The question of “can the grid handle it” is a complex question. ERCOT has some fun gauges on a dashboard view. I think those gauges only answer some things but not other important ones. E.g., there could be transmission bottlenecks within the grid that aren’t represented on those charts. And such bottlenecks might only become a problem if generation were to fail in the right place(s). If we were to rely on importing from outside the grid, what are the limits of the DC ties–bot just their current flows, but their remaining capacity? There are also factors that aren’t “the grid” but which will get lumped in with the same concept, too, like each independent plant supplying energy to the grid. (Those were the precipitating problem during Icepocalypse.)
If only the power companies had been repeatedly warned that this would happen, and given millions of dollars of taxpayer money to increase power generation potential.
Oh wait… They were warned of this? And they were given taxpayer money? And they illegally used it for stock buybacks instead? And nothing was ever done to prosecute the illegal spending? Yeah, that sounds about on par for Texas.
Whaat? But THAT would mean Republican lawmakers are pushing a dangerous and dishonest anti-government agenda that is, in fact, just a cover for greedy anti-consumerism! That can’t be true!!
Well, they did invest in it. After the mass failure in February 2021, they passed a bunch of new regulations, and within one year, the entire grid was pretty much up to the new regulations. IIRC, like 98% of the grid was up to the new regulations within a year after that freeze. There hasn’t been mass failure since then. There was a local failure this past winter in Austin due to the trees not being trimmed properly, then freezing rain caused branches to break and fall on power lines (called Arborgeddon by the locals). But there have been no state-wide failures since the new regulations have been put in place.
Why is this still news? Something like this gets posted every week on Lemmy or Reddit and gets a ton of upvotes. The article even says that there is more than enough power. I have friends that live in Texas that haven’t had a single outage since the winter storms years ago. But still, there are comments that they’ve been warned that this would happen. Yes, they were warned and it seems to have worked, they’re doing just fine it looks like.
If this was an article on corruption or the lack of connection with the rest of the nation, that would be another thing. This is simply an article saying there is record power usage and they’re doing just fine.
Texans are worried because of the previous track record: The winter storm that froze people to death because the supply couldn’t keep up with demand. Our grid was incredibly close to a whole shit down, which would have killed even more people. All of which happened because the people in charge of such things didn’t prepare for a winter storm like that despite being warned that it was necessary like a decade ago.
And heat is no joke. So yeah, we worry. We have kids, elderly family and friends, pets, and healthy adults are also not immune. When demand skyrockets we get worried because people have already died and we don’t want to see that happen again. We’re also very aware of how often we’re told things are “fixed” when nothing has actually been done. So we cross our fingers, and we sweat, and we hope the grid doesn’t shut down and kill us. Sorry our worrying and upvoting of the topic bothers you.
And too many people who would vote against the current leadership don’t vote at all. It’s been really frustrating trying to convince some of my friends to vote. Even some LGBTQ+ friends of mine don’t vote. I guess they think it doesn’t matter, that better candidates won’t win anyway. Voter apathy is a bitch, man.
… right. Because republicans control Texas and the grid. A grid that already killed people a couple years ago. A grid that people aren’t convinced the republican leadership has fixed. A grid that’s being heavily used under this heatwave. That just makes sense to me.
What else would you expect in the comments? I expect talk about climate change, the grid, and how republicans have fucked up both of those things. I don’t expect people to be saying, “Sure is a scorcher today!”, Or casual chats about lemonade recipes. Those days are gone.
As a Slavic person, I want my reparations for the slavery my ancestors had to endure up to the ~11th century. Or we can all just say “fuck it” and stop pretending like people who never owned slaves owe something to people who never were slaves.
How about we punish the people who actually still own slaves instead?
I mean, reparations for Slavic folks sounds reasonable too? As does reparations for anyone who suffered slavery or genocide at the hands of another, currently-extent nation.
I think the confusion here stems from the fact that with historical slavery like the transatlantic slave trade, both slaves and slave owners are long dead. So the only parts of that slavery that still affect living people are the longer-lasting cultural effects, such as racial inequality.
Personally, I think we should probably be addressing those cultural effects, and that seems to generally be what these “reparations” are about? But I do agree that modern slavery is something that really needs to be addressed as well, and living slaves absolutely deserve reparations from their slavers.
