The following letter was posted to the Clarke County Tribune in reply to an editorial letter by Susie Shirley which appeared Aug. 12, 2010, on page A5. Susie Shirley, an deeply religious person and author of A Little Bit Of A Lot Of Things, was writing in regard to an earlier letter I had published in the local newspaper critizal of the fact that the power in Quitman had been interrupted after a transformer failure, NOT an natural disaster. The power remained off for some nine hours before it was restored because there was no backup sytem in place and because it took that long to bring a portable transformer from Hattiesburg to Quitman and make the installation. My position is that Mississippi Power and the City of Quitman needs to develop and provide a backup system to prevent long power interruptions which cause loss of business, loss of money and could cause hurt or harm to people, even loss of life in the future. Being thankful for one's blessing does not excuse the power company or the City of Quitman. Mississippi Power is a big utility company that charges for its services; hence, paying customers have a right and an obligation to express their dissatisfaction with service when it is interrupted and when there is no backup plan to automatically switch over to a backup power supply. The City of Quitman is the people's government, a representative body that provides a service to the people, in terms of water, garbage collection and all the other intrastructure that the City provides. Here again the City of Quitman is responsible to the people. Therefore every citizen has a responsibility to express their opinion and to demand satisfaction, especially when their is no backup system to provide for a power outage due to equipment failure. Equipment failure is not a natural disaster or an act of God, but due to man, human error or failure to properly inspect, service and maintain equipment on a regular basis. Hence any excuses offered with respect to power interruption that are the result of humans are NOT acceptable when it is the public paying for a service. It is perfectly reasonable and responsible to demand quality service, and when it comes to electricity, that means inspecting, servicing and maintaining equipment to avoid unexpected power interruptions. My reply addressed to Mississippi Power, Susie Shirely and God is presented below:
Thank you for praising God and praying for the safety of everyone who works so hard to keep our power, water and other services up and running 24/7. I join with you in those prayers for every employee of the Mississippi Power Company, Chickasawhay Natural Gas District, AT&T, BP (now notorious for the largest oil spill in United States history) and the employees of every other power and utility company. But these are NOT churches, they are FOR PROFIT businesses, and their employees get paid very well to do work and provide a service for we the people, their customers. They are working for us, getting paid by us, and we the people therefore have a right to demand they listen to us, and take action to provide us with uninterrupted service!
We the people are their customers and a good business should listen to its customers and strive to provide the best possible service to its customers at the most economical price. In the case of energy, I believe that also means providing clean energy and moving away from fossil fuels. That means developing nuclear, solar, wind, hydroelectric power and other genuinely clean energy sources. Doing this will lower the cost of energy, make us as a nation independent of foreign oil and the fluctuation in prices which that causes, lower the overall cost of energy, and result in more reliable serve. This is because there will be so much power available that a better delivery system with backup systems can be developed and provided to customers state-wide.
I do NOT believe Mississippi Power Company is doing everything it can to provide the best possible uninterrupted service to its customers. I realize that to provide an on-site backup transformer would be an expensive proposition and this would be an additional cost to the City of Quitman which would be passed on to its citizens who also pay for all city services. But just because there is money involved does not mean one should not always strive to be creating a better service for paying customers. My Lord, Clarke County just spent $60,000 to form a railroad authority with other counties. And what have we the people gotten for it so far? Nothing! Quitman's Mayor, Eddie Fulton, did an excellent job of explaining what happened to cause a power outage on July 11th. The Clarke County Tribune also did a very good job of helping to inform the public in regard to this power outage. Later in the month Mississippi Power sent out little tiny card notices to their customers apologizing for the minor "inconvenience" letting customers know the power would be turned off yet again for 30 minutes on July 24, 2010. That's wonderful! But did they compensate customers in any way for losses that this power outage may have incurred? No! And what is Mississippi Power going to actually do to insure such DAY LONG power outages do not happen in the future? NOTHING!
