Free Republic
Browse · Search
Bloggers & Personal
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Smart Meters: Enforcement Of Mandatory Water Restrictions Is Only Just The Beginning
TEC ^ | 04/08/2015 | Michael Snyder

Posted on 04/08/2015 1:43:46 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

Smart meters are now being used by authorities to crack down on “water wasters” in the state of California, but this is just the tip of the iceberg as far as what they can be used for. Ultimately, smart meters are designed to be part of an entire “smart grid” that will enable government bureaucrats “to control everything from your dishwasher to thermostat“. And in recent years, there has been a massive push to install smart meters in as many homes in the United States and Europe as possible. Back in December 2007, there were only 7 million smart meters installed in this country. Today there are more than 51 million. On the other side of the Atlantic, the European Parliament has set a goal of having smart meters in 80 percent of all homes by the year 2020. This is being promoted as the “green” thing to do, but could it be possible that there is more to these smart meters than meets the eye?

In Long Beach, California authorities were getting complaints that a local McDonald’s restaurant was wasting water in the middle of the night.

So what did the authorities do?

They installed a smart meter which instantly started providing incriminating evidence against McDonald’s. The following comes from CBS Los Angeles

The Long Beach Water Department says sprinklers at a McDonald’s restaurant on Bellflower Boulevard went on for 45 minutes at a time, twice a night, for an undefined number of nights. Complaints continued to mount as water pooled and wasted. The department, however, could do little about the wasting.

That was before the smart meter.

Since its installation in February, Long Beach Water Department General Manager Kevin Wattier says he saw an immediate spike by tens of thousands of gallons, each time McDonald’s overwatered their property.

And according to NPR, other large California cities are also now looking into how they can use smart meters to enforce the new mandatory water restrictions in the state…

By next February, California cities together are supposed to cut their water use by a quarter. Sacramento, San Francisco and some Central Valley cities are also seeing whether smart meters can help.

But smart meters are capable of determining far more than whether or not we are using too much water.

Already, police all over the country are using the data provided by smart meters to identify homes that are potentially growing marijuana. Homes that grow marijuana tend to use much more electricity than other homes, and so if your home is using a high level of energy that is a red flag for the cops.

In addition, there are a whole host of other ways that smart meters can be used as surveillance devices by law enforcement. The following list comes from an electronics and media expert from Burbank, California named Jerry Day…

1. They individually identify electrical devices inside the home and record when they are operated causing invasion of privacy.

2. They monitor household activity and occupancy in violation of rights and domestic security.

3. They transmit wireless signals which may be intercepted by unauthorized and unknown parties. Those signals can be used to monitor behavior and occupancy and they can be used by criminals to aid criminal activity against the occupants.

4. Data about occupant’s daily habits and activities are collected, recorded and stored in permanent databases which are accessed by parties not authorized or invited to know and share that private data.

5. Those with access to the smart meter databases can review a permanent history of household activities complete with calendar and time-of-day metrics to gain a highly invasive and detailed view of the lives of the occupants.

6. Those databases may be shared with, or fall into the hands of criminals, blackmailers, law enforcement, private hackers of wireless transmissions, power company employees, and other unidentified parties who may act against the interests of the occupants under metered surveillance.

7. “Smart Meters” are, by definition, surveillance devices which violate Federal and State wiretapping laws by recording and storing databases of private and personal activities and behaviors without the consent or knowledge of those people who are monitored.

8. It is possible for example, with analysis of certain “Smart Meter” data, for unauthorized and distant parties to determine medical conditions, sexual activities, physical locations of persons within the home, vacancy patterns and personal information and habits of the occupants.

If all of that wasn’t bad enough, there are also substantial concerns about the impact that these smart meters are having on our health

According to physician and epidemiologist Sam Milham, Smart Meters, which are linked to an array of health issues, emit as much as 100 times the amount of radiation as a cell phone.

