humans are at all "evil" by any kind of moral category -- to say that all religions "historically say humans are bad" is a gross oversimplification and misrepresentation of religion and history... and a final point: "religion hates it when people glorify what humans can do" is an absurd statement, religions don't hate or love anything, people do. Individual humans may diminish or glorify human actions as they personally chose to, but the religion itself does not make the same petty emotional decisions that people do; Pope Julius II didn't commission Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel because Catholicism hated humanity or human efforts, and the religion certainly doesn't assert that God Himself painted it.... And again here, you're committing the fallacy of sweeping generalization whenever you talk about "religion" as an ideologically unified single body. I don't expect anything I've said will actually change your opinions on your beliefs, which is fine, but please make an effort to improve your arguments supporting those beliefs, as the claims you made in that comment quite weak, make for poor support, and are riddled with fallacy, from a strictly logical perspective

Infrastructure shouldn't just be functional, it should be beautiful too!

@@HobbesHobbiton Completely agree ! When we see what cities look now, with all this purely-functional car-oriented design, we wonder at how great they'll become when we transition past that

@Brendan McMahon: Well, _there's_ your first mistake. The moment you let your guard down and think they aren't moving, _that's_ when they start moving in for the kill. Yes, that's right, *_they know your thoughts!_*

@@sdfkjgh Don’t blink

Under ground. It worked out well for Germany. Under ground lines are the way to go, but it's doubtful Congress will ever do it. That idea just makes too much sense. 🙄🤷

More than one person goes home each night mumbling, "I can't believe we kept it going another day."

Why not just put your powerlines underground?

@@MHGFTW $$$ It's way more expensive to build, and you have to dig it back up when there are problems or you need to make upgrades

@@willfreese 1 800 DIG would be keep even busier.

@@MHGFTW why cant we just wireless carry energy lol

Can't wrap my head around how the US can consider itself a first word country, let alone "the greatest country" while this is happening out of sheer greed.

And an 11 year old died of hypothermia in his home. It haunts me. He wasn't the only fatality. Climate change kills.

@@whiteraven550 100%. GREED! I wonder, does GOP stand for Greed Only Pays?

mobilize in the off season since your state doesn't care about at least HALF of its people

@Ben Henderson you have no understanding of cold weather or how hypothermia works.

Exactly !!!

It's a big reason why I think we won't have full electrification of things. Or at least it taking a lot longer of a time frame/ government spending on a level even higher than the new deal, for a decade and a half.

Makes sense they are so outdated 🤔 it does seem we focus the most on port cites over inland cities.

Problems we're going to solve* ;) As in, once everything is down the whole fucking time, politicians will finally make it a priority to fix all the things that have been neglected for decades and decades.

@@MrNicoJac that's the mentality of most people though... "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" 😒

You are so right, this is not an America-only problem. Here in Germany our Grid is not that much worn down and most of our lines are installed underground so that they are not that much harmed by the weather. But we face the same problem. You can generate a lot of wind energy in the north, but we have great energy demand in the west and the south, so we would need to upgrade our grid in order to get the "green" electricity to where it is needed. And in addition to that, our big distribution lines, that are also in many cases are landlines, need repair and upgrade as well. So yes, I think this is a world wide challenge to make the transition from centralized electricity production to a distributed system.

Holy shit. This is amazing.

That makes too much sense to ever happen here.

Packing my stuff...see ya soon!

If only this happened in South Africa!

This is a great idea.

I'm kind of surprised that Belgium doesn't use kilometres (or were you just translating your remark for an American audience)?

@@jshariff786 Language is meant to communicate. Most people here will be America, hence I used miles(with the 1 mile = 1.5 kilometer conversion, not bothering being overly exact) I would use "soccer" if it means easier and less confusing communication as well.

Yeah in some parts of US it's reliable, middle of Ohio is actually great, they don't have blackouts.

@@Londronable Good man.

and Reagan fucked us.

Exactly. And yet you still have conservatives writing books demonizing him, and insisting that he was the absolute worst. It says something that he was elected 4 times, and conservatives came together to enact term limits on his position because they knew they couldn't beat him on policy alone.

Fdr had nothing to do with the interstate system

That Rino Eisenhower proposed the Interstate Highway System, got some of it built, and improved the US Highways as well.

Yeah Bc prior FDR was what?

And a proper explanation on 'how things go'.

The beastiality jokes and kinda getting old and tired now. I hope he moves on to something else. Janice from accounting can make a comeback.

