Deregulation and Free Markets in the power industry

In the last several months you must have seen the ads. They appear in the mailbox every week. “Switch to Electro-Juice and SAVE 10% on your electricity bills!” What is really happening is this:  Power Brokers (companies that produce nothing) have fought for and won the right to compete with our local generating station offering to sell you surplus power off the national grid.

Why is this bad?  Saving money is good, right?  Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that PSE&G (the company that services and runs the local generating station) hasn’t offered the same 10% discount? Why is that? It’s for the same reason that we hear in other industries all over the North-East. Salaries up here are higher and therefore it’s not cost effective to try to compete with energy generated down south.  So we don’t. We just shut down the generating station and become a power delivery company only. We just maintain the lines.  Their local monopoly was the only thing that kept local power generation afloat financially.

Now of course, we all believe in free markets right?  The free market will fix everything!  Here’s the thing.  When local high paying jobs are forced to compete with wages from other regions, the salaries don’t go down. They go away. The employees are terminated because nobody is willing to take a cut in pay.  

You may be thinking, hey it’s not my problem.  But consider this. Just what happened in California a few years ago? Why was it that suddenly they couldn’t generate enough power for the residents? What changed?  It wasn’t perhaps that a lot of older less profitable power generating stations went off line was it?  Unable to compete with grid rates perhaps? What happens when power brokers and speculators start manipulating amount of electricity available so they can increase demand and drive up the price. You think that after 5 or 10 years sitting dormant that PSE&G will just go over and fire up the local generating station?  No. By then it would cost millions to get that up and running again. It would be cost prohibitive to restore a generation station knowing that the price may just plummet again and make the investment impossible to recoup. Nobody would take the risk.   

I’m not a big fan of unions and I do believe in free markets. But allowing competition from outside the region is a bad idea.

Throwing Rotten Apples

I've been an apple user for many years. Well, just to be clear, I am a PC user and Mac user as well. But something happened the other day that really shook my confidence in Apple as a company.

Apple has a product called QuickTime (QT) which has 3 different aspects; First of all it's a file format for video, secondly its a program, a video player that can run on Mac or Windows, and lastly its part of the software infrastructure on a Mac OSX computer, its how mac handles video in general.

If you've ever tried to play back a quicktime mov file on windows, it looks like crap even if the original file was high quality and played perfectly on the mac. Now, I get this. This is mac trying desparately to hang on to the illusion that its system is better than the PC and Windows. I've come to accept this as a normal part of life. I asked Apples help-desk about this many years ago and they patted me on the head and patiently explained that its just the way mac hardware process video; its just different than the way windows handles it, so their quicktime files can't play correctly on windows. Its windows fault!

Recently I needed to create a Windows Media Video version of a 3 hour long video that was edited on a Mac. On the Mac, I tried exporting an AVI file (using QT conversion) which would have worked perfectly with Windows Media Encoder. Unfortunately, the AVI file was somehow defective and unreadable when I tried to open it on the PC. Hmmmm.... I thought to myself. I then exported the Quicktime MOV file which, hey... its looks crappy when played on the PC but I'm only going to convert it to WMV format anyways. I tried to compress it using the very highest quality settings and it took 60 hours to complete the conversion.

After it was complete, I tried to play it back and it looked completely crappy. I was shocked. I used the highest quality settings. I used to 2 pass variable bit rate encoding. I waited 60 hours!! It should look exactly like the original. Then I realized... it did look excatly like the crappy way all QT files play back on the PC. You see, they didn't just rig the QT player to make their files look crappy, they purposefully screwed up the codec so you can't transcode it on the PC either.

This experience put me in mind of what the Mac help-desk guy had told me all those years earlier. About how macs are just built different and its not possible for QT video to play back properly on PC hardware. Well now wait a minute... Macs now run on the SAME exact hardware, the same graphics cards as we use in PCs. The fact that QT still plays back poorly on the PC prooves that this is not the result of a hardware difference but is in fact the result of a choice by Apple not to play fairly. This is in fact EXACTLY the same kind of thing Microsoft was taken to task over, unfair competitive practices.