Right, so your ancestors failed to accrue that. The point being that enslaved people weren’t given the opportunity to try and fail. They were slaves, end of story.
Tell me you don’t know how communism worked under Soviets without actually telling it. You don’t leave. You run away or you stay. If yoy get caught, you get shot. Sounds a little familiar?
I still don’t know all the details about how my mom escaped, but what I’ve heard of her crossing the border in the forest at night was fucking harrowing
Sounds like they were unlucky. Same as my ancestors. Mine were unlucky because of Soviet occupation. And I’ve had as much generational wealth as descendants of slaves.
So is your suggestion that the society you live in should hold itself to the standards of the place that wronged your ancestors and make no attempt to fix historic wrongs it committed? Given the opportunity to receive reparations from Russia, you’d refuse because people born or arrived there since your family left had no part in what happened? What am I saying, of course you would because I’m sure you couldn’t be a hypocrite.
See, my point is, I never was a slave. My parents weren’t as well, not even my grandparents. I have very vague memory of one great-grandparent, but she wasn’t a slave as well. No one from my family in my living memory was a slave. 11th century is soooo far away that it doesn’t make sense. And while black people slavery is not as far as Slavic slavery, it’s still way too far.
If someone wants to do the empty gesture of apologizing, be my guest - while I disagree, it doesn’t cost me my tax money.
“Fun” fact: I now live in a city which was the center for castrating Slavic slaves before being sold!
The people are long dead but the states and institutions that benefitted from slavery still exist. Like for example the Netherlands, my country, benefited greatly from the slave trade and it started the Dutch Golden Age. The enormous wealth it brought back to the Netherlands made what the country is today. Even the riches of the Dutch royal family is build with spoils from the colonial past. It’s only fair that the Dutch state would use some of those riches to help the former colonies grow their economy where lots of descendants of slaves are living in enormous poverty. And these people are only four to five generations away from ancestors who were born into slavery, it wasn’t that long ago.
Nah, the whole point of my comments here is that I’d rather people (and governments in extension) used the money to solve current issues. The past sucks, why keep living in it? Why not use more resources for example to stop current slave trades? Or help with fighting the climate change? Or helping developing nations to get to our level?
But people are still living in it because the ramifications can be still felt today. People in those former colonies are poor because the state sanctioned privateers wreaked havoc in those countries. How is aiding in combatting economic crisis in those countries not helping developing nations?
How are those countries no already revisiting millions in international aid? How are they not already being aided to combat economic crisises?
It’s not like throwing more money at these poor shitholes will solve a thing when some local warlord or corrupt politician will pocket it all and continue to keep their own people down.
The past happened, we can’t ignore it. Acknowledging that injustices happened in the past and we have the ability to do something now to try and reverse that is not “living in the past”.
Or help with fighting the climate change? Or helping developing nations to get to our level?
Arguably, both of these are exactly what we mean by “reparations”.
Apart from the fact that you’re pretending 150 years (with the civil rights legacy still not resolved) is much the same as a whole millennium, you’re also ignoring the substantial differences between the slavery your ancestors endured and the chattel slavery practiced as a result of the transatlantic slave trade.
Chattel slavery meant a lifetime of slavery and children born into slavery, often through rape-for-profit by slaveholders. Enslaved families being ripped apart on a whim if a sale was convenient for their enslaver.
The transatlantic element meant enslaved people were permanently recognisable as slaves.
And the creation of the particular form of racism found in the Americas to prevent poor whites from fraternising with their most natural allies.
An investment in African slaves also ensured a cost-effective, long-term workforce. Female slaves were often raped by their white owners or forced to breed with male slaves, and children born into slavery remained slaves for life. In contrast, white female servants who became pregnant were often punished with extended contracts, because a pregnancy meant months of lost work time. From a business perspective, a white baby was a liability, but African children were permanent assets.
As the number of African slaves grew, landowners realized they had a problem on their hands. Slave owners saw white servants living, working, socializing, and even having babies with African slaves. Sometimes they tried to escape together. What’s more, freed white servants who received land as part of their freedom dues had begun to complain about its poor quality. This created a potentially explosive situation for landowners, as oppressed workers quickly outnumbered the upper classes. What was to prevent freed whites, indentured servants, and African slaves from joining forces against the tyranny of their masters?