What does the power company say? "Sorry, you just will have to pray to God and be thankful for what you have; we at the Almighty Power Company are not going to waste our profits on the City of Quitman or its no count citizens as it is just a little, no count town, like all the other little no count towns that are our customers who should not complain about anything and just pay their bills on time or we will cut you off, pull the plug, and be done with you!" Yeah, right, is that how you want to be treated by a utility company? But guess what, that's exactly how everyone is treated because there are no laws that protect the people against either the cities or the big utility companies who can pull the plug on you no matter how bad the economy gets. Where is God, love and Christian charity when it comes to how these big utility companies do business? Quite frankly they are more uncaring in how they treat their needy customers, the poor, the unemployed, and the elderly, than they are concerned and giving.
As for power interruptions, in Quitman there simply is no backup system that would switch over IMMEDIATELY to a different power grid to avoid a long interruption of power. What does that mean? It means that someone could die and that their death could have been avoided if Mississippi Power and/or the City of Quitman developed a better backup plan to avoid power interruptions.
Now some people may believe that prayer is the answer to everything. Indeed, the power of prayer is amazing! But I believe God also gave each person a brain and intelligence for a reason, and that unless you use that brain it is an insult to the Almighty Lord who so blessed you. I also believe that God gave everyone a moral compass because we each have the choice to acknowledge God, to say "I Love God," and to endeavor to do His work. That also means saying, "I love my neighbor, as myself," and acting accordingly. I don't believe that utility companies always do this because they are FOR PROFIT businesses and the bottom line is that making money and a lot of it, is the determinant factor in everything they do.
I also believe that we the people as citizens also have the responsibility to take part in government, to vote, to express our opinions in the newspaper -- that this is also a freedom guaranteed by our Constitution. It does not mean anyone who so expresses their opinion is right or wrong. But unless people express their opinion and take action when necessary to effect change, then people get run over by big companies and big government. Why do you think Jesus Christ through out the tax collectors from the temple, an action which got him crucified!
Big companies are notorious for running over people and not stopping at the scene of an accident. In this particular case what is Mississippi Power really going to do to help avoid a power outage in the future? Are they working to develop a better backup system? Are they working to lower power rates? What really are they doing to provide better service? I don't know and I have not seen any response from their representatives or public relations personnel in the Clarke County Tribune. Why is Mayor Fulton speaking for them and making excuses that it would be too expensive to have a reliable backup plan? Why can't they speak for themselves and compensate customers for interruptions in power by granting each customer FREE POWER for a day or deducting $75.00 from their power bill for every hour that the power is out -- as that is a fair amount for loss of business? I want compensation, I don't want excuses! If the power company had to pay compensation for losses every time there was an interruption of service, I guarantee you, they would fix the problem.
I think Mississippi Power should admit that it is their responsibility to develop a better power grid system and/or backup plan. Perhaps this will involve working closely with communities. Maybe it will involve having a better emergency services response unit given this is an issue which effects every community. Maybe our city or state can even get some Federal money to help solve this problem.
The point is, there is a problem and unless people speak out and demand a solution or compensation the utility companies are not going to be pressured to do anything. Why should they do anything when it would mean less profit for them? The way these big utility companies operate is to maximize profits. Do you really think Mississippi Power is going to come along, answer people's prayers and DONATE a new, state-of-the-art transformer to the City of Quitman. Do you think they are going to volunteer to compensate all their customers for what they call a minor "inconvenience." Well, that's what I'm praying to God they will do. So Mississippi Power do you hear my prayers? Of course not, because although you play God with people's lives, you are NOT God and you are not so generous with your profits as you tend to claim on those little apology cards you sent out to all your customers.