I'm not so sure about 1, but 2 is definitely true.

Imho I feel like it'd be more comically better for him to make jokes with other celebrities than beastiality jokes. We got George Clooney and Adam Driver after all. He could also add more up-to-date memes to his jokes.

@@phoenix5054 He usually chooses a theme for the season and rides with it and yes, by the end it feels overused. Remember Adam Driver? Yeap, not missing them at all

Not to mention he’s making his problem their problem. They don’t get electricity because he just doesn’t want to look at them

Did someone say Rand Paul?!!

They take money from those other states for 2 reasons: 1. The states have constitutional mandates to balance their budgets. So for them, getting money isn't an option. They just have to accept wherever it comes from for the most part. 2. Because taxation is progressive in America, and the Fed's biggest programs are for the aged and the poor, social security, medicare, and medicaid. So the states that end up being the biggest net recipients of federal dollars are the states with the oldest and poorest inhabitants. So what is your point?

@@Sewblon - The point is why those red states just happen to be the home of the poorest for decades on end. It might, wild speculation here I agree, have something to do with who they vote for. And your "they just have to accept" is downright ridiculous. They might make an effort, you know?! Bavaria here in Germany used to be the poorest and most backward state, subsiding heavily on federal support. Nowadays they are paying into the pot, not taking out of it. So if you do your thing right, you can get out of that ditch.

@@haraldschuster3067 1. "The point is why those red states just happen to be the home of the poorest for decades on end. It might, wild speculation here I agree, have something to do with who they vote for." There is an intuitive appeal to that point. But lots of poor people end up in red states because they can't afford to live in most blue states, with the exception of New Mexico, which is both blue and poor, because those blue states make housing expensive on purpose to raise more property tax revenue. Blue states tend to funnel poor people into red states. Maybe red states could stop those people from being poor if they really tried. But blue states don't really try either, they just make sure that poor people can't afford to live in them, again, except for New Mexico. Plus, its not like voting blue guarantees that your people won't be poor. Just look at New Mexico, like I said, or that having a low poverty rate means that your state will be a net tax payer, just look at New Hampshire. Most importantly, if you make redistribution from the rich to the poor an explicit goal, then the states where poor people live being net tax receivers isn't a sign of a problem. Its a sign that the system is working as intended. Even without redistribution, its not like being a net tax receiver means that you are doing something wrong. Virginia and Maryland are net tax receivers because they are where the best paid federal employees and contractors live. They are not a drag on the system unless you think that the employees and contractors are not justifying their compensation, even if you think that, that is the Feds responsibility, not the states' responsibility. Edit: But now that I think of it, Vermont has an extensive welfare state. So they actually try to stop poor people from being poor. But they are a net tax receiving state. So actually trying to stop the poor from being poor doesn't stop you from being a net tax receiver. "And your "they just have to accept" is downright ridiculous. They might make an effort, you know?! Bavaria here in Germany used to be the poorest and most backward state, subsiding heavily on federal support. Nowadays they are paying into the pot, not taking out of it. So if you do your thing right, you can get out of that ditch." Interesting, how did they do that?

I would like to know what you were expecting and ready to get angry by. Genuine interest.

@@Acidfrog475 I thought it was going to be a one sided discussion on renewables without talking about the challenges faced with building the transmission needed to carry power to the load centers that need it.

Years ago, I questioned whether there were more power outages or if we just noticed them more. Several decades ago, we were less likely to have a bunch of stuff plugged in that would remind us that the power had been out while we were away. But, these days it's pretty clear that it's happening more often. We ask more of the grid than we had, and there's been a bunch of neglected maintenance in many areas of the country. Recently, we've been having strings of electric polls falling over during storms because they weren't strong enough after decades of service to withstand and when one goes down, the line of them go with it.

Really? Why no mention of line losses sending electricity from the Midwest to the coasts? If we really were to ship electricity 1500 miles then we're looking at transmission lines pushing 750kV or more... and, of course no mention of the massive substations that would be required for voltages and power loads of that magnitude (which would be gigantic terrorism magnets, btw). It would make a lot more sense to break the three grids into a collection of many smaller grids that interconnect and can route around transmission issues. Would also make a lot of sense to rely on proven zero-carbon technology like nuclear -- especially SMR -- which can be safely located very close to or even in cities where the electricity is needed, obviating the need for massive, lossy transmission lines in the first place.

@@TheCzemike you right there are a few things he omitted but he provided enough information so the general public can understand the challenges.

"Because we give tax breaks to the rich every year/refuse to ever tax the people with money instead of ever investing in actual social and material infrastructure"

Unfortunately, the new US slogan is, "I got mine!"

Our government haven't done nearly enough. FIFY

More like, "we've barely done anything".

that's fair

He said, electric, he gets how people need electric. Perhaps if somebody explained that this was to provide electricity, he might have a less ignorant position.

@@SmallSpoonBrigade I'm not sure that would change things tbh.. his whole argument was that it doesn't benefit him, but other Americans. If they said how it'd affect him or benefit him, then maybe he'd care

I’m guessing he lives in a state that is heavily subsidized. Guess where that money comes from.

I just wanna know how HE thinks the electricity *he receives* gets to him, does it magically appear at his house? does he not realize those same power lines that stretch from state to state also bring him his electricty? JFC 😑

@@SmallSpoonBrigade Yes! For me the most troubling part of his “argument” was repeatedly calling electricity “electric”. By revealing what a stupid idiot he is by repeatedly saying electric, I already knew whatever argument that followed was going to be a dumb, selfish one that’s typical of right wingers.

Its like asking "what's the return on investment for buying a furnace." Ummm, having a heated home? Can a monetary value easily be attached to that? No. Is it worth the investment? Absolutely.

He was just bullying her; his tone, interruptions and body language makes that clear. What he asked was irrelevant; the point was to try to discredit her.

I've dealt with these types of people by both ignoring their questions or by calling out their rudeness. It isn't ideal, but rather fun. That is my return on investment. I am ashamed he represents Ohio.

Let's ask him if he ever brushed his teeth. He didn't, because you can't make money buying toothpaste. Bill Johnson stinks.

This man does not know what a "service" is. Like, roads don't have an official ROI, but your employees need to get to work, right? He's the short-term focused MBA middle manager that causes long term harm for everything they touch. We need to rid society, companies, and government of these cancers.

What do you think about STEM?

I feel the same. Reporting on STEM stuff is often pretty poor, but this did an ok job hitting a lot of relevant points about grid infrastructure and politics given the segment duration and needing to incorporate comedy.

Come back when you build a Colosso for Americur

He did a horrible job at explaining what's really wrong.

@Hank HILL I recall last winter TX had no redundancy when it's grid went offline. Criticizing the pebble in your neighbor's eye would seem kind of ironic.

Nope

Don't argue with a bad premise. Your just justifying his nonsensical arguments.

Certainly not. However, I also drifted into a daydream of some sassy young person asking him about the return on investment for defense spending and pipelines.

It should be looked at as an insurance, not an investment. You insure something you have because of the enormous costs associated with losing it.

@@tommaj5657 except it’s completely different things

2022 calls...hey guys how are things?

How did that cause a lab leak?

@@rudymurillo9334 can't stop the spread if people don't care who they spread it to or even take responsibility for spreading the virus

@@technicallyme Conservatives aren't able to see things past face value. If they stop believing the lab leak theory it'll become "I may have passed Covid to my kids and they all died because of it, but how could I be at fault for something that a bat did!?"

@@orangenostril that's the part I've never understood. Who cares who's fault it is. We have a problem,there's information coming in from every corner of the globe giving us a good idea of what needs to be done. let's just do what we need to do to get past this. Everyone I've ever know who looks for someone to blame is bad at there job or in my rear view mirror because theyre worried about blame while I'm taking care of what needs to be done

Yeah I was like bish it's gonna be more expensive to deal with down the line. Preventative measures are almost always cheaper than dealing with catastrophic consequences

No, not just you 😢

Not that any quick response would be accepted in good faith by Mr. Johnson but I probably would have suggested something like "The ROI is that we will not lose millions of dollars of productivity per hour due to power outages and brownouts." Preventative maintenance is always less costly than a tow truck and a dealer quote.

The one I thought of was: you pay for medication and it’s not like that gives you money back but it is still really important.

My personal one was, "Sir, have you ever paid to change the oil in your car, or do you just run it until it dies and then walk?" But someone else put it better when they pointed out that the only value in any interaction with such an a$$ is in denying him the sound bite he so desperately wants. "Mr. Johnson can you tell me the ROI on paying our soldiers? Why do you hate our soldiers, Mr. Johnson?" Other than that I think more people should be allowed in these hearings to happily respond to bad faith waste of time theatre (in both parties) with a smile and, "Get f🙃cked."