Daniel Hirsch, a senior lecturer on nuclear policy at UCSC, says the federal government purposely misleads the public by conducting biased safety studies at the behest of power companies.

A Washington DC power company stirred controversy in 2013 after they were caught lying to the public about how often their smart meters emitted radiation. Despite claims that the meters only emitted radiation once every 4 to 6 hours, an investigation by WUSA9 News revealed the frequency to be closer to 4 to 6 times every minute.

When there is that much radiation blasting through our homes on a continual basis, it is inevitable that there are going to be health problems.

According to Infowars, tens of thousands of people have already reported significant health issues that they believe are directly related to the installation of smart meters in their homes…

Tens of thousands of individuals are reporting officially, to governments and utilities, that they are experiencing illness or functional impairments following the installation of “smart” meters. Reported symptoms include headaches, sleep problems, ear ringing, focus difficulties, fatigue, heart palpitations, nausea and statistically abnormal recurrences of cancer.

Perhaps you are dealing with one of the health issues just mentioned.

If so, you might want to check to see if you have a smart meter in your home.

There has got to be a better way for the state of California to monitor water usage rather than smart meters.

And without a doubt, the state of California is facing a crisis of unprecedented proportions. The snowpack in the Sierras is only 5 percent of the long-term historical average. Snow levels are currently at the lowest levels ever measured for this time of the year, and the snow is melting five to 30 days earlier than normal. For much more on the nightmare that the state is dealing with, please see my previous article entitled “How Many People Will Have To Migrate Out Of California When All The Water Disappears?

Thankfully, there is a lot of waste that can be eliminated, so a lot of water can potentially be saved. It turns out that Californians are some of the biggest water wasters on the entire planet. The following statistic comes from the New York Times

California’s cities consume 178 gallons per person per day, on average. That’s 40 percent more than the per capita water consumption in New York City and more than double that of parched Sydney, in Australia.

So let’s hope that Californians start banding together and begin using water more wisely, because this drought is not likely to go away any time soon.

And the truth is that what is going on in the state of California is kind of a microcosm of the water crisis that is beginning to emerge all over the globe

The move by California to require mandatory cuts in water use for the first time in its history has highlighted the world’s looming water crisis and increased the focus on the links between sustainable water and sustainable energy.

“We need a new paradigm,” says Steven Solomon, author of Water: The Epic Struggle for Wealth, Power and Civilization. “The days when we could just go further into the mountains and find new sources of water are past. We need to make better use of the water we have.”

In the end, the drought in California is going to affect all of us. A tremendous amount of our produce is grown in the state, and we will all soon be feeling the pain of the drought in our local grocery stores

As California’s multi-year drought rages on, consumers in the rest of the United States may soon be feeling the pinch at the grocery store as farmers around California reduce water and plant fewer crops.

California, sometimes called the ‘nation’s salad bowl’, is the country’s largest producer of grapes, kiwis, olives, avocados, broccoli, tomatoes, spinach, tree nuts and dairy. Now in the fourth year of a massive drought ‒ and facing only a year’s worth of water remaining in the state ‒ food prices in the US and agricultural unemployment in California are set to climb as farmers do what they can to conserve water and protect their investments.

So what do you think about all of this?


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Government; Society
KEYWORDS: california; government; restrictions; smartmeters; water
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-35 next last

1 posted on 04/08/2015 1:43:46 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

OK boys, the guy in 6B exceeded his allotted shower time by :23 seconds, get 'em!


2 posted on 04/08/2015 1:48:32 PM PDT by PROCON (It's easier to fool people than to convince them they've been fooled -- Mark Twain)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind
This article is not an exxageration. The evil left will not stop until they monitor and control every aspect of our lives.
Up next, poop meters on your toilet. Hooray for oppression!
3 posted on 04/08/2015 1:51:53 PM PDT by subterfuge (Minneseeota: the laughingstock of the nation - for lots of reasons!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

Hmmpt maybe the Delta Smelt issue was made up for this to happen?