I’ll read it later, but to your first point: there was a slave trade route with Slavic people, they were lifetime slaves as well, families ripped apart is nothing new. Really, the only difference is how long ago it was. So why do you draw the line at 150 years?
I didn’t draw any lines. Your English is easily good enough to comprehend what I wrote. If you misunderstood, read it again. If you’re being deliberately obtuse, fuck off.
Apart from the fact that you’re pretending 150 years (with the civil rights legacy still not resolved) is much the same as a whole millennium
This is the part I was reacting to. Sounds to me like drawing a line. Everything else is the same for both slave trades. Or are you being deliberately obtuse? In that case you should heed your own advice.
But the direct ripple effects from the transatlantic slave trade are very much not outside of living memory.
Even after being freed, the enslaved demographic was still often seen by others as 'lesser', and that got reflected in fewer protections, fewer resources, deferential treatment, fewer opportunities and even outright violence.
For the transatlantic slave trade, those ripples are not only still in living memory, they are actively ongoing in many parts of the western world.
There are people alive today whose grandparents were born into slavery. Given that slavery did not actually end with the civil war, and Jim Crow, and mass incarceration, and the current dismantling of civil rights era laws, there are hundreds of millions of people alive today who are still directly suffering the aftermath.
So no, it is nowhere out of living memory and I am astonished that there are two people in one place so ignorant that they are willing to argue that it is.
There are slaves alive today. Slavery is still ongoing.
Frankly whatever the fuck the Americans did in America means very little to the world at whole. Stop acting like your civil war or racist policies are relevant elsewhere or should be bought up as talking point.
I don’t agree with their point, I said as much. Ruby Bridges is barely retirement age and she’s hardly the last person to suffer as a result of the original sin that was the transatlantic slave trade.
Well, OK. But they didn’t have a point that needed explaining. They’re not being sincere and there’s no need to give them an assist, especially if you’re going to leave it to me to explain why your generous interpretation of their ‘point’ is bullshit.
Anna J. Cooper (the black lady on the inside of your passport) was born into slavery. She died in the 1960s. Yet it feels like I’m talking to a brick wall when I try to explain this to people. 🫠😐
How about we punish the people who actually still own slaves instead?
This.
I wish ppl would focus on what’s actually happening now, then on what happened centuries ago.
Mind you, I’m not downplaying what happened, just putting the discussion in a broader and more direct context.
According to this site( ILO) there are approximately 50 million slaves. This might be a low estimate.
And historically, most people in Europe where some sort of (work) slave at one time or another ( generally until 18th century), unless you were nobility. That doesn’t make it right what happened though.
Finally, I feel while we are at it, some African tribes (and Arabian Communities), should offer their apologies as well, since they were the ones that captured the people, and sold them in the first place.
What other people did or didn’t do, won’t change the grievances that occured, or change the culpability European countries had in this " New World" drama.
Good news: PP has shown plans to ally with PSOE instead of VOX, which would still be bad since they’re both moderate right/centre parties but nobody’s gonna lose rights under them (most likely)
I genuinely wonder who ha suffered more over the course of time caused by slavery, the countries the slaves were taken from or the descendants of the actual slaves?
Here we go with the Texas grid again. No matter what they get hit with they insist on remaining independent. Well actually it’s the cold that gets them, but they have a problem they’re not dealing with none the less.
This is why it's so ironic seeing everyone arguing about this. There is no way in hell the EU will ever make meaningful reparations. It would be a huge economic hit.
France charged Haiti the equivalent of USD $26 billion dollars (figure from 2017 was $21 billion, so about $26 Billion today), at gunpoint. It took Haiti 122 years to pay it off.
And that's just one colony of many, and like you say, chattel slavery is only one part of historical oppression. Another big player in the EU, Germany, genocided the Namaqua and Herero people in concentration camps. Spain committed all kinds of horrific working-slaves-to-death in silver mines, and so on.
There's no way it will happen. People who are opposed to it shouldn't get so worked up about it.
reuters.com
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