I'm furious with Apple right now. I left some "feedback" for the QT team. Don't be surprised guys if you find a burning bag of poo on your doorstep.

Fame

Recently, I was only my way home from NYC late at night when I pulled off to get a coke. As I walked back to my car, I heard that sound that I love to hear, that echoy whooshing dopplered moan of the tractor-trailers roaring down the pike. For some reason, that sound, only at night, instantly transports me back to my childhood. My parents both being from the same part of New England took my brothers and I to Cape Cod (pronounced: keep cad) at least 2 times a year, some years 3 and 4 times throughout my childhood.

My Dad, being a practical and rational man, decided the only way to drive his wife and 4 young boys up to the Cape was in the middle of the night. No traffic to deal with. No childish arguments. Just tiny snores and the occasional pee-pee break. There's something about waking up to that sound in the dark in the middle of the night that imprinted it on some deep recess of my brain.

So as I walked back to my car, I fondly remembered all the trips to Cape Cod mashed together and overlapping in my mind. I remembered as a young child believing that the other exits we passed weren't really real. It seemed to me as if my family's exit and my grandparent's exit were real but the other weren't really real. They were more like the plastic houses on Dad's model train set. They were imaginary, not real.

I remembered that point as a young teen when it first occurred to me that someone else might drive by my exit and think it wasn't really real. They might think that my whole life, everything I know, was imaginary. For a moment, I felt microscopic. It was as if seeing my life from a stranger's point of view made everything I know somehow less important. I wonder if that's what drives some men to seek fame; the notion that if I make you think my life is important, then my life feels more important to me?

I don't know why I told you this. I only know: Next Right, Exit 5. I think I'm home.

What ever happened to the Franklin Institute? (Who ruined it?)

Some of my most vivid childhood memories were the school fieldtrips we took. I clearly remember visiting the Philadelphia Zoo, Pennsbury Manor, a farm, a cranberry packing facility, and Tyler State Park to name a few.

But of all the fieldtrips we took, the destination that left the strongest impression on me was the Franklin Institute. Located at 20th Street and the Ben Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia's Franklin Institute housed the coolest science museum ever.

From the Fels Planetarium to the 25 foot wide human heart that you could walk thru, no other trip made me feel a sence of wonder about the world around me. If you took a few minutes to look at the Foucault Pendulum, you'de understand that line from the Beatles song, "The fool on the hill sees the sun going down and the eyes in his head see the world spinning 'round."

I went back a couple of times as a young adult, proud to have such a wonderful facility as a part of our local community. I noticed the changes beginning but I looked the other way choosing instead to focus of what was good about the place. In the '90s I learned the reason why they don't use rotund space for exhibits. They rent that space out as an event space/banquet hall.

A couple of years ago, I returned to the Franklin Institute to see the Star Trek exhibit. This exhibit cost something like $20 on top of the regular museum admittance fee. As a die-hard trek fan I have to admit I felt a little ripped off when I learned that many of the items on display were just replicas and never actually used in any episode or movie. Ok so really... whats the difference between a prop and a replica of a prop? They both "work" equally well. No, it was in the assumption that I was paying to see the real thing; the actual props used in the show. Do you know why they use replicas? So that there can be 4 or 40 copies of the same museum show roaming around the country simultaneously to coinside with the release of a movie or whatever.

Well, how would you feel if you just paid $20 to see the King Tut exhibit and after spending 10 minutes looking at his sarcofagus, you find out well, no it doesn't really contain his remains. This is just a replica. Why did you spend the $20 when you stood a better chance of seeing the real thing on TV or the internet?

Back to my main point: I left the Star Trek exhibit feeling a little ripped off so I decided to get my moneys worth by taking my time and seeing the rest of the museum that gave me such wonderful childhood memories. I turned into the first open wing I came to. What? I've got no ticket for this? I went up to the next floor. Same thing? Besides the $20 fake star trek exhibit, there were 2 other large exhibits taking up large portions (whole wings) of the museum space. It seems that in all, about 2/3 of the museum space was reserved by these seperate premium exhibits. So what had my $12 general admittance ticket gotten me? I got access to 2 great big gift shops, a cafeteria, a huge statue of Ben Franklin and about 1/4 of the old Museum as I remember it.

