THE BRAVE NEW WORLD of the smart grid.



Overblown, but not necessarily inaccurate. Overblown, as existing smart technology only measures gross power consumption and would possibly affect your electricity bill if a variable rate structure was in effect. Not necessarily inaccurate, however, as control of 'smart appliances' is clearly in regulators' sight. As far as privacy goes, yes, there's room to worry if your power consumption consistently differs from that of your neighbors.

Reason enough to be increasingly wary of the power of big government.