I didn't know how bad it was in Texas until my mom told me. They might be more prepared next time. We can always hope. The state cannot even get plowing help from nearby states like some can. I know there are many donations being made. Can't be enough tho. I feel so bad and am very glad I live where I do and very, very thankful!!

I see Joel Osteen opened his church and helped people out. Oh my, it's difficult to see images on internet. I hope texans everywhere stock up on at least water. Having a gas grill to cook on (outside only!!!) Might not be a bad idea along with canned food that have pull up tabs to open. Calling a restaurant to have food delivery is a big no no. People should stay off the roads.

Texas made a decision to operate their own power grid. Unlike other states, they are unable to borrow/share power with other states. They essentially made themselves an island. Why? They have a history of distrust of the federal government and they avoid certain federal regulations. They won't, but probably should rethink the go it alone policy.

The situation is horrible down their right now. I have friends who are freezing. I have another friend who was just visiting family there and was stuck until yesterday.

In some ways, this storm is worse than a hurricane...... I hope this is a wake up call for many...especially the stinking governor.

I've read/heard on the news that a big part of the problem is the natural gas froze in the pipelines because they are not adequately insulated. Apparently this problem was discovered some years ago but nothing was done because of the enormous cost. Bet they are kicking themselves now.

You are correct. The freezing up problem was identified among others by the Feds in 2013 after a similar but smaller incident. Because it was the Feds, apparently Texas rejected the finding and proceeded to plod on as before. That decision caught up with them. Very sad.

@kimmiemae wrote:

I've read/heard on the news that a big part of the problem is the natural gas froze in the pipelines because they are not adequately insulated. Apparently this problem was discovered some years ago but nothing was done because of the enormous cost. Bet they are kicking themselves now.

@myst4au wrote:

You are correct. The freezing up problem was identified among others by the Feds in 2013 after a similar but smaller incident. Because it was the Feds, apparently Texas rejected the finding and proceeded to plod on as before. That decision caught up with them. Very sad.

Nah. It's fine.
[www.msnbc.com]
Only a child froze to death and some weak immune-system'd people. They don't count. As the Texas mayor, Tim Boyd, said:

@ wrote:

Boyd said people who lack power and water should simply figure out a way to get power and water on their own, without turning to public departments and agencies that ostensibly exist to meet the public's needs. He offered nothing in way of constructive guidance to struggling families.

"If you are sitting at home in the cold because you have no power and are sitting there waiting for someone to come rescue you because your lazy is direct result of your raising," Boyd wrote, without regard for grammar. "Only the strong will survive and the weak will parish."

These weak people should have saved up more money, eaten more healthy food, worked out, bought a spare generator for their homes, and had better genes. What's important is that the energy companies saved a few thousand dollars from not insulating their pipes so their executive's wives could get their hair done and a few extra pedicures and their kids had an extra semester worth of private boarding school.

Reminds me of Puerto Rico and Trump donor corruption: [www.youtube.com]

The entire island was hit by multiple natural disasters in 2017 (including Hurricane Maria) and was without power. Instead of sending qualified professionals or FEMA, Trump sent Whitefish Energy Holdings, which had an entire staff of TWO FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES to service their needs, as it was his way of repaying a political campaign donor (who owned the firm). Three months in, almost 50% lacked power still (the longest power black out in U.S. history).

Meanwhile, close to 3,000 people died, as Whitefish was price gouging and was incompetent and ill-equipped to restore power. But, hey, Puerto Ricans are' not "real Americans" (just a "territory" ) and what's important is Whitefish's owner's kids having their trust funds filled!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/23/2021 04:17AM by shoptastic.

So "Texas" did not provide comprehensive and otherwise adequate energy services. The masses were informed of this condition almost a decade ago. Why didn't people leave there in droves, and in protest? What is up with that?!

I wouldn't live like that. It's way too hot anyways.