The people who are currently managing the Franklin Institute should be ashamed of themselves and how they have turned such an engaging place of scinece into and gouging and enraging cash turnstyle. Fralkly, I'm ashamed of what they've done to it; and I think Ben would be too.

Air, $1 a cup for a limited time at McDonalds!

Ok, I admit it. I “luh-huv” the old McDonalds strawberry shake.  But I bought one recently and was disappointed. Rather than the triple-thick frosty shake that I remember, they instead served this whipped foamy thing mostly devoid of flavor and strawberry goodness.

Anyone who has left the whipped cream out of the fridge knows that what’s left behind after the air has escaped out of it is one tenth the original volume. So here I sit staring into my “Strawberry shake” which is now 1/3 full of whipped air-cream and served in a cup 1/3 smaller than before; and I'm wondering what percentage of strawberry shake is actually left?  On the plus side, they dropped the price 18 cents!!  So for a 3.5% drop in price, we got 66% less shake in our shakes.

Who was it who said, “You Must Whip It”?  Was it Devo, or the Hamburgler?  Corporations keep looking for new ways to give you less and charge you more for it. Well, I for one, will be waiting for the “limited time only” to end!

Highway Hypnosis

As a part of my daily commute, I remember experiencing “Highway Hypnosis” on more than one occasion.  It is a little startling to arrive home and realize you don’t know how you got there. So I can understand why people think of it as dangerous. There’s the assumption that I must have been unconscious of my surroundings if I don’t remember the act of driving home; but I don’t believe that’s true.

I believe what’s really happening is far simpler. Your brain is a master at multitasking. There are many things your brain can handle simultaneously without consciously focusing on them. You can breath, stay within the lines and even brake and exit without ever focusing your attention on these activities.  You are free to daydream about tasks you have upcoming or the argument you just had with your boss or coworker.

I believe that what enters your short term memory is what your attention is focused on. So if you spend half your commute daydreaming about something, that is what you’ll remember; rather than the details about drive home. Later, you think there’s a gap in your memory because you have no new memory of the drive.

This simply couldn’t happen if you were driving somewhere that was unfamiliar. Taking a new route would of course demand your attention, and create lots of new memories. But when a drive is familiar, so familiar that there are no questions (do I take this exit or that?), your mind is free to relax and wander.   

Dream Interpretation

A few years back, I read an abridged book by Freud. In it, he tried to create a road map to dream interpretation much like medical science has done with the human body.  He presented the notion of universal archetypes to explain patterns he believed he found across races and cultures. We as humans look for patterns in the world around us. Noticing patterns and drawing conclusions from them is a fundamental part of human intelligence. One man in a thousand can look at the stock market, observe patterns, draw conclusions, and get rich.  

So I can’t fault Freud for seeking patterns where none actually exist. It’s in our nature to want to find them.  But just like Freud’s version of dream interpretation, much of superstition is born out of people seeing patterns and drawing conclusions from simple coincidences. 

In some circles, Freud is still revered as the father of modern psychology. But if he was right about dream interpretation, why isn’t there a whole science built up around it today?  Quite the opposite, dream interpretation is grouped together with astrologers, tarot card readers and fortune tellers.

Many years ago, I noticed a pattern and I drew a conclusion.  The pattern:  At times in my life when my work was unchallenging or uninteresting, my dreams were more vivid and memorable. At times when I was creatively challenged, I would often struggle to remember even 1 dream in several days.  The conclusion:  Dreams are a result of a very creative mind seeking an outlet for its creativity.

Now if you experience nightmares frequently, maybe you should consider counseling. Nightmares are a sign of stress, either conscious or unconscious. But beyond that; don’t ask me what your dreams mean. Just take them as a sign that you need a creative outlet.    