4 posted on 04/08/2015 1:52:11 PM PDT by ColdOne (I miss my poochie... Tasha 2000~3/14/11)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

Later


5 posted on 04/08/2015 1:54:05 PM PDT by gaijin
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

Wait till they install the toilet roll sheet counters. Sheryl Crow will be the administrator of that program.


6 posted on 04/08/2015 1:54:51 PM PDT by jsanders2001
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind
Buncha leftist crap.

California’s cities consume 178 gallons per person per day, on average. That’s 40 percent more than the per capita water consumption in New York City and more than double that of parched Sydney, in Australia

So what? The largest water use in the state is for agriculture. Homes account for < 20%. If we effect a 40% reduction in home use it's a 12% reduction overall. Woopie. We can replace that NOW with desal plants. Like the one coming online in Carlsbad.

the country’s largest producer of grapes, kiwis, olives, avocados, broccoli, tomatoes, spinach, tree nuts and dairy

All of which can and are grown elsewhere. Most are boutique, high cost produce because California production costs are already too high. Most ag in this state is basically now seen as a jobs program for illegals by the Leftists. Gosh, what will the Campesinos do? Hopefully go home and murder each there so we don't have to deal with it.

California's drought is exacerbated by a doubling of the State population in the last 40 years, ENTIRELY from foreign immigration (the white and black populations actually shrank). Note that the writer doesn't mention this - it's Waciss! to mention Immigration.

Control freaks? Smart meters and water cops? Hardly any of it would be proposed if not for Mass Immigration, which has made the lives of Americans 10 times harder then it was in 1970.

So why are we doing it?

7 posted on 04/08/2015 1:58:44 PM PDT by Regulator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

The Sheeple in Mdadistan, WI are VOLUNTARILY signing up for this invasion of privacy. No big surprise, there!

https://www.cityofmadison.com/water/sustainability/every-drop-counts-track-your-water-usage-online


8 posted on 04/08/2015 1:59:43 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: jsanders2001
This means that the elite in California will be rationed to one ice cube per martini.

-PJ

9 posted on 04/08/2015 2:00:23 PM PDT by Political Junkie Too (If you are the Posterity of We the People, then you are a Natural Born Citizen.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Political Junkie Too

I wonder if any politicians will have smart meters installed in their homes? I’m going to guess not...


10 posted on 04/08/2015 2:03:52 PM PDT by jsanders2001
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

Enough about Smart Meters, now let’s talk about Smart Watches... they’re like Smart Meters strapped to your body!

What could possibly go wrong?


11 posted on 04/08/2015 2:09:18 PM PDT by Talisker (One who commands, must obey.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind
The solution is easy, if somewhat distasteful. Round up everyone on the Left side of the Bell Curve, and 'deport' them. We can let Mexico handle the sudden influx of Stupid. We can start with anyone who can't change a tire, and all the PHDs in Womyn's Studies. (That would be the Democrat's Party.) Kali would be functionally deserted.

They could have the choice of going to Cuba, also. I have no doubt that all those socialists will be able to tell Castro what he did wrong, in his creation of a true Utopia of complete equality.

I hope they like rice...

12 posted on 04/08/2015 2:10:04 PM PDT by jonascord (It's sarcasm unless otherwise noted...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind
Oh good grief.
All these meters can do is record the use of electricity in the home which can be plotted against time.

1. They individually identify electrical devices inside the home and record when they are operated causing invasion of privacy.
- Utter BS. Everything is inference based on use. They can tell when the A/C comes on from a high load, but everything else in a home is so generic - they can't tell when the TV is running or when you turn on your computer.

2. They monitor household activity and occupancy in violation of rights and domestic security.
- Again, they can infer occupancy by the amount of electricity used.