@Shop-et-al wrote:

So "Texas" did not provide comprehensive and otherwise adequate energy services. The masses were informed of this condition almost a decade ago. Why didn't people leave there in droves, and in protest? What is up with that?!

Maybe because they expected the company to do the right thing and weatherize/insulate their pipes?

Maybe because they weren't aware upon moving there (not covered in news) of the dangers and had no choice, as it was their only opportunity for work?

. . .any number of reasons, but you gotta admit that Texas is run by psychopaths.. . .They will watch your family die in any number of tragic ways as long as it protects their political donors' profits. Profit over everything.

Same state where the Lt. Gov. said [www.nbcnews.com] "There are more important things than living." ...suggesting the elderly take one for the team and just die so they could reopen and protect those business profits.

If I can help it, I am NEVER moving the Texas!

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/27/2021 08:58PM by shoptastic.

Amen

No private citizen could insulate their own place or turn on the tap? Is initiative against the law in Texas?

@Shop-et-al wrote:

No private citizen could insulate their own place or turn on the tap? Is initiative against the law in Texas?

This was in regards weatherizing/insulating the power plants (which costs additional money), so it wasn't a personal home thing, Shopetal. Sorry if my wording made it seem that way. The power plant equipment literally froze, which led to them being shut down during the winter storm..

Federal regulators - about a decade ago - warned Texas that its plants could fail due to such weather conditions and recommended they weatherize the facility, install more insulation and heat pipes. But, because of deregulation, there was no legal mandate for the plant to do so.

I guess saving some $ (and knowing they were legally off the hook) over public safety led the to ignore the regulator warnings and recommendations.

Again. The masses knew about that. Why did they stay?

If you had an opportunity to step off the train track before the oncoming train smacked you, would you stay on the track? Or, would you run away like a bat out of helll?

@Shop-et-al wrote:

Again. The masses knew about that. Why did they stay?

If you had an opportunity to step off the train track before the oncoming train smacked you, would you stay on the track? Or, would you run away like a bat out of helll?

This assumes:
a.) What is known to the power plants is known and widely warned/talked about to the masses.

I have doubts about this. I don't live in Texas and have never heard of these issues until this tragedy. If I got a job offer to teach down there (pre-COVID) and took it, I doubt I'd have looked into this or been informed of it.

You also have politicians and conservative media doing deflection. Gov. Abbott tried to blame this on wind energy and The Green New Deal. How much have energy companies donated to his campaigns? ...It's like Trump with the Puerto Rico blackout disaster. He tried to say it was a Democratic hoax on Twitter and deny the near 3,000 deaths (Harvard had a study saying the number was likely even 4,000) after his corruption of sending Whitefish Energy left 50% of residents without power for more than 3 months. . .I'm noticing a pattern of calling stuff a "Democratic hoax" after one's incompetence/corruption kills thousands of lives...but I digress.

Main point: asymmetry of or lack of truthful information plays a role. Not everyone has the right information.

b.) Even IF one lays some blame on the residents (for not knowing and/or leaving), we should still be disgusted with the energy company not caring about public safety. They're still on the hook in my book. They had all the information to act and chose profits over lives.

Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/01/2021 06:58PM by shoptastic.

Abbott eliminating Texas mask requirements while new more infectious variants are floating around and we are vaccinating the elderly and vulnerable still is more sign of psychopathy.

Shame. I feel for TX residents.

Abbott's an idiot. It's plain & simple
May God protect Tx residents from Abbott & Cancun Cruz.

Hope they think about these fiascos come election time.

One thing that I noticed out of all of the pictures that were taken of the Texas disaster was that I saw little to no Solar Panels on any roofs or in a backyard.

