Sure, put a surcharge on the gas to pay the extra expense of using a generator and having an electrician wire it up. Put the generator out where everyone can see it and hear it running. Put a sign on it too explaining the surcharge is paying for the thing.
Not bad. That would deter some of the hard feelings.
Like I said, the first time I was introduced to Thomas Sowell was when his editorial appeared in the NY Post around 1991 making the case that gouging should have been allowed in FL after a hurricane because it would result in better consequences than rationing.
I had never heard anyone nuke the conventional popular wisdom with logic before that.