Paranormal State Part II

There was a time when I really enjoyed watching A&E’s Paranormal State.  Living alone, it’s fun to get a good scare on late at night right before bed. But I began to notice things about the show that seemed, well, less than objective. As a fan of low budget TV production, I realized how easily I could fake a show like Paranormal State.  Post a producer or production assistant outside the house listening to everything that’s going on inside via walkie-talkie, and tossing a pebble up against the right window at just the right time…   banging on an outside spigot…   Keying a transmitter and making an RF (ghost-o-) meter jump right on cue.  It wouldn’t be difficult. Then there has to be someone to take footage of the “walk-thru” interview to this week’s guest psychic so Ryan can honestly say “We haven’t discussed any of this, right?” So yeah, it all could be pretty easily faked.  But I kept watching because I wanted to believe. It was fun to believe.

Then they did an episode that strained all credibility. They visited a home where a mine far underground had claimed several lives. Immediately, they began drawing connections from their headaches and stomach aches to these long dead miners who were never recovered. But after comparing notes, they realized they may all be suffering from symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning.  Someone said “Hey, I read an article where a doctor is studying the effects of CO exposure and incidents of paranormal experience.” So they tried to locate this doctor and set up a conference call with him. At the same, they hired someone to come in to test the air quality.  He detected CO in the air, at low levels, but said it was a still a serious concern since no level of CO is “normal” in a residence. He went on to say that the affects of CO exposure are cumulative.

Later, they finally reached the doctor. He said, “No, my study is about carbon monoxide poisoning and visual hallucinations.” Not surprisingly, they ended the discussion quickly. The wrap-up included an admission that this house was probably not haunted but added a caution about carbon monoxide poisoning.

OK, so… here’s what bothers me about this episode: If they’ve learned that visual hallucinations can be caused by CO exposure, then wouldn’t it be a good idea to test the air quality in every home they enter as a simple preliminary test? Knowing what they now know, would it be necessary as a part of any objective investigation? Isn’t it funny how may old homes happen to have ghosts? I wonder if it has anything to do with how many old homes have old chimneys and cracks in the masonry work and old furnaces.  Hmmmm.

Paranormal State (Part I)

It was December Third, 2009. I was in Wharton State Forrest (the Jersey pines) walking along a long rectangular lake, a former cranberry bog. I heard a loud noise come across the lake from the woods beyond. It was a strange noise, somewhat like a cross between a lion’s roar and an elephant’s trumpet blast. After about a minute I heard the noise again. It was closer and louder this time. The third time, it seemed very close, directly across the lake from me. I was a little scared wondering if I should turn back to my car or continue the walk. Two weeks later, I was watching Paranormal State on A&E and saw their season finale all about “The Jersey Devil”.  About half way thru the episode, the local expert was asked “Have there been any recent sightings?” He replied, “Sighting no, but several people have reported hearing the beast.” He played a cassette tape. It was the same noise I heard….. 

Now I’ll fill in some details I left out. About 20 years ago, I was hiking in Jackson NJ just outside the Great Adventure Safari Park. I heard this strange wild blast of a noise coming from the woods. I heard it three times getting closer and louder each time until one of the park’s zebra striped safari trucks appeared from that direction. I later found out they blast that noise along the outside of the fence to drive the animals out to the open so park visitors can see them.   

In 2009, the noise I heard was the same or very similar to what I heard outside the safari park. I also heard a diesel truck engine creeping slowly along with the second and third blasts of the noise.  So unless the Jersey Devil drives a diesel pickup, this was a man made noise. As I entered the area, I noticed a bearded guy sitting in a red pickup truck. At the time, I couldn’t account for why anyone would be driving around the pines blasting this noise. I guessed maybe it was to drive game towards a hunter’s tree stand. But a few days later I got my answer. Paranormal State was airing their season finale, a show all about the Jersey Devil. I think the guy in the red pickup was one of the “local experts” interviewed for the show. These guys, knowing the show was about to air, were obviously out to create buzz about the Jersey Devil and keep the myth alive.