My state is inching toward providing an array of energy options for us. As far as I know, no supplier is failing to maintain its resources. Some are new, new-ish, and being built. Others are being updated or replaced. These processes are endless. There is substantially less usage here than in Texas. There are more critters than humans here, and they do not need human-generated energy. I take back what I said about people choosing to stay in Texas. Early in the covid era, they might have had to make a detour and/or quarantine for weeks at a time on their way to somewhere else. Now, the wee wonderment is: In a covid-free world, would a significant number of people have left Texas in search of better human-needed energy systems?

So, it looks like those price-gouging electric bill charges Texans received during the snow storm are not going to get reduced: [www.npr.org]

@ wrote:

Texans facing those unexpected bills were hoping that Texas' utility regulator would retroactively reduce the electricity market prices. But on Friday, the Public Utility Commission of Texas chose to let the charges stand.

Lots of people had $10,000-ish electric bills. But, lucky for them:

@ wrote:

The state's electricity companies have said they will work with consumers to set up payment plans. But so far, customers have had little luck getting the charges dropped.

It's quite nice they'll have the option of a payment plan. Very thoughtful of the energy companies.

@Shop-et-al wrote:

I take back what I said about people choosing to stay in Texas. Early in the covid era, they might have had to make a detour and/or quarantine for weeks at a time on their way to somewhere else. Now, the wee wonderment is: In a covid-free world, would a significant number of people have left Texas in search of better human-needed energy systems?

Texas' energy blackout/price-gouging disaster is more of a microcosm of the corporate-political rot that has infested and take up residence throughout all of America. Moving from one state to another won't necessarily protect us from such instances of harm (thankfully, not so common as to entirely crush us common folk).

Reversing the slew of post-1970's pro-corporate/wealthy bribery campaign financing laws and restoring a free, fair, and just market is what is needed. Perhaps what's shocking and weird about today's level of corruption is that it's so deeply ingrained in and taken over every facet of American life that the rich and corrupt can just openly and brazenly do their dirty work with everyone watching and know they're not going to pay a price for it. No need to hide stuff anymore.

This wasn't the case when I was growing up or even 10-15 years ago it feels like. Back then, appearances still mattered. All the crime and dirt is out in the open these days.

For those who don’t live in Texas: Those born here live by the rule to always be prepared. We were told weeks in advance of this weather coming and we may have rolling brown outs. It happens every 7-10 years that we have this type of cold spell. It was sad that many didn’t prepare and there were deaths. There were shelters and churches that opened for those in need. I personally had rolling brown outs and lost power for about 20 hours. However, I prepared with blankets, easy to prepare food with my gas stove, candles, water, a full tank of gas and books to read. All of those items help during any disaster including floods, hurricanes and tornadoes. When lights came on we charged all devices until the power went out again. Texas has its own grid. Yes it needs updates. Yes we will get it fixed. The rest of the country has this hatred for a state that ultimately tries to depend on the federal government for as little as possible. It amazes me since my tax dollars will be bailing out California, New York and other states because they can’t manage their money. Throw your shade towards Texas. We could care less what you think of us. TEXAS IS OPEN!
“The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help.” -Ronald Reagan

You go mmsackett girl. I had no power and no water, but guess what broke that ice in the swimming pool and gave all the neighbors water for the toilets, burned the wood in the fireplace and sat in the truck and charged devices, oh and guess what folks, did not miss a beat scheduling shops either. Because Yes people in FL were still shopping. You know I thought this was a board for mystery shopping but this is some the most hatefulness I have ever seen. This board is so people can just complain, because misery loves company. I am amazed at how some people act on here. I am a ChiTown girl born and raised but a damn proud Texan and happy to get rid of that mask. I have a heart condition and do not live in fear either does the rest of my family. Never have never will. Attack me all you want to because that is all some know how to do.

No attacking of Texans here in the thread, mmsackett & Informascheduler. To the contrary, we've been worried about you all! On a personal level, there are two people (childhood friends) I care about who run businesses down there.

Critiques of Texas leadership and energy companies? Yes, that's been made. But, whether you agree or not, I always separate that out from the actual people of Texas.

So good to hear from you guys in Texas.