So I'm praying to God. Heavenly Father, help us poor and despairing souls out here in Quitman, that we not be exploited, neglected or treated like peons by the Almighty Power Companies. Please God, bless the wonderful people of Quitman with your love and kindness. Please, through your all powerful majesty and spirit find a way to provide for all the needs of our community, to compensate justly those who suffer loss, that those who are your servants and who do your work will not suffer or succumb to failures brought upon them via greed, corruption, neglect, price gouging, irresponsible behavior or impotent power interruptions. I pray that we may live in harmony blessed by your love and extend that love, one unto the other, without prejudice, presumptuous, unwarranted ridicule based upon ignorance, assumption or darkened hearts. Give us this day our daily bread of power without power interruptions to enrich our lives and save our souls that on the next tomorrow when through wind, fire, flood, hail, storm, accident, equipment failure, human error, or other mishap electrons cease to flow, all will be well in our community, that those in need will find solace and aid through the loving gifts and precious kindness of those who know that it is NOT Mississippi Power who has the power, but it is God Almighty who answers our prayers!
Do I believe Mississippi Power has the heart, the generosity or even the will to donate a backup transformer to the City of Quitman? Will Mississippi Power help to find a benefactor to make such a donation? Will Mississippi Power compensate all its customers for losses when there is an interruption of power? Will Mayor Fulton find a way to get our city a backup transformer? Or is this something that we the people must demand before any one dies from another power outage?
I doubt Mississippi Power will compensate customers for any losses caused by an interruption of power. I also doubt Mississippi Power will have the courage, conviction or the gumption to step in and donate a backup power transformer. But I would love them to prove me wrong. Why I'm sure it could be paid for by a combinations of methods: raising rates, raising taxes, collecting donations, etc. But is anyone going to actually step in and answer my prayer? Or is this one of those tasks for which God gave us a brain that we must come together and solve for ourselves?
Maybe the solution is to start a new power company and develop a state-wide plan to provide clean, reliable, economic electrical power for the whole state of Mississippi. Presently two-thirds of the electrical power used in Mississippi comes from fossil fuels, natural gas and coal. Only about one-forth of the 403 million Btus of energy consumed in Mississippi comes from nuclear power. Mississippi ranks 16 out of 50 states for the most energy used. For a population of over 3-million, Mississippi generates only 3,167 MWhrs or just 1.1% of the US share. (US Energy Information Administration, EIA, 2008 and 2010 reports)
To me this means power rates are being kept high because not enough profits are being invested in developing clean energy. We the people continue to pay higher rates, getting less bang for our buck, essentially being screwed over by the big utility companies who want to keep it this way so they can live the good life. Although God may be listening to our prayers, Mississippi power is not. Does anyone want to help answer my prayers for clean energy, lower rates, and more reliable service which would come from a greater abundance of energy made available to the people of Mississippi? If you do then lets get together and start a company and work toward this goal. We could make plans and lobby; we could petition the government. We could organize and develop solutions and demand utility companies listen to us.
Although God works in mysterious ways, it is usually people who want to make difference and help each other who are called upon to do His work. If Mississippi Power is not going to step in and really solve this problem, not only for Quitman, but state-wide, maybe we the people should do it by forming a new, clean energy company or coop, and put Mississippi Power on notice to either answer our prayers or lose our business. This is not a pipe dream. I would love to get together with a few good men and women and start a new company. We could develop and promote energy efficient homes, and home improvement plans, saving customers energy. This could involve everything from new LED lighting in homes, improved insulation, energy efficient windows and appliances, even solar homes and computer operated systems which would conserve energy and increase comfort. Plus we could develop systems and plans to provide backup power to homes and communities as well as emergency services, such a generator rental, to home owners who join or subscribe to our service plans. Apparently there is a great demand in this regard as the existing utility companies are not doing everything they can to help their customers.
If Mississippi Power will not answer my prayers, maybe God will through everyone who takes heart and wants to help insure that the next time the lights go out no one is going to suffer or die. Not because the big power companies had a heart and answered my prayers, but because we the people took action, stepped up to the plate, used our brains, and did God's work.