Smart Meter update

The Smart Meter is now here in Vermont and it is really very smart. It will allow your Uncle Sam to “see” inside your home. It will tell Uncle just how many times you use your juicer, your shower and your radio versus your television, sending over the airwaves more personal information than you may be willing to share.

Last spring, the spring of 2012, I wrote several editorials warning you about the use of Smart Meters. The homeowner was told at that time, that the new meters would save them money and help to “protect” the environment at the same time. The local electric companies began installing “Smart Meters” to replace the old style analog meters, first in California and then across the country.

Like the frog swimming in comfortably cool water that is slowly coming to a boil, some people have failed to notice the rise in heat and are no longer happy with their new meters.

The Smart Meter is now here in Vermont and it is really very smart. It will allow your Uncle Sam to “see” inside your home. It will tell Uncle just how many times you use your juicer, your shower and your radio versus your television sending over the airwaves more personal information than you may be willing to share.

Some people reading up on the Smart Meter are alarmed about the impact it may have on their health. They are concerned about the impact on their bodies from the microwave radio-frequency (MRF) radiation that these meters emit (radiation that is a carcinogenic on par with lead, according to the World Health Organization). The World Health Organization has also listed these MRF waves as a class 2B carcinogenic. If installed in a town or city, there will be a need for more towers to carry all this technology around. Some of the people that allowed them to be installed are now, not very happy.

It does save the company money by not paying a person to come out and physically read the meters at your home, as they had to do with the old analog meters. Have you seen that adjustment made in your bill?

Now that the meters are in place there are several major problems for homeowners. Some homeowners with Smart Meters are discovering that they can’t heat or cool their homes during peak power usage as the electric companies control the thermostats and automatically cut back on usage. Power companies are now able to read data from the meters that reveals homeowner’s daily schedules and their personal behavior, the types of appliances they use, even if there are certain types of medical equipment in use in the home. This information can then be sold to private concerns or placed in government files.

Evidence is now emerging that the Smart Meters, which operate by emitting electromagnetic signals, have become a health hazard, as thousands of Smart Meters in neighborhoods send a non-stop signal, creating what is called Electromagnetic Smog. The Vermont Journal touched on that problem. The electromagnetic radiation is dangerous for the elderly, children, pets, and those subject to such disorders as epilepsy, heart disease and more. It can also lead to disruptive sleep patterns, chronic fatigue, depression and headaches, and many people are unhappy with the way the meters perform. The “Smart Meters” are designed to provide government with detailed information of your energy use. They can learn how you move in your home, the way you use your personal private time, television, radio, computer, and even how many people are in your home at any given time. This could be classified as an unconstitutional invasion of your home by government, as set down in the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

The American Policy Center (APC) has produced a comprehensive special report entitled “Sustainable Development and the Control of Energy (The growing battle over Smart Meters).” This report details the real reasons behind the Smart Meters, and is available free at http://americanpolicy.org/smart-meters-report. This report tells all, and I urge every homeowner to go on line and read it. I’ve just touched.

Robert Miller, Publisher
The Vermont Journal