X-Message-Number: 22594 From: "Mark Plus" <> Subject: 2003: The year of "as-if" energy stories Date: Sat, 27 Sep 2003 22:48:27 -0700 If industrial civilization isn't in serious trouble because of a systematic energy crisis, the news stories this year certainly read "as if" we're getting there. Italy has just joined the list of developed countries that have recently experienced blackouts not caused by natural disasters or other specific disruptions. The prospect of a Final Blackout <http://dieoff.org/page125.htm> seems less far-fetched all the time: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A11652-2003Sep28?language=printer Power Goes Out Across Italy, Police Say The Associated Press Sunday, September 28, 2003; 12:18 AM ROME - Power went out across Italy before dawn Sunday, plunging the nation into darkness, police and news reports said. Authorities did not immediately know the cause. The first power outages were reported around 4 a.m. local time in Rome, where the city was celebrating an all-night festival with museums and restaurants open around the clock. Later, the national electricity company ACEA said power was out across the nation, the ANSA news agency said. "As far as we know it's all across Italy," police official Franca Sesti Miraglia said in Rome. "We don't know the cause yet," Sesti Miraglia said. ANSA said that hundreds of people attending the all-night "White Night" festivities in Rome were stuck in subways due to the blackout. Police could not immediately confirm the report. "We're not aware of anything really serious. There are some problems," Sesti Miraglia said, without giving details. "With the 'White Night,' there were many people out." Italy was hit with partial power cuts in June, when people - suffering in the scorching summer - overloaded the system with air conditioners and other electricity-guzzling appliances. That was the first time in more than 20 years that the national operator of the electrical grid ordered power cuts. Authorities have repeatedly said that power demand is growing faster than supply and that imported electricity would not make up for insufficient production in the long term. By 6 a.m. local time (midnight EDT) power was still out, and authorities had not yet announced an explanation. _________________________________________________________________ Help protect your PC. Get a FREE computer virus scan online from McAfee. http://clinic.mcafee.com/clinic/ibuy/campaign.asp?cid=3963 Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=22594