3. They transmit wireless signals which may be intercepted by unauthorized and unknown parties. Those signals can be used to monitor behavior and occupancy and they can be used by criminals to aid criminal activity against the occupants.
- This, at least, is true. A criminal mind could learn that no one is home if they were to capture the same address over several days and establish a pattern of electricity use, and rob the place when their analysis told them it's most likely to be empty.

4. Data about occupant’s daily habits and activities are collected, recorded and stored in permanent databases which are accessed by parties not authorized or invited to know and share that private data.
- Inferred "habits" based on electricity use.

5. Those with access to the smart meter databases can review a permanent history of household activities complete with calendar and time-of-day metrics to gain a highly invasive and detailed view of the lives of the occupants.
- Inferred "habits" based on electricity use.

6. Those databases may be shared with, or fall into the hands of criminals, blackmailers, law enforcement, private hackers of wireless transmissions, power company employees, and other unidentified parties who may act against the interests of the occupants under metered surveillance.
- See 3.

7. “Smart Meters” are, by definition, surveillance devices which violate Federal and State wiretapping laws by recording and storing databases of private and personal activities and behaviors without the consent or knowledge of those people who are monitored.
- Partially true - homeowners aren't given a choice whether or not to have one installed, but as for the rest, gimmeabreak.

8. It is possible for example, with analysis of certain “Smart Meter” data, for unauthorized and distant parties to determine medical conditions, sexual activities, physical locations of persons within the home, vacancy patterns and personal information and habits of the occupants.
- Agggghhhhh!!! sexual activities??? Maybe with a vibrator that pulls current like a hair dryer... (and how would they know you weren't just drying your hair?). Locations in the home?? Just how does a meter recording overall house use differentiate between a light being turned on in the living room as opposed to one being turned on in the bedroom?

I hate the thought of "smart" meters as much as anyone (well, maybe not) but only from the standpoint of a utility company could brown out your home if they thought you had used more than your share of electricity for the day. That control I would fight against but the information given here just makes anyone with knowledge of electricity wanna smack their head.

13 posted on 04/08/2015 2:16:01 PM PDT by grobdriver (Where is Wilson Blair when you need him?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind
Smart meters are now being used by authorities to crack down on “water wasters” in the state of California,

But, but, but...they promised that this would never happen when they forced people to install them!!!

14 posted on 04/08/2015 2:17:00 PM PDT by Timber Rattler (Just say NO! to RINOS and the GOP-E)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Political Junkie Too

Negative, they can purchase dihydrogen monoxide credits.


15 posted on 04/08/2015 2:20:17 PM PDT by EEGator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

Hey. government get out of my bedroom and into my bathroom where you belong!

/s


16 posted on 04/08/2015 2:22:31 PM PDT by GeronL (CLEARLY CRUZ 2016)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind
This article IS an exaggeration, although accurate to a degree where it sticks to the facts. I have spent the last three years working for an electrical utility that has millions of smart meters installed in its service areas, and can say that, at this point for the utility in question, very little is done with the data being gathered. In fact, the very volume of that data prohibits close inspection of individual records, although it is admittedly possible.

I don't think there is anything to fear from smart meter technology. Yet.

17 posted on 04/08/2015 2:26:22 PM PDT by IronJack
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Political Junkie Too

Only a barbarian puts ice cubes in a martini.


18 posted on 04/08/2015 2:27:51 PM PDT by IronJack
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: jonascord

wrap the cell phone housing (yes it is a cell phone that tattles once a day its 5 minute interval data recordings)with tin foil, or better yet, some kind of tater chip foil bag the wind “blew in”.

uncover once a month for a day or two, so the account gets squared up.

rinse; repeat

(and deny if “they” come sniffin’ around


19 posted on 04/08/2015 2:32:17 PM PDT by telstar12.5 (...always bring gunships to a gun fight...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: Diana in Wisconsin

In Wisconsin - a state that has two of the largest bodies of fresh water on the face of the earth lapping up on its shores.


20 posted on 04/08/2015 2:34:29 PM PDT by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-35 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
Bloggers & Personal
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson