John--This is an excellent article by Dick Mills on utility reporting and media spin. He notes:
“The Public Service Commission has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The NY Power Pool has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. Niagara Mohawk has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. Consolidated Edison Company of New York has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The Power Authority of the State of New York has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. Long Island Lighting Company has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The Energy Association of New York has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The NY State Emergency Management Office has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The NY State Office for Technology has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The Independent Power Producers of New York have Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The Otsego Electric Cooperative has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. The Municipal Electric Utilities Association of NY has Y2K contingency plans and that's not alarmist. But electric customers should not have Y2K contingency plans. That would be alarmist. The public should not have Y2K contingency plans. That would be alarmist.” (bold mine)
He goes on to note:
"A COMPUTERWORLD article illustrates the same behavior in private companies:
“The survey results, released today by the Center for Workforce Effectiveness -- a Northbrook, Ill. based consulting firm -- showed...a bit more than half of the respondents, 55%, voiced confidence that problems related to the Year 2000 glitch would be solved before Jan. 1, 2000. However, only 23% acknowledged the possibility that their customers could be impacted by such problems. Among the companies that admitted they probably wouldn't be fully prepared for next January, 40% said they have started training non-IT personnel on contingency planning skills, and only 20% said they have taken steps to alert customers about the potential problems to come.”
I think that this behavior is irresponsible, but private corporations have no obligation to act for the public good. Regulated monopolies and public officials are another question. They do have the obligation to protect the public's interest, and it appears to me that they're not doing it wrong. I want to make it clear. I'm not accusing these people of malfeasance, rather I'm accusing them of going down the wrong path. They want to protect the public from panic, so they're choosing to suppress warnings. I think that's wrong. I too have struggled with the same moral dilemma. As Senator Bennett said, "Not Chicken Little, but Paul Revere." Chuck Lanza set me straight. There is no dilemma. Just tell the truth. To avoid panic, you tell it as early as possible."
Yep, more statements like PG & E coming with a utility to bill to you.
y2ktimebomb.com |