I thought he meant hot-air balloons (and that may be what the statistic actually is) because those things hit power lines distressingly often, usually killing everyone aboard.

I've actually seen that first hand. Pretty cool until you realize it knocks your power out

This particular example probably didn’t cause a power outage. But there are metal balloons that can

The biggest threat to power lines on a day-to-day basis is all the tree branches and limbs that can come into contact with the lines as they grow. It's a big job keeping them trimmed back.

maybe there were slugs on the balloons?

Totally agree with you. God, that politician was so annoying with his idiotic ‘return on investment’ crap….oh I don’t know, having f’ing electricity maybe?? Just half a day without power is enough to remind me how much we rely on electricity. I live in a desert where it is scorchingly hot for 9 months of the year…I consider air conditioning a ‘return on investment’, not to mention the services and conveniences that rely on electricity. I will never understand the absolute selfishness and greed that is so prevalent in this country! We are going to be in a world of hurt if we keep this crap up, and I’d rather not go through that. I’m 50 and I always thought societal breakdown wouldn’t happen in my lifetime, I’m not so sure anymore. Good luck to us all

Well said.. America, united states my arse.. Not in my back yard hick mentality. The hick with the sunglasses couldn't even use the word "electricity". Education is key and giving a crap about your neighbour's is also key. Such a sad "state" of affairs', with each state having it's own ideology, and Idiocracy...

Friedman: "Do you know any country that doesn't run on greed...? We listened to the wrong people for the wrong reasons. Most humans are unable and/or unwilling to really consider peace, harmony or any social good as a more important thing then money and greed. Most people seperate whats good for them and whats good for others and allways choose whats good for themself. We share a community, a state, a f...n world. We all fail to see this very important point and cut down everything to selfinterest and return of investment. What a nightmare!

TBH, "political unity" died with all of those COVID-19 victims. We shouldn't seek to compromise or collaborate with domestic terrorists, but sadly the aging, spineless Dems in office feel otherwise.

Now they just cancel education all together, I’m sitting in Bay City MI ,and they just announced school in Saginaw is closed due to staffing.

Many corporations have found that buying a congressman provides an excellent return on investment.

Well Congress is the opposite of progress linguistically

I love everything about this.

Best comment made here 😂😂👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

@@tamaramoxham648 The opposite of the "pro-" in "progress" is "retro-" (though in this case it's shortened to make "regress"). The "con-" in "congress" means "together". Pro and con as antonyms aren't prefixes and are just the Latin words for "for" and "against" (though technically con is an abbreviation of contra).

This can be a good move, in urban areas, but it can make it a lot more difficult to reach the lines for repair, though. And when flooding comes - it tends to flood out your local power grid.

Ich liebe Deutschland! Underground power lines is so much nicer aesthetically too. Power lines are so ugly that they ruin the landscape.

@@FalbertForester Always a naysayer

@@FalbertForester true, it makes them harder to reach for repairs, but there are also less repairs necessary, since the lines aren't exposed to the elements, falling trees, etc.. I didn't hear of flooding outing our power, but I can't say it doesn't, either.

@@BatManWayneCorp Ever heard about conduit and tunnels?

The "watching at .25 play speed" is the cherry on top of this comment

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

“Oh my God he finally did it!”

He doesn't want his profitable land to be put out of commission. ...But, yeah. He's basically fine with the customers he grows food for being without power, possibly in the winter. Real smart thinkin' there.🙄

NIMBYism isn’t based on logic.

Put a wind turbine in your backyard and the power won’t have to travel. Problem solved! Stop using so much electricity. Stop eating so much packaged food. Stop consuming so many things, particularly from China. Stop using plastic. Stop ordering in. Why don’t you give up all your luxuries before you ask rural Americans to give up their necessities?

@@grmpEqweer I can put you in touch with a turbine builder and you can put one on your property. If you own any, or do you rely on someone else to provide your home by renting?

@@ToowokeforFlorida Put solar panels on your roof. Insulate your home better. Use LED light bulbs. Turn off lights that don't need to be on.

I thought it was a pretty good presentation as well...

What ever happened to supercooled hydrogen conductors? I thought that was supposed to solve this problem.

Right

But he’s ignoring nuclear like all you progressives.

@@oldmandeadpool1064 as someone who lives near several plants, they fail frequently. It doesn't matter how well you think they are run, human error persists. It is not feasible to take that risk again at the present moment. See Chernobyl