From: psperson@old.netcom.invalid   
      
   On Wed, 7 Jan 2026 13:14:45 -0500, Cryptoengineer   
    wrote:   
      
   >On 1/7/2026 12:52 PM, Paul S Person wrote:   
      
       
      
   >> This is beginning to resemble the classic cases of externalizing costs   
   >> so someone else can pay them.   
   >>    
   >> Which is what industrial pollution of air and water is all about:   
   >> getting rid of the leftovers at the expense of the neighbors. And now,   
   >> in some cases, server farms: requiring local power systems to build   
   >> new capacity, which the local yokels pay for but the server farms use.   
   >>    
   >> If D Trump is so convinced that Coal is the Future of Energy, why   
   >> doesn't he require each and every server farm to build a coal-burning   
   >> power plant at its own expense for its own use? Instead of trying to   
   >> keep plants that are mothballed and/or nonfunctional due to equipment   
   >> problems in operation?   
   >   
   >Why would the locals have to pay for that electricity rather than the   
   >server farm?   
      
   As others have noted, bulk users pay lower rates.   
      
   But everybody pays for the distribution lines to get the power to the   
   server farms.   
      
   And, in some cases, everybody pays for building a new power plant so   
   there is enough power left over from the server farm's needs for the   
   locals to run their refrigerators, TVs, and so on.   
      
   That is one reason for items like this:   
      
   >The (non melty) reactor at Three Mile Island is being recommissioned   
   >to supply power for Microsoft.   
   >   
   >https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Mile_Island_Nuclear_Generat   
   ng_Station#Reopening_and_Microsoft_partnership   
      
   That is, some server farms are building their own generators at their   
   own expense. Whether this is because of concern for the locals or the   
   fact that the locals just aren't going to pay for it probably varies   
   from place to place.   
   --    
   "Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,   
   Who evil spoke of everyone but God,   